-
People think that they are smart. Look around you, or rather, read around you! Check out the Facebook status updates, Tweets, and blogs. Everybody has a voice and most of those voices are telling you how smart, sexy, funny, ballin’, musically inclined, and extra savvy they are. Look at the whole Tiger Woods scandal. Everybody took a shot at Mr. Woods. People that don’t even know him want an apology. What’s even funnier is that if a guy would have had the opportunity to be with one of the women he was with, they’d drop their drawers in public. But that is how smart everyone is.
This leads to the next point. There a lot of people that become “experts” when athletes get big, fat, enormous contracts for entertaining us in sport. America expecially does this. The next time contracts are mentioned and a player gets an exhorbitant amount of pay read expert comments on Yahoo! Sports, ESPN.com, Fox Sports, check it out. There will always be at least one expert.
So what if Manny Ramirez get’s paid $1 Billion to swing a bat, what’s the big deal! I can hear you now “But Rance, you own a company that encourages people to save money and there is so much good that those millions could be spent on!!” You have a point, the homeless need food and shelter but how can you blame someone for choosing a vocation that makes them wildly rich? Athletes give me what I want and they get compensated for it. If I paid you $500,000 right now to do what you currently do for a living how much of that would you give off-the-bat to charity. I can bet you $1 Million that you wouldn’t tell me “Nope Rance, give that $500K away.” You’d go house and car hunting. There’d be new shoes purchased from Macy’s. Get real. But, everybody’s an expert right?
So here is something that I like to call “Are you smart, Money?” I’m going to throw an example at you about certain things or situations. I want to know from you, the reader, which of these is a bad investment, smart investment, not an investment at all. Write what you feel. Why do you love it or hate it? Why isn’t it needed? Are you smart? Here’s your chance to prove it.
Situation:
You and your best friend just graduated from college and friend landed a job making $37K annually to start and can make $50K a year and a half from now. Friend has a nice new apartment located in the “it” district side of town, friend may buy a new Mercedes Benz C-Class (starts around $35K), and seems to be doing great. Is your friend doing way too much? Everyone is loving Friend and the new fortunes. How do you handle the situation?
Here are some factors:
You and friend graduated from the same University in the same field. You had a higher GPA, more honors, more passion for the career, and you can’t find a job in that field. You still live at home with your parents, make $24K annually working part-time at a Footlocker in the mall.
Everyone is wondering what’s really going on because YOU are the one that is supposed to be doing what Friend is doing. Who is really in a better position and is taking care of business? Who’s shoes would you want to be in and why?
ARE YOU SMART, MONEY?
About The Author
Rance
Leave a Reply
2 Responses and Counting...
Everyone is wondering what’s really going on because YOU are the one that is supposed to be doing what Friend is doing. Who is really in a better position and is taking care of business? Who’s shoes would you want to be in and why?
If I had to answer the question technically I would say the friend working in the mall is in the worst position because she is underemployed which is almost humiliating, whereas the ‘Friend’ is actually hired full-time and begining her career.
I think that if both parties go into work and ‘grind’ hard, actually have pride in what they’re doing then they both are in nice positions… who knows, the girl at Footlocker may become the manager?!
I dont think ‘Friend’ should go out and buy a Benz…. I think that’s getting ahead of herself. Does she even need a new car?! She’s spending on the assumption that she’s going to be making 50K in a year, but she could easily loose her job and have nothing to fall back on. Plus the fact that the cost of the car is about as much as she makes in a year is ridiculous… she simply can’t afford it, and it’s not a good purchase… let’s not even discuss the insurance on that bad boy!
I think ‘Friend’ would be smart if she found a nice apartment, not LAVISH apartment, near her job so that she could use public transit if possible. I think if she’s paying more than $1000 a month on rent she’s doing too much, because not only is apartment living the furthest from investing, she would end up spending 12,000 a year on rent … is that almost a third of her yearly income? And that doesn’t include groceries and bills!
She should live in an affordable apartment and save on the side for her first home.
The girl in the mall is also in a good position because by living at home she has the option of saving almost all she makes granted she isn’t required to pay rent.
Who would I want to be? Obviously I’d want to be ‘Friend’ but I’d make some major changes. I would definitely choose to be in a career vs. underemployment.
I think with both scenarios there is an opportunity for the girls to be smart with their money and do well, but there’s also a chance for them to $@#$ up lol!
Good observation KidDiva. I think being the friend working in their field would be my pick. Who wants to work outside of their field. Besides Friend makes more money.