Money... you just cringed didn't you? I wanted to post about money because I know it's on everyone's minds these days and I haven't mentioned much about finances in the blog so why not? The idea for this post started in my head several weeks ago when I met up with an old acquaintance I hadn't seen in quite a while. In fact I don't think I had seen her since I had just gotten married. So, of course, she was asking about the baby. She doesn't have any kids of her own yet. She asked if we were going to have another baby anytime soon. I told her that we do want to have more but probably not for a few years. We both want to achieve some goals with our careers and we definitely want to be able to save up before adding on the big expense of a new baby. She then said, "You know, I hear this all the time about kids being so expensive... I don't understand, what is so expensive about them?" And yes, it was a serious question.
Hmmm... now that is not a question I ever anticipated having to answer when it comes to the "when are you going to have more kids?" question. I'm sure I don't need to go into what my response was to her about all of the expenses of having a child are to all of you fabulous readers. But it definitely got me thinking more about money or lack thereof ;)
Don't get me wrong, we're not destitute by any means. We live in a great house, we both have good jobs (and I'm on the verge of a big promotion which will be awesome for my bank account.) But there are things that I would love to be able to do for my family that cannot happen with our current financial state. So I started watching CNBC on Saturday nights... can you tell what a crazy socialite I am? ;) Suze Orman and "Til Debt Do Us Part." I know absolutely nothing about money. All I know is that you want a lot of it. But I feel like I've learned a lot from these shows. Even though we're still paying off our student loans, it has got me thinking about Farrah's education, and our retirement.
Oh retirement.... it seems so far away and yet I'm supposed to start paying for it now? As if I didn't have enough incentive to accomplish my goals with my career, I was looking into the retirement plan they offer for the top position in the company (National Sales Director- NSD for short). Once you reach the position of NSD you are considered one of the top leaders in the company... and boy do they pay you for it. Here's how the retirement plan works: When you retire they take your last 5 years, pick your best 3 income-wise, and pay you 60% of that for the next 15 years. At this point of your career you're making, on the low end $15,000 per month, and on the high end, $100,000 per month. So 60% of that is not too shabby. And if you pass away before the 15 years is over, they still pay it to your family. You don't have to pay into it, you don't have to do anything... they just give it to you.
When all of these thoughts were crossing my mind, Farrah was asleep and Abe was out DJing so I was alone with my thoughts. I couldn't get off my mind what this would mean for my family. I know it won't be easy, but if over 200 women in the US have this position currently... why not me?
It sounds kind of silly I know, but this idea of working towards securing a future for my family and not just working to pay the bills that are due on the first of the month is something I hadn't really put much thought into before, and now I can't stop thinking about it. I'm sure not everyone reading this blog is in the same place that I am, but we all have something we want that finances are keeping us from attaining, so I'm sure, in some way, this idea pertains to everyone out there. Something to think about, I guess.
"Remember your priorities. The purpose of work is to provide happiness and security for your loved ones and for you. Your happiness and theirs are intertwined; what's good for you is ultimately good for them too." -Mary Kay Ash
I leave you with some new pics of my adorable reason for everything I do.
No comments:
Post a Comment