I considered posting this in the welcome thread, but I feel that it's one of those small things which changes your whole life - so I think that's pretty badass.
Basically, over the past few weeks, I've moved from an average mindset where I hoped one day things would work out, to actively shaping my life and carefully and purposefully handling our money. Here's what I've done:
1. (April 2013) Had my first and probably only child, a daughter
2. (July 2013) Signed up to an Aussie newsletter by a guy called the
Barefoot Investor3. (November 2013) Took the plunge, signed up for his monthly share newsletter and bought $1,500 worth of shares
4. (March 2014) Started my first full-time "adult" job (which I'd been offered two years earlier after an internship) at $51,000 per year
5. Found and read
earlyretirementextreme.com6. Found and read
financialmentor.com7. Found and started reading mrmoneymustache.com
8. Started my
own blog on financial independence/wealth from an Australian perspective, not with any view to make money but to share things I was learning, to give an Aussie perspective on some things which are quite different to America wealth-wise and to inspire myself to do better.
9. Reduced health insurance, agreed with Mr.W on a grocery budget, opened a first home saver account, actually looked at electricity and gas usage with a view to reduce it, go a slight reduction in electricity rates, checked that my home and contents insurance is cheap, checked that my phone and internet are the cheapest available, started taking lunches instead of buying, cut down heavily on spending while at work, and have solid plans for investment and future retirement (including increasing my superannuation contributions to 12%, the equivalent to a 401(k) for Americans).
I know a lot of these things are pretty small steps, but I think of it in terms of changing the angle of a launched projectile - a movement of even a few second or minutes, let alone degrees, can drastically alter the landing place of the projectile. Since I'm 27 next month and my husband is 34, we're not young but we're not near traditional retirement age, either. I'm hoping to meet more Australians who have a down under take on finances (some expenses are quite different to what they are in America) but in general just learn more ways to be smarter with money, and in the end, be more badass!
Luckily I have come from the place of, over the past few years, becoming a bit of a minimalist and rejecting consumerism, so that means there are less cuts to be made in terms of spending on clothes, media, and so on, but I know I still have a lot to learn and a long way to go!
