Congratulations!
Being debt free must be an awesome feeling -- jig away!
ExpatERE Journal
Goals for Nov.2011
My main goal is to keep my expenses under 650.00 this month. I big area I'm working on is food consumption. This is turning into an experiment of sorts. What foods can I eat that last the longest? How many times do I need to eat a day? Do I need to eat everyday? Sounds kind of crazy, but this is the thinking I do these days. Questioning the most important assumptions of all: my own. You get use to a particular way of doing things and take for granted that you could do something else if you wanted to. There is nothing saying that you have to do it the same way you always have. This makes sense, but if you really apply it to your own life then things begin to look different and you begin to act different and that my friend is the beginning of some serious change.
The food budget is 100.00 or less this month, I'm actually going for less.
I will also start posting my income/expenses now that my leave is over and the debt is paid off. Looking back over the last 13 months I see lots of ups and downs in my expenses. I want to see this moving in a straight line, at least much more consistent than it has. My FI projected expenses will be around 800.00(ish) and I want to see if I can consistently keep it in this range.
Nov. will be a fun month.
My main goal is to keep my expenses under 650.00 this month. I big area I'm working on is food consumption. This is turning into an experiment of sorts. What foods can I eat that last the longest? How many times do I need to eat a day? Do I need to eat everyday? Sounds kind of crazy, but this is the thinking I do these days. Questioning the most important assumptions of all: my own. You get use to a particular way of doing things and take for granted that you could do something else if you wanted to. There is nothing saying that you have to do it the same way you always have. This makes sense, but if you really apply it to your own life then things begin to look different and you begin to act different and that my friend is the beginning of some serious change.
The food budget is 100.00 or less this month, I'm actually going for less.
I will also start posting my income/expenses now that my leave is over and the debt is paid off. Looking back over the last 13 months I see lots of ups and downs in my expenses. I want to see this moving in a straight line, at least much more consistent than it has. My FI projected expenses will be around 800.00(ish) and I want to see if I can consistently keep it in this range.
Nov. will be a fun month.
Congrats Expat - being debt free is a big accomplishment that you'll always be able to look back to and feel proud of. Knowing that you don't owe anyone anything and everything you own is actually yours gives you a whole different feeling about your life and finances.
Can you elaborate some more on the income side of the equation? What are you going to do when you get back to the States (are you back in the states?). What do you do as a civilian contractor working for the government?
If this is a little too personal, feel free not to answer. I've always been frugal but often struggle with attaining a high income and so am always curious how people with a high income got into that position...
Thanks!
Can you elaborate some more on the income side of the equation? What are you going to do when you get back to the States (are you back in the states?). What do you do as a civilian contractor working for the government?
If this is a little too personal, feel free not to answer. I've always been frugal but often struggle with attaining a high income and so am always curious how people with a high income got into that position...
Thanks!
M-- while in Iraq I worked in disaster response at a a military base. Currently I do the same thing in Kuwait, but for an oil company. For now the income is what I consider high. I wouldn't make this doing the same thing back in the states. With bonuses and remote assignment work it pushes me a little over 100k. The pay is great but other benefits are also available. The tax advantages are great and the low cost of living can't be beat as you will see in my Nov. income/expense report that I will post at the end of the week.
My goal is to be FI before returning to the states. I may continue to do what I do now, but on a part time or short term contract basis. One of my goals have always been to return to school and work on a ph.d in philosophy. Working toward that has intrinsic worth to me and if I never was able to get a job in the academic world so be it, I wouldn't need it. I like the the idea that MikeBoss talks about in his blog of rehabing a few distressed properties and then renting them out. I suppose this could be my side gig while pursuing my studies.
There are a lot of opportunities to work overseas if it is something you are interested in. Not sure what your field of expertise is, but I think most people would be surprised at the possibilities that are out there. I had never really given it serious thought till after my divorce when I knew I needed something drastic to get my life back in order.
Ask any question you want M. If I feel uncomfortable answering here I will PM you.
