What are the tricks for 1st year guys to save money?
02-25-2007, 10:39 AM
#11
The NeverEnding Story
Joined APC: Sep 2005
Posts: 7,517
Its been said but I'll say it again: make a budget based off your 75hr guarantee minus about 20% for taxes, and live within that. Anything you make over that is great and should be saved or used to pay down debt. Pick up opentime if it is available and you need the $$$.
Don't blow your per-diem at the bar. Set a daily budget for food (mine is usually $20/day) and bank the rest. Also, don't spend $4 a day at Starbucks on fancy drinks when a grande coffee is less than $2. DON'T SKIMP ON THE VAN DRIVER TIPS.
Take food with you on the road. PBJs, apple sauce, Chef Boyardee, microwavable soup, tuna, Cliff and Powerbars, almonds are all good. Take a small amount of food from the hotel breakfast if able (yogurt, fruit, oatmeal, granola bars, etc). Avoid high-sodium foods as much as feasible, although travel-friendly foods like soup tend to have a high salt content.
Cook your own meals when at home. Chicken is great, low fat and high in protein. Also remember to eat pasta, fruits & vegetables, milk and eggs.
Don't blow your per-diem at the bar. Set a daily budget for food (mine is usually $20/day) and bank the rest. Also, don't spend $4 a day at Starbucks on fancy drinks when a grande coffee is less than $2. DON'T SKIMP ON THE VAN DRIVER TIPS.
Take food with you on the road. PBJs, apple sauce, Chef Boyardee, microwavable soup, tuna, Cliff and Powerbars, almonds are all good. Take a small amount of food from the hotel breakfast if able (yogurt, fruit, oatmeal, granola bars, etc). Avoid high-sodium foods as much as feasible, although travel-friendly foods like soup tend to have a high salt content.
Cook your own meals when at home. Chicken is great, low fat and high in protein. Also remember to eat pasta, fruits & vegetables, milk and eggs.
02-25-2007, 10:46 AM
#13
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Jan 2007
Posts: 692
It think people need to think about the nutritional value of the food that they are consuming. If you eat extremely cheap you are destroying your body. You have to take a look at the exact ingredients in the food, you might be very surprised. These people that say it only costs them like ten dollars a day are selling themselves short.
02-25-2007, 10:54 AM
#14
Administrator
Joined APC: May 2006
Position: C-172
Posts: 8,024
Note: I am not a regional pilot, but the tips below helped when I went to law school and lived only on my husband's salary. Other tips came from my many low-income clients, many of whom were homeless and penniless.
Develop a budget or spending plan.
Track your spending and see where else you can cut back.
Find cheap haircuts or have family/friends cut it for you.
Resist buying new things.
Shop at thrift stores if possible.
Shop in bulk. Get some friends together and shop at Costco, divvy up the stuff.
Load up on things that are non-perishable and happen to be on sale (toilet paper and such).
Take freebies in the hotel like shampoos, but do not do what calcapt used to - take the towels, bedding and lamps!
Eat soups, choose foods with protein (chicken, fish), pasta. [One client used to take the ketchup packets from McDonald's and reconstitute it into tomato soup. I don't recommend this unless you are really desperate.]
Perform chores for extra money.
Donate blood.
Sell excess personal property on craigslist or some other free venue.
Cut coupons.
Develop a budget or spending plan.
Track your spending and see where else you can cut back.
Find cheap haircuts or have family/friends cut it for you.
Resist buying new things.
Shop at thrift stores if possible.
Shop in bulk. Get some friends together and shop at Costco, divvy up the stuff.
Load up on things that are non-perishable and happen to be on sale (toilet paper and such).
Take freebies in the hotel like shampoos, but do not do what calcapt used to - take the towels, bedding and lamps!
Eat soups, choose foods with protein (chicken, fish), pasta. [One client used to take the ketchup packets from McDonald's and reconstitute it into tomato soup. I don't recommend this unless you are really desperate.]
Perform chores for extra money.
Donate blood.
Sell excess personal property on craigslist or some other free venue.
Cut coupons.
02-25-2007, 11:02 AM
#15
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Jan 2007
Position: Pilot sleeping.
Posts: 615
Originally Posted by ImperialxRat
One of my teachers in college kinda-sorta did a study on eating cup of soups nonstop. He was eating them for each meal out of the day, and after about a week he was experiencing hypoxia.
So amny preservatives, etc in that food.
Eating mac n' cheese will get ya fat real quick.
Go with cheap lunch meats and breads. Eat eggs when your home...theyre soooo cheap. Eat lots of soups.
So amny preservatives, etc in that food.
Eating mac n' cheese will get ya fat real quick.
Go with cheap lunch meats and breads. Eat eggs when your home...theyre soooo cheap. Eat lots of soups.
02-25-2007, 11:04 AM
#16
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Jul 2005
Posts: 2,242
Originally Posted by vagabond
Note: I am not a regional pilot, but the tips below helped when I went to law school and lived only on my husband's salary. Other tips came from my many low-income clients, many of whom were homeless and penniless.
Develop a budget or spending plan.
Track your spending and see where else you can cut back.
Find cheap haircuts or have family/friends cut it for you.
Resist buying new things.
Shop at thrift stores if possible.
Shop in bulk. Get some friends together and shop at Costco, divvy up the stuff.
Load up on things that are non-perishable and happen to be on sale (toilet paper and such).
Take freebies in the hotel like shampoos, but do not do what calcapt used to - take the towels, bedding and lamps!
Eat soups, choose foods with protein (chicken, fish), pasta. [One client used to take the ketchup packets from McDonald's and reconstitute it into tomato soup. I don't recommend this unless you are really desperate.]
Perform chores for extra money.
Donate blood.
Sell excess personal property on craigslist or some other free venue.
Cut coupons.
Develop a budget or spending plan.
Track your spending and see where else you can cut back.
Find cheap haircuts or have family/friends cut it for you.
Resist buying new things.
Shop at thrift stores if possible.
Shop in bulk. Get some friends together and shop at Costco, divvy up the stuff.
Load up on things that are non-perishable and happen to be on sale (toilet paper and such).
Take freebies in the hotel like shampoos, but do not do what calcapt used to - take the towels, bedding and lamps!
Eat soups, choose foods with protein (chicken, fish), pasta. [One client used to take the ketchup packets from McDonald's and reconstitute it into tomato soup. I don't recommend this unless you are really desperate.]
Perform chores for extra money.
Donate blood.
Sell excess personal property on craigslist or some other free venue.
Cut coupons.
When I travel on orders I always take an empty suitcase - bring back towels, everything in the hotel room I can get my hands on, and all the free food from the breakfast I collect and suitcase it back to my 'crib' for later use.
Oatmeal anyone?
Apple?
How about a Holiday Inn towel?
-LAFF
02-25-2007, 11:58 AM
#20
Moderator
Joined APC: May 2006
Position: ATP, CFI etc.
Posts: 6,056
creative poverty
All through college I used to go into the produce department get one of those clear plastic sacks and stuff it full of everything I could find in produce. There is all kinds of stuff in produce from to nuts to tofu. Then I would check out using the self-checkout and punch "cabbage". Did that all through college. Once in while the newer cashiers would catch me using this ploy- usual ones knew people did that and didnt care- and I would say oops didn't see all that tofu or whatever in there sorry. It was just survival- when I got a real job I went straight. It was just like that Jimmy Buffet song, you do what you have to do to get by.
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