On this past Sunday, we set our clocks back one hour for the end of Daylight Savings Time. You could catch an extra hour of sleep, or an extra hour of being awake if you’re up late enough. Daylight Savings Time gives us more sunlight for spring and summer, and gives us more of the moon for fall and winter. Twice a year you have to adjust your clock, unless you have electronics that do it for you, but wouldn’t it be nice to set the clock back on your finances? If you could go back in time, what would you change about your money? Here’s what I would do:
Save up for an emergency fund
There have been several instances where I could’ve really used a healthy emergency fund. I was making enough money to save for a rainy day, but instead was more focused on saving for a wedding. Ironically, that money was used towards an emergency anyways. If I could set the clock back on my finances, I’d start saving up sooner and more aggressively.
Not get into credit card debt
I think a lot of people are with me on this one. If I knew then what I know now, I’d know that credit card debt can be debilitating. When used correctly, however, credit card use can boost your credit score. I wouldn’t have bought outrageous things I couldn’t afford, and the things I actually needed, I would’ve paid the balance in full instead of just the minimum balance.
Set up a budget sooner
I’ll admit, I didn’t set up a budget for my money until I was at my job for 6 months. That’s 6 months of money mismanagement where I didn’t know where my money was going. A budget would’ve kept my money in line, and allowed me to spend wiser. Sure, budgets can be intimidating at first, but once you set it up, it’s pretty easy to live by.
Chose a different bank
Hindsight is always 20/20, so when I opened up my first bank account with Bank of America, I didn’t know all the ridiculous things they would put me through with fees, poor customer service, and just a bad reputation as a whole. If you didn’t hear, Bank of America is attempting to lure their customers back by scratching the $5 debit card fee that intended to charge users. It’s too late though; I’m already on my way out the door, and switching over to Ally Bank. I probably would’ve gone with a credit union to start.
Find a cheaper place to live
When I first moved out on my own with my now husband, we chose the first apartment complex we went to look at. It wasn’t a bad place. We got a nice 1 bedroom apartment in a neighborhood 3 minutes from his job. However, the rent was $1,270 a month. Now that we’re looking at another place to rent, we’re seeing that we could’ve been saving $300 or more each month if we chose a different complex. Sure, it wouldn’t have been 3 minutes from his job, but it would’ve been money we could’ve been putting in our savings account.
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