My goal is to be FI before returning to the states. I may continue to do what I do now, but on a part time or short term contract basis. One of my goals have always been to return to school and work on a ph.d in philosophy. Working toward that has intrinsic worth to me and if I never was able to get a job in the academic world so be it, I wouldn't need it. I like the the idea that MikeBoss talks about in his blog of rehabing a few distressed properties and then renting them out. I suppose this could be my side gig while pursuing my studies.
There are a lot of opportunities to work overseas if it is something you are interested in. Not sure what your field of expertise is, but I think most people would be surprised at the possibilities that are out there. I had never really given it serious thought till after my divorce when I knew I needed something drastic to get my life back in order.
Ask any question you want M. If I feel uncomfortable answering here I will PM you.
bluepearl-- i don't really have any websites I can recommend. I've found those that are specific to my field and the best thing you can do is search for overseas work in your area of interest. There are openings for engineers, IT, healthcare, education to name just a few. I know we have a few other expats on here and you might start a thread and see if anyone else can offer any additional resources.
It took me a bit of time to locate my first position and even longer to do all the paperwork involved in actually getting ready to go, but once you get your foot in the door you will learn of several other opportunities.
It took me a bit of time to locate my first position and even longer to do all the paperwork involved in actually getting ready to go, but once you get your foot in the door you will learn of several other opportunities.
ExpatERE, thank you. I was reading your journal about being an expat and how there are websites out there in every area of expertise, and I thought: why not try it? So now we have found the perfect job opening for my boyfriend, something he has always wanted to do. He is sending in his application today. If it doesn't work, at least now we know what to do: use google to find more options...
DutchGirl-- That's great news! I wish you guys the best of luck. Don't get discouraged if he doesn't get this one job. The first one I went for I wasn't accepted. I continued my searching and sending resumes etc. and about a month later I had a guy calling me b/c I had been referred to him by someone. It all worked out great in the end, but when you first start it takes a lot of searching and patience.
Technology makes it seem like the world is really smaller than it is, but in reality it's a really big world out there full of a lot of possibilities if a person is willing to think differently. Again, wish you both the best of luck. Keep me posted on how his search and application go.
Technology makes it seem like the world is really smaller than it is, but in reality it's a really big world out there full of a lot of possibilities if a person is willing to think differently. Again, wish you both the best of luck. Keep me posted on how his search and application go.
Thanks, I will. I also think that if this one doesn't work, he can continue to look for other job openings in similar companies. Also, he has often had (admitted, smaller) jobs from people who heard from him because he applied for a job somewhere else; so indeed it may be that if he is not accepted for this job, they may contact him in a few months-years to ask him to apply for another job.
It is really great to see his enthusiasm. And I think something clicked in his mind. I think he never considered really going out there and applying for that dream job - and from now on he will consider that, I'm sure of it.
Now if only I knew my dream job; but maybe I'm one of those people who doesn't have a dream job. Not like my boyfriend. I guess that's OK too, I have a lot of jobs I like, but maybe none I love with a passion.
It is really great to see his enthusiasm. And I think something clicked in his mind. I think he never considered really going out there and applying for that dream job - and from now on he will consider that, I'm sure of it.
Now if only I knew my dream job; but maybe I'm one of those people who doesn't have a dream job. Not like my boyfriend. I guess that's OK too, I have a lot of jobs I like, but maybe none I love with a passion.
Nov. Income/Expense Report
Income
Salary: 8812.42
401k match: 560.03
Dividends: 363.46
Total: 9735.91
Expenses
Housing/Utilities
Rent: 131.73
Inter/Phone: 41.23
Furniture: 4.21
House supp: .53
Food:
Eating Out: 41.58
Groceries: 97.33
Taxes:
FIT: 89.58
Entertainment:
Movies: 3.99
Shopping:
Kindle Book: 8.89
Personal Care:
Deodorant: 3.20
Misc:
Library fee: .53
Gifts: 50.00
Fin. Fee: 16.00
Medical Ins: 55.00
Assoc. Dues: 1.07
FIT Reimb. 36.18
Total Expenses: 581.05
Savings Rate: 94% (!!)
