What I spent my money on:

Since it is already a new year, I’ve written a post looking back at my income starting from November 2022. I got this idea from watching Youtube videos on how much money some content creators make in a month, and it would be interesting to give it a go. I find it offputting how people in the US like to brag about how much money they make, coming from Europe (Spain) and having lived in other European countries, the United States, and the Caribbean. Mind you, but on the other hand, it’s refreshing that some people are willing to share their income with strangers on the internet.

Alas, living with the money I made last month is almost impossible, considering how expensive everything is with or without inflation. As some may know, freelancing is a topsy-turvy curve because of the inconsistent income. There are times when you earn a decent amount and others when you are making ends meet.

I worked for a company in New York whose identity shall remain a secret because the United States is a country where people like to sue others over small things. The pay was terrible; despite making an impressive 2.000.000 million dollars a month, they retained your wages, and the customers were disrespectful, arrogant, and dangerous.

Many of my former customers developed obsessive crushes and bizarre behaviours because they were attracted to me. Not to mention their contractor customer service is equally rubbish, and they do not care about their workers’ safety. Despite these terrible setbacks, there are some perks to being freelance, which I will briefly mention before combing thru my finance book and sharing the amount of money I spent.

The advantages of being freelance include freedom, flexible working hours, and choosing your projects. Negotiating with your clients how much money you want to get paid depending on the task’s length, deadline, and difficulty. Working remotely from home or anywhere in the world; the chance to perfect your skills, learn new ones, exploit your creativity and work for yourself.

*Small disclaimer, I don’t include what I spent on food because I paid for it with a food card due to earning low-wages. Without further ado, here is a breakdown of how I spent my income from November 2022.

Fixed expenses: Rent: I paid ($775/717,83€) for a room in a dangerous part of Brooklyn with no privacy and shared common spaces with loutish, unhygienic people and a nosy landlord. For me, the amount was unreasonable and not worth it.

Mobile phone: My bill was only ($17.53/16,14€). Instead of hundreds of dollars because I used to pay for a pre-paid service thru T-mobile. And I have an unlocked phone, an advantage that can save you a lot of money in the long run. Protip: * In this day and age, it’s now easier to get cheap unlocked mobile phones from Apple or Android for less than ($300/ 277,10€)depending on the model on Backmart.com and Backmarket.es

Storage box: ($21,95/21,95€ )I pay a monthly storage fee in Spain for a small box which explains why the cost is low compared to renting a Storage space in New York, which costs about 300$+ a month.

Total: $814,48/755,92€

Variable expenses: Transportation: I only spent $26,70/24,73€. I used my metro card when travelling for work, buying groceries or running errands. I form part of a programme called My Fair Fares, designed to help New York City residents with a lower income pay 50% of the stipulated fee of 2,75$/2,55€ by reducing it to 1,35$/1,25€.

Restaurants: I spent a total of $10,09/ 9,35€ for November, and I avoided buying outside food as much as possible by cooking my food because even the smallest of expenditures can add up and get out of control.

Monthly budget: $896,75/830,60€(freelance income)- $814,48/755,92€ (November income)=$82,27/76,20€

Breakdown of my weekly expenses:

Week 45: $14.00 Week 46: $11,57 Week 47: $10,95 Week48: $10,20

Total weekly expenses: $46,72/43,27€

Initial budget: $82,27/76,20€- $46,72/43,27€= $35,55/32,93€

In retrospect, I did not receive payment in the traditional sense of freelancing, where you wait for weeks, even months, and I got paid weekly. I could see how much money I had made daily per assignment, including tips. However, this does not mean that it made things straightforward because of the income instability; it was impossible or nearly impossible to make a budget and save a certain amount of money.

The tips that have helped with income instability are:

1. Having an idea of how much money I’d like to save.

2. Making a challenge to work more not only as a freelance employee for a company but also working extra freelance, freelance for myself.

*Working for yourself as a freelancer vs working freelance for a company can help you make more money. You have more control, allowing you to become more selective with the type of clients you want to work with together.

3. Making a mental map of what I want to eat, cook my food and buy cheap ingredients to make enough food that can stretch for the week or days ahead.

4. If possible, try to make a budget.