The Art of Definite Action

As I mentioned in a previous post I am concerned about my finances for the upcoming winter. Rather than allow the fear to eat at me I decided to take some definite action and meet the concern head-on.

Up the street from my home is a gas station that happens to be hiring, not only for cashiers but for management as well. The work is full-time. Cashiers start out at $9 an hour so while I’ve no idea how much management earns it is safe to say they make even more.

I turned in my resume the other day. Should I receive just the cashier’s position at their starting wage I will have increased my weekly income by close to $100 a week. It will go up even more should I net a management position.

I will have to make some adjustments if this comes to pass. I’ll be working at least 15 more hours a week at a public job than I do currently so I will have to reduce my posting frequency. That said, based on my monthly expenses here I should be able to invest close to a week’s wage every month towards my goal of financial freedom even during the winter months in addition to investing my book royalties. That will cut down the amount of time needed to save up $60,000 by over half.

If other jobs come available within walking distance to my home I will apply for them as well. Something will come up. While I’m not thrilled at the thought of going back to full-time, the thought of gaining my freedom is driving me forward. I am going to do whatever it takes to achieve financial freedom again. I want the option of not having to work, whether I choose to exercise it or not.

What steps are you taking to work towards your future? Please share your stories in the comments below.

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18 thoughts on “The Art of Definite Action”

  1. Amazon Unlimited lets me read some books for free. A friend has books in that program but I felt badly about reading for free instead of buying. He said he gets paid for each book read under the free program. I don’t know how you get your books into that program but you might want to check it out. A lot of people will read a free book they would not pay to read. Increased passive income?

    1. Linda, you have to pay for the Amazon Unlimited, don’t you? I thought it was a monthly amount, something like $9.99. Authors with books in this program get paid from that membership you pay. And, if you are going to read a book, I believe the author gets paid more if you read the book from cover to cover. There is less pay for books that readers don’t finish reading.

      1. Hi Cam!

        I put a book on Amazon Unlimited a few years back as an experiment. Amazon insists that any books you place in their Unlimited program be exclusive to Amazon–meaning that I wouldn’t be allowed to sell them on Apple, Barnes and Noble, and other places. The prices they pay tend to vary each month depending upon their cash “pool,” so you never quite know how much you’ll earn. As a result of those and some other reasons, I’ve decided against going Unlimited. I’d rather my readers be able to purchase and read my books on their device of choice. I don’t make as much money, but this way I’m not completely dependent upon Amazon when it comes to book royalties.

        I don’t trust them enough to give them exclusive distribution rights to my books.

    2. Hi Linda!

      The thing about Amazon Unlimited is that, in order to qualify for the program, indie authors aren’t allowed to distribute their books through other channels. Even worse, you’re limited to a single source of book royalties–Amazon. If something ever happened with your Amazon account, your income source could completely dry up. I’ve seen that happen to several writer friends.

      As much as I like Amazon, I don’t trust them that much. 🙂

  3. Annie, that is great that a job opened up that is within walking distance! You can still be car-free. I had to go back to work full-time, too, to meet my financial goals and live my dream. I was fortunate enough to find a job I really like. Anyway, it does make sense to work 40 hours a week and meet your goal in 20 years vs working 20 hours a week and meet your goal in 40 years. I hope you do find time to write because I read your blog every day and own many of your books. Love your writing! Good luck with getting the job.

    1. Thanks Cam! I’ve got a few different options in mind just in case finding an appropriate job doesn’t pan out. In the meantime I will do the best I can with what I have. There’s no point stressing over it. I’m limiting myself because I really don’t have any desire to own another vehicle at present but that’s okay. There is more than one path to reach this goal–I just have to find the one I want to take.

  4. I have started working as a para thru a temp agency. The pay is minimum wage but it lets me try out the different schools in my area and learn of permanent openings, which as I learn of, I am applying for. I have Fibromyalgia and Chronic fatigue, so going back to working 5 days a week is challenging for me after years of working part time and going to college part time (Graduated in May) . My goal is not to get Financially free, as yours is, but to put myself in a good position for when my older son and his GF move out. He is currently working full time at a good paying job, and he and his GF help with half of the bills. It helps a lot. I am trying to stay in this area for my daughter who loves her school and is doing well. I had looked into down sizing but at this time anything that would save me much $$$$, is also in need of a lot of major repairs so I am not sure that is the right move for me right now. My youngest (DD) has 5 1/2 more years of schooling. After that I plan to move to a cheaper area.

    I am trying to plan for how to get thru working full time, or almost full time, hours. With my medical challenges, it is hard. I have only been back at this since school started back up. I have learned that doing any running after work is not a good idea for me, it’s too tiring. Also dinners have had to become even more simple than they were before. I come home exhausted and don’t feel like cooking. Any cleaning, and groceries/running gets done on the weekends. A lot of things are getting put off… I need pants for work, because I can’t wear jeans, and that is mostly what I own… I keep wanting to get shopping to go look for 1 or 2 pairs but I can’t seem to fit that in. As long as the weather stays warm I will wear the capris I own. Eventually I will get to that.

    1. I know how tiring it can be Sheila. We tend to fix fast meals here as well due to time and energy constraints. I order what I can online to avoid shopping, and pick up groceries after work since I’m fortunate enough to work in a grocery. Just do what you can, when you can. I know it is a struggle but the goal is so worth it! Sending hugs!

  6. Annie, wish you well in getting the new job and your goal of financial freedom. I have a goal of financial freedom as well and recently took a part time job in addition to my full time job. I’m working a lot of hours but I have a goal of being debt free and having a substantial amount in saving. Achieving that initial goal will take me 2.5-3 years. If I can stick with these increased hours for that time I will be in a very good financial position in just a few years and on my way to financial freedom. Keeping the end goal in sight makes it easier to put in those extra hours.

  8. I’m sure you have read “Your Money or Your Life: 9 Steps to Transforming Your Relationship with Money and Achieving Financial Independence.” They talk a lot about the balance between earning your money and keeping your money, with the end goal of not working so much or for so long. Still working on it myself. I went back to work FT as I decided the only way I could get money was to earn it. Also working on the not-giving-it-away-through-my-purchases thing. It is a balancing act. And speaking of trust, I don’t trust the stock market enough to give them my money. If I earn it, I want to keep it. They talk about this in the book too. Good luck to you! And HBD to your daughter!

    1. I love that book Stacey! I’ve decided to take a more long-term view of the stock market. I tried doing more frequent trades, and while I didn’t do bad it simply didn’t suit my personality. It’s a bit early to know if I’m successful yet, but I’ve got to at least try, you know? I’ve learned the hard way not to trust a single source of income.

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