A couple of notes. I use gross salary amounts and count my 401k match as income. I do this b/c of the tax benefits I get from being an expat. It seems to be more accurate for my situation. I'm just starting to really get into tracking this stuff so if you guys have some thought on how I track let me know.
I am EXTREMELY happy with this month. This is the lowest month of expenses I have had this year. I think I was really wanting to catch up from spending so much last month with the debt pay off.
My big focus was food, esp. groceries. I set a goal of spending less than a 100.00 on groceries for the month. I put the cash in the envelope and basically told myself when it's gone, it's gone. The last week and half I really had to be careful as I had ran out of money, but it did make me much more conscious of what I was buying. I focused on oats, rice, lentils, dry beans and eggs. I think I had ground beef twice this month, that was the extent of my meat eating. I've actually been flirting with vegetarian eating for the past year and have significantly reduced my meat consumption. I like a rib eye as much as the next guys, but meats expensive so I've been moving more toward grains. It's been fun and I've been enjoying experimenting in the kitchen. I have not felt deprived at all, but let me say this, I am looking forward to the 1st so I can go grocery shopping again. The goals is to reduce this down further for next month. I'm going to try to eliminate the eating out completely.
I'm getting about as low as I can go on the expenses. It's getting close to where I'm just going to be maintaining. What I'm trying to do is get to a bare minimum baseline and then decide if there is anything that I need to add back in. Very, very happy with the progress I've made over the last couple of months.
Income
Salary: 8812.42
401k match: 560.03
Dividends: 363.46
Total: 9735.91
Expenses
Housing/Utilities
Rent: 131.73
Inter/Phone: 41.23
Furniture: 4.21
House supp: .53
Food:
Eating Out: 41.58
Groceries: 97.33
Taxes:
FIT: 89.58
Entertainment:
Movies: 3.99
Shopping:
Kindle Book: 8.89
Personal Care:
Deodorant: 3.20
Misc:
Library fee: .53
Gifts: 50.00
Fin. Fee: 16.00
Medical Ins: 55.00
Assoc. Dues: 1.07
FIT Reimb. 36.18
Total Expenses: 581.05
Savings Rate: 94% (!!)
A couple of notes. I use gross salary amounts and count my 401k match as income. I do this b/c of the tax benefits I get from being an expat. It seems to be more accurate for my situation. I'm just starting to really get into tracking this stuff so if you guys have some thought on how I track let me know.
I am EXTREMELY happy with this month. This is the lowest month of expenses I have had this year. I think I was really wanting to catch up from spending so much last month with the debt pay off.
My big focus was food, esp. groceries. I set a goal of spending less than a 100.00 on groceries for the month. I put the cash in the envelope and basically told myself when it's gone, it's gone. The last week and half I really had to be careful as I had ran out of money, but it did make me much more conscious of what I was buying. I focused on oats, rice, lentils, dry beans and eggs. I think I had ground beef twice this month, that was the extent of my meat eating. I've actually been flirting with vegetarian eating for the past year and have significantly reduced my meat consumption. I like a rib eye as much as the next guys, but meats expensive so I've been moving more toward grains. It's been fun and I've been enjoying experimenting in the kitchen. I have not felt deprived at all, but let me say this, I am looking forward to the 1st so I can go grocery shopping again. The goals is to reduce this down further for next month. I'm going to try to eliminate the eating out completely.
I'm getting about as low as I can go on the expenses. It's getting close to where I'm just going to be maintaining. What I'm trying to do is get to a bare minimum baseline and then decide if there is anything that I need to add back in. Very, very happy with the progress I've made over the last couple of months.
