Megan is a 30-something government employee in the Washington, DC area. She got interested in Personal Finance when she got out of college and realized that her paycheck wasn’t going to go as far as she had hoped. Since starting this blog, she has managed to buy a house and make a solid start on her retirement goals, and hopes to help others do the same. Here is her story:
In 2007, I was a gainfully employed 20-something with no debt but not a lot of knowledge about personal finance. It was a co-worker’s comment about Roth IRAs that sent me to the internet, searching for information. It was then that I realized that I really didn’t know a whole lot about personal finance and that my current financial situation was due a lot to inherent frugal tendencies, generous family members, a fear of debt, and good luck. While that was working for me, clearly I needed a better plan.
While I had no debt, I was also pretty much living paycheck to paycheck and not worrying about going over budget (I say this as if I had a real budget) because I had an emergency fund set aside to cover any overages.
Except that’s not what an emergency fund is for.
So I did a lot of research, read a lot of blogs, and decided that I needed a plan. I needed to budget. I needed to know what I was spending my money on. I needed to prepare for the future.
I decided to create a blog not only to make myself accountable to others but also to share the knowledge that I gained along the way. I’ve learned so much from my fellow bloggers, and I hope that my readers can find something useful in what I have to share as well.
Congratulations on the promotion! Try to enjoy it despite the economic problems around you. Even if you decide not to make a big deal about it to people you know who may be struggling, I would share the news with a select few of your closest friends and family. I’m sure the people who love you would want to celebrate with you!
I think your emotions are very common for all of those celebrating success in times like these. I don’t think you can feel guilty about giving your job 110% and being rewarded for it. In effect, you are only reaping what you sow.
If your employer (in this case, the government) is financially successful, then I think they have every right to share that with you. And you have every right to accept it, celebrate it, and move on. If I were laid off and saw my friends getting raises, I may be sad about my own situation, but I would be genuinely happy for them.
Don’t feel bad about it. If I were your friend I’d be psyched for you 🙂
And congratulations. Well deserved!
Congrats!!! You got all us pf’ers to wish you a job well done. I’d be flying high as hell if i could pull that off in today’s market! so great job.
Shoot, don’t feel guilty, be super happy! It always feels good to be rewarded for hard work – enjoy this blessing.
Rock on,
NCN
Thanks for all the congrats, everyone. I appreciate the kind comments. It feels pretty good to be appreciated at work, and it’s nice to be able to share that.