Comments on: 6 Mistakes of New Earners and How to Fix Them

By: 44 Ways to Ruin Your Financial Life By Age 30 | nothing to see here

44 Ways to Ruin Your Financial Life By Age 30 | nothing to see here — Sun, 16 May 2010 17:28:08 +0000

[...] Spend $2,000 on your new corporate wardrobe before getting your first check. One of the classic mistakes by new earners. As with most things, it pays to pay with cash. Buy a couple nice outfits for interviews and your [...]

By: 44 Ways to Ruin Your Financial Life By Age 30

44 Ways to Ruin Your Financial Life By Age 30 — Mon, 03 May 2010 09:02:32 +0000

By: USA Best Credit Report » Blog Archive » Free Money Finance March Money Madness, Round 1, Posts 53-56

Thu, 18 Feb 2010 19:08:14 +0000

[...] 6 Mistakes of New Earners and How to Fix Them (Earners) - Jill highlights the mistakes she made as well as ways to fix them after starting out on her own a couple years ago. It’s a must read for anyone who has just graduated or needs a little refresher. [...]

By: Best of Personal Finance: 10 Jobs That Will Get a Raise in 2010 | Shopping Reviews, Shopping Advice Plus More!

Mon, 01 Feb 2010 22:49:14 +0000

[...] 6 Mistakes of New Earners and How to Fix Them – So you’ve earned your first fat paycheck. Things are looking up, right? Learn about the common pitfalls of being a noob, and pass this article along to a young friend you care about! My Dollar Plan [...]

By: Carnival Of Twenty Something Finances 14 December 09 | How I Save Money.net

Carnival Of Twenty Something Finances 14 December 09 | How I Save Money.net — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 00:11:36 +0000

[...] presents 6 Mistakes of New Earners and How to Fix Them posted at My Dollar [...]

By: Broke by Choice

Broke by Choice — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 05:26:43 +0000

I am so guilty of buying furniture. Luckily I recovered quickly and started paying attention to my money.

A few of my co-workers fell victum to the idea that they can plan for retirement and pay debt at a later date.

By: Molly

Molly — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 14:22:26 +0000

Re: #2 (clothes and furniture):

I think I spent $200 total on clothes when I got my first job – and I still wear those clothes regularly (three years later). For those three years, I think I also spent ~$3-400 on all the furniture in my apartment. This year, I am FINALLY upgrading – I got a real bed!

And waiting for that, man, it’s awesome to go to bed each night. When you wait and anticipate and pick the right clothes and furniture, it’s wonderful!

By: Carnival of Personal Finance #234 – Weirdest Toy Crazes Edition | Suburban Dollar

Mon, 07 Dec 2009 13:05:11 +0000

[...] from My Dollar Plan outlines six mistakes made by new earners. I am guilty of the going out and buying a new wardrobe and furniture faux [...]

By: Jill

Jill — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 01:10:58 +0000

@Roger Wohlner It is my secret dream to be a planner for pro athletes or young actors. People who go from 0 to millionaires in literally a split second.

@Meg sounds like you are already doing great. I cannot stress enough that you should not count on how much your paycheck will be, and what you can do with it, until you actually see it. Don’t try to do too much at once – be realistic. As long as you stick to your plans of paying off debt and long term savings, you will be A-ok!

By: Friday Five: Dry Edition

Friday Five: Dry Edition — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 19:34:06 +0000

[...] 6 Mistakes of New Earners and How to Fix Them [...]

By: James Fowlkes

James Fowlkes — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 18:24:42 +0000

Damn, I can’t tell you how many of these things I did when I got my first job. Wish I had read this! Now worries, I am on the right track now. Thanks for the post!

By: Meg

Meg — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 16:54:22 +0000

I’ll try to keep a lot of these in mind, but I have to admit, I am looking forward to graduating and earning those huge initial paychecks. (Anything over $1k a month in income is huge to me… Sad, right?)

I think I’ll do okay, because I’m already married and hubby’s the primary support. (We’ve decided that we’ll live off of what he makes, and what I make is the gravy, savings and all that good stuff.) This way I can tackle my student loans head-on and get them gone as soon as possible. By the time I graduate, this should be the only debt between the two of us, so it’d be nice to get it gone quickly.

For now, I’m working on those good habits, even though I don’t earn a lot. I’ve started an IRA, contribute to a 401(k) with match and am working on an emergency fund. I figure that all this will be MUCH easier to continue when I’m earning more because I’m already used to these expenses.

By: Ken

Ken — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 15:11:45 +0000

Excellent tips!! My wife and I committed these mistakes. I would have loved for someone to sit me down with this after the honeymoon. Good stuff!

By: Roger Wohlner

Roger Wohlner — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 12:48:58 +0000

Great post and sound advice. I say this both as a financial planner and as the father of three budding young adults. This may sound odd, but this is also the type of advice that pro athletes and entertainers should be getting as well, even if the numbers are a bit bigger.

By: Wojciech Kulicki

Wojciech Kulicki — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 12:30:50 +0000

I completely agree with the salary looking like a $1,000,000 when you first enter the real world. One tip I would add is to avoid making big purchases when you first come out of college.

When your salary looks infinite, you’re more likely to make spur of the moment decisions, like buying a new muscle car or renting a house you can’t afford on a one-year lease, without considering how that will affect you for years to come…