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TravelingTrader
- Posts: 56
- Joined: Mon Sep 19, 2011 7:19 pm
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LiquidSapphire
- Posts: 510
- Joined: Thu Jul 28, 2011 6:40 pm
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Grandmother
- Posts: 12
- Joined: Wed Oct 26, 2011 2:44 am
Congratulations on your amazing turn around and achievements ExpatERE. Just a note on food. As you get older health issues will become more and more important. Many of us flirt with various diets, especially when we are trying to keep our food costs down. I managed to drop our food budget by 30% by becoming vegetarian. However, and its a big however, vegetarianism didn't work for me and my husband. We kept getting bigger and bigger waists - a no-no from a health perspective - with a slight deterioration in overall health. We had to look elsewhere for improved health.
By going paleo/primal we have managed not only to do a natural weight reduction without calorie counting but my husband's sex drive has come back and my auto-immune diseases are fading away. Its slow and ongoing. This seems to be a common response of many if you read the paleo forums, although many in the medical field would poo-poo the idea. Given the costs of health care this is something you want to think about.
By going paleo/primal we have managed not only to do a natural weight reduction without calorie counting but my husband's sex drive has come back and my auto-immune diseases are fading away. Its slow and ongoing. This seems to be a common response of many if you read the paleo forums, although many in the medical field would poo-poo the idea. Given the costs of health care this is something you want to think about.
teewonk---- true, i did jump the gun a bit, but i knew i wasn't going to spend any more for the last two days of the month and was excited to share the news. I don't know about you, but there are not many people I can share the excitement of a 94% savings rate and they come back with a projection of years to retirement. Most of the circles I run in would understand neither.
TravelingTrader-- Thanks for the kudos. I'm liking the freedom of not having the debt as well. My overall goal behind all this is increasing that freedom. I'm not so sure I'm looking for ERE, but more of FI. I want to maximize my freedom to do what I want and not worry about a full time job requirement to service past debt. It's a work in progress as I'm sure most of us here are.
LiquidSapphire & Grandmother--- My eating continues to be an area which is evolving. I'm trying to find out what my nutritional requirements are. I have no strong interest in vegetarian or paleo style eating. I've done both and think that when it comes right down to it you just need to do what work best for you. With that in mind I have two main requirements from my eating. First it must give me the fuel to perform. I go the gym ones a day and rotate between strength training one day and cardio the next and going back and forth between the two. If my calories aren't high enough I begin to feel lethargic thorough out the day and my workouts suffer. Second, It must be inexpensive. I've placed these in order of importance. If my eating style was impacting my energy levels I would eat the cost increase and adjust accordingly.
So, at the moment I lean towards the higher carb, vegetarian style eating because it is working. I have the energy from higher carbs with less cals so I'm actually losing weight and my strength continues to go up. My objective now is to see how I can maximize this. How little do I need to eat to get the above results? I use to believe that I need to eat 4-6 meals a day with lots of protein, but now that I'm getting the same results if not better I have to question some of my assumptions. This is what is making it interesting, learning.
TravelingTrader-- Thanks for the kudos. I'm liking the freedom of not having the debt as well. My overall goal behind all this is increasing that freedom. I'm not so sure I'm looking for ERE, but more of FI. I want to maximize my freedom to do what I want and not worry about a full time job requirement to service past debt. It's a work in progress as I'm sure most of us here are.
LiquidSapphire & Grandmother--- My eating continues to be an area which is evolving. I'm trying to find out what my nutritional requirements are. I have no strong interest in vegetarian or paleo style eating. I've done both and think that when it comes right down to it you just need to do what work best for you. With that in mind I have two main requirements from my eating. First it must give me the fuel to perform. I go the gym ones a day and rotate between strength training one day and cardio the next and going back and forth between the two. If my calories aren't high enough I begin to feel lethargic thorough out the day and my workouts suffer. Second, It must be inexpensive. I've placed these in order of importance. If my eating style was impacting my energy levels I would eat the cost increase and adjust accordingly.
So, at the moment I lean towards the higher carb, vegetarian style eating because it is working. I have the energy from higher carbs with less cals so I'm actually losing weight and my strength continues to go up. My objective now is to see how I can maximize this. How little do I need to eat to get the above results? I use to believe that I need to eat 4-6 meals a day with lots of protein, but now that I'm getting the same results if not better I have to question some of my assumptions. This is what is making it interesting, learning.