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How to ‘Treat Yourself’ on a Budget

Posted on by ekoochel

College is stressful, and managing money can be hard. Trying to manage your money during stressful times can be especially difficult. You may find that when life gets tough you just want to ‘treat yourself’, but you don’t want to fork over your hard earned money just for a little enjoyment.

Here are 4 tips to treating yourself without breaking the bank.

  • Set aside a certain amount that you can spend each month on yourself.
    • Each person has a different budget, and that budget will determine how much you can actually afford to spend on yourself. This could also limit how many times you can afford to engage in some extra spending. For some, spending $15 every week on themselves fits into their budget. Another person may only be able to devote $10 each month to pampering themselves. Whatever your budget is, stick to it. It is easy to spend too much if you do not have a plan before spending.
  • Plan ahead.
    • There are times when we all are just looking forward to the end of the week. Maybe you have three tests and two papers to write. Maybe you have to work extra hours, even though your campus organization is holding their biggest event of the year. No matter what your circumstances, there are times when you know you will just want to celebrate the week being over. If you see you have a crazy week ahead, look around for different deals or discounts that you could use once your hectic week has finished.
  • Don’t forget it is okay to spend money on yourself.
    • Sometimes it’s hard to convince yourself that you should be spending money on yourself when you have other financial obligations. Treating yourself is not supposed to be overwhelming, or make you feel bad. It is alright to spend money on yourself every now and then.

“When you treat yourself right, you run better and more efficiently. Which means you don’t have to go 100 miles an hour to get everything done.” – Ann Curry

  • Treating yourself doesn’t always have to be a big thing.
    • When you hear “treat yourself” your mind probably first went to spending money. However there is a lot more to indulging on yourself than just buying something. It is important to take some time to focus on your self-care in other ways as well. You can treat yourself without spending a single penny. Some ways to do this include: watching your favorite series on Netflix, getting outside and engaging in a physical activity you enjoy but haven’t gotten to do much of recently due to your busy schedule, or calling a friend or relative you have been wanting to catch up with.

Remember – treating yourself is important, but it doesn’t have to break the bank. For help establishing a budget or savings plan, or if you have any other financial questions, visit our website, www.k-state.edu/pfc to make an appointment with Powercat Financial Counseling. Our services are completely free and confidential to all Kansas State University students. One of our counselors would be happy to sit down with you and discuss different ways to make wise financial decisions.

Lindsay Adams, Peer Counselor I
Powercat Financial Counseling
www.k-state.edu/pfc

Money Saving Tips for Spring Break

Posted on by ekoochel

The semester is flying by and spring break is just around the corner! Spring break is meant to be a fun and relaxing time to get your mind off of school and rejuvenate yourself. However, traveling can become quite expensive and many students end up stressing out about their trip because of the overwhelming costs. Below are helpful tips and tricks to help save some extra cash so you can focus on having a well-deserved stress free week.

Meals can eat away at your budget very quickly, especially when restaurants at many spring break locations can be quite pricey, albeit delicious! Consider packing your own food and drinks when you are traveling. If you’re carpooling with friends, pack a cooler full of sandwiches, drinks, and snacks. This will be cheaper than stopping at restaurants along the way, even the seemingly inexpensive fast food places. It will also shorten the time of your trip by cutting out those timely meal stops and help you get to your destination faster! If you are flying somewhere you can also pack a meal and/or snacks. Food on airplanes and in the airports is very expensive, avoiding these options for meals will significantly decrease your meal costs. Another common way to bring down your food costs is finding a hotel furnished with a refrigerator and microwave, or better yet an in-room kitchen. Buying groceries and making a few meals in your hotel will be much cheaper than going out for every meal, or ordering room service.

It is important to not forget about taking care of your car if you happen to be the lucky one driving cross-country. Make sure your car is free of any maintenance issues before starting your journey, and check to assure you have recently had an oil change. A car breakdown on spring break is not only costly, it’s absolutely no fun and cuts into your vacation time. Also, remember to properly inflate your tires to the appropriate pressure, and use cruise control on the highway, to increase your gas mileage. GasBuddy is a free app that shows you all the gas prices in your area. You can use it to locate the lowest priced gas station when you need to fill up. If you submit the price you paid at the pump you can be entered to win a drawing for $100 every week too. That could be a great budget booster for your spring break!

Make sure you have a sufficient packing list before you depart. Bring essential items such as sunscreen, sunglasses, etc. as these items tend to be much more costly at tourist destinations. These attractions can also be popular areas for thieves to look for distracted individuals, or cars that aren’t secured. College students are also popular targets for scams, so if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is!

Finally, make sure you attend Spring Break NOT Spring Broke on Thursday, March 3rd. Powercat Financial Counseling will be hosting this fun and beneficial event at the Rec from 4:00-6:00pm. There will be games and information to learn even more tips on saving money during spring break as well as a chance to win one of six Magic Bullet Blenders along with other prizes! Also if you would like to start a budget for spring break, or have any other financial related questions, make an appointment with Powercat Financial Counseling and one of our peer counselors would love to sit down and meet with you. Just go to www.k-state.edu/pfc and click on “request an appointment” link on the homepage. We hope to see you in, and have a fun and relaxing spring break!

Brady Heidrick, Peer Counselor II
Powercat Financial Counseling
www.k-state.edu/pfc

 

Amazon Prime: Is it worth it?

Posted on by ekoochel

“Hey, give me your money,” said Netflix, iTunes, and online shopping shipping costs. As college students, there is a good chance that these expenses are present in our lives. However, Amazon Prime has made it possible—and affordable—to provide students with instant streaming of thousands of movies and TV shows, access to over a million songs, and free two day shipping.

If you’re like any other student, you seek out every entity possible providing students with a discount. Amazon Prime offers a 50 percent discount to college students. This makes Amazon Student Prime a one-time payment of $49 for a year-long membership. If you do the math, that totals out to a little over $4 a month, which is half the cost a month of Netflix.

Textbooks: an unavoidable cost for college students. Amazon advertises students can save up to 90 percent on textbooks. Begin by typing the ISBN number of your book into the search on Amazon.com. You may find the book is offered for a much lower price, to either rent or buy, on Amazon compared to other bookstores. You can use the money you’d be saving in your budget for books to purchase Amazon Student Prime, and receive your books in two days!

Other services built-in with Amazon Student Prime include free release-date delivery on video games, unlimited photo storage, exclusive early access to Lightening Deals, and free books each month through Kindle First. If any of these forms of entertainment are important to you, this could be a good investment. Another unique feature is the opportunity to share your account. This allows you to share the Amazon Student Prime services with family members in the Amazon Household, which qualifies one other adult and four children. Once you invite them to join your account in your settings you can successfully share your prime membership, regardless if they are a student or not.

To help you decide if Amazon Student Prime is right for you, there is a free six month trial. Unfortunately, during the free trial you will not be allowed to utilize the free movie and TV show streaming. After the free trial is over, if you wish to not purchase Amazon Student Prime, make sure you discontinue your account. If you do not discontinue your account, you will be automatically charged $49 for a year-long membership.

In conclusion, you have nothing to lose—including money—to at least try Amazon Student Prime. During the free trial, you may find yourself saving money, or it is possible you will find yourself barely using the different services. Whichever decision you come to, make sure it is the right one for you financially. For other financially savvy decisions visit Powercat Financial Counseling for a free and confidential peer-to-peer consultation.

Allison Becker
Peer Counselor I
Powercat Financial Counseling
www.k-state.edu/pfc