In a financial pickle!

[achingwallet89]

I'm terribly bad with money. I spend way more than I actually make. Because I'm a full time student, i can only work part time and I live in one of the most expensive cities in the world. I need to do something extra, nothing too official. Probably something on the internet. But most of that online stuff is either fraud or just bull. Any ideas? Something i can do online when i have the time to make some extra cash?

[greenskeeper]

I'm terribly bad with money. I spend way more than I actually make. Because I'm a full time student, i can only work part time and I live in one of the most expensive cities in the world. I need to do something extra, nothing too official. Probably something on the internet. But most of that online stuff is either fraud or just bull. Any ideas? Something i can do online when i have the time to make some extra cash?

sounds like the government. Looking for more income is ok but cutting spending can help as well.

[QuarterMillionMan]

sounds like the government. Looking for more income is ok but cutting spending can help as well.

Well said Greenskeeper! I would like to add making a list of your "wants" and "needs." Don't buy things that end up in the "wants" column (until you have the extra money to afford it). It takes discipline, train yourself grasshopper.

[disneysteve]

I spend way more than I actually make.

Any ideas?

Here's an idea. Stop spending more than you make.

[gostumpy]

Yup, the solution to "I spend more than I make" is never to make more... spend less, THEN make more.

[creditcardfree]

Plenty of people go to school AND work a full time job, you might consider cutting your school hours if your priority is spending. You'll need more money for that!

Babysitting...study after kids go to bed.
Dog sitting.
Online surveys.
Sell your stuff on craigslist, and ebay.

[Kircheis]

How much exactly is "way more"? Do you have a breakdown of what you are spending your money on?

[Nika]

The first thing I thought when I read this post is that this person

http://www.savingadvice.com/forums/debt/69730-financial-advice-very-poor.html

did not like the answers he received the first time and for some reason opened another account.

[orlandowilliams]

Everyone will suggest you to save your money. Don't spend so much and there is no better advise for you.

[bjl584]

I'm terribly bad with money. I spend way more than I actually make. Because I'm a full time student, i can only work part time and I live in one of the most expensive cities in the world. I need to do something extra, nothing too official. Probably something on the internet. But most of that online stuff is either fraud or just bull. Any ideas? Something i can do online when i have the time to make some extra cash?

I think step one is to stop spending more than you are making.

Why are you spending more than you make? Where is the money going?

[phantom]

If you have extra time, I think you would be better off making extra money by picking up extra hours at your part time job that you would be to try making money online. It takes a lot of work and/or skill to make more than minimum wage online. If you don't have time for extra hours at your part time job, you probably don't have time for an online job that makes significant amounts of money either.

[ua_guy]

I don't think anyone can give you advice without knowing what you make, from where, and what you spend it on. Post up a snapshot of your finances.

"Stop spending more than you make" isn't really good advice. It's a good answer, but it neglects the "how". Students are often in a predicament of spending more than they make...sometimes there is no work, or work isn't possible for various reasons, and expenses to live and go to school continue on. There's an ebb and flow of money when you're a student...

But ultimately there's a choice to make. Maybe you can accomplish your goals by tuning up your finances and being more disciplined about what you spend. We can help with that here if you post details. Or, maybe you need to re-assess your goals and make changes like... next quarter, drop down to being a part-time student so you can work more. Or, maybe you need to take some time off to save up for your next year in school. Maybe you can take cheaper classes at another college if you're satisfying basic requirements.

[reedda]

Any ideas? Something i can do online when i have the time to make some extra cash?

Mystery shopping - I did this for about 4 years. I can send you info on how I got started if you'd like (you need to be careful that the companies you sign up with aren't scams). This can be good for students because you can generally work with your own schedule, and many times get free/reduced meals, groceries, and other useful items.

[joshuaking]

Lots of good advice here. I do think that first and foremost you must figure out how to spend less than you make. I find that writing everything down is the best way to get a handle on this. Write down every expense that you have every month. Using a service like mint.com can help a lot with this. Once you figure out what you've been spending, take a look at how you can lower your expenses in each category. For example, when times are tight I found I did not need to have internet at home, since there are so many places to get it for free-coffee shops, McDonalds, etc.

Once you've cut your expenses, and are spending less than you make, you will have cut the bleeding. Now you can take a look at increasing your income. If you want to make money on the internet, look into websites like fiverr.com . Come up with a couple ideas for services you could provide for $5.00, and underpromise and overdeliver.

Stick around here and you will hear about many more ideas that will help you move from being in a financial pickle to having more financial peace and abundance.

Best wishes to you.

Joshua