$12K in the bank, going to quit my job

[NatureB]

I just got back from a meditation retreat, and my current job at a juice bar doesn't feel authentic to me. It never did, but I needed something to do for money so I started working here. I am ready to move on.

I have $12K in my savings. I can also get $6K on a new credit card that has 0% APR for 15-18 months in case I need it, but I don't think I will.

My plan is to quit my job at the end of September, travel the states for 2-3 months and move to a new city in January. It will most likely be Denver or somewhere in California, but the east coast also calls me. 

I also plan to spend these months until January doing inner child work, since that seems to be THE point of most leverage in shadow work. I believe this will put me more in touch with my authentic self.

 

My bills each month are $1,200. With traveling I will probably spend $1800 per month. That would leave me with a little over $6K in January to survive on in a new city where i will get a new job.

 

Why do I want to move?

Vegas revolves around the strip. Take away the strip and there is nothing to keep anyone here, imo. 

I know that this move will help me learn about myself and become more grounded and worldly, which is essential if you want to have a positive impact on the world.

I want to see if I can survive without family around, and I want to see the parts of me that come out when I don't see my family often.

 

What do you guys think of my plan?

 

[Yarco]

Do you have a backup plan if it doesn't work out? Can you move back with your parents for a while if you run out of money?

Credit card is a bad idea imo even if it's 0%. Say you max it out and then can't find a job within a year and it goes up to 32%, then what?

9-10 months isn't that much time. Especially if you'll only be looking for a job during half of that. Even moreso during covid. Do you have any idea what kind of job you'd want to do? If you don't have an education, how are you going to find something more fulfilling?

I think your estimate of $1,200/mo is probably too low. For example if you end up moving to Denver, average rent for a 1 bedroom apartment is over $1,400/month. That's not including  your phone, internet, utilities, food, car stuff.

Not sure how old you are... but I don't think anybody's first job feels authentic to them. Not many people stay working at McDonalds or a grocery store. But most people also don't go travelling the country to find themselves either.

To me it kinda sounds like a temporary escape that isn't completely thought out, and will end up with you back in the same position. But just my 2 cents.

Slightly ironic that Leo moved to Vegas and you wanna move away as well. You say nothing there to keep you there... why do you think new places you've never been to will make you feel more grounded or instantly have a connection? I think you might be disappointed to find that the rest of the world is just as empty, and meaning is what you make of it.

I think you can temporarily keep working your current job while doing the inner work to figure things out, and then you'll still be left with 12k in the bank at the end. Or just do the travel till January and have 6k left, without committing to moving to another city at that point yet.

With covid restrictions it also might be better to wait a year or so until things clear up so you can really enjoy the travel too

Edited September 2, 2020 by Yarco

[NatureB]

Thanks for the detailed response @Yarco

27 minutes ago, Yarco said:

9-10 months isn't that much time. Especially if you'll only be looking for a job during half of that. Even moreso during covid. Do you have any idea what kind of job you'd want to do? If you don't have an education, how are you going to find something more fulfilling?

It's three months of travel, then reassess what I want. To move out of Vegas? To stay and do something different? 

I did one year of college but it wasn't my thing. I might start thinking about going to electrician school like my brother but that would just be for stability and something to do, like a plan d.

27 minutes ago, Yarco said:

To me it kinda sounds like a temporary escape that isn't completely thought out, and will end up with you back in the same position. But just my 2 cents.

You may be right. I feel like this is my impulsive side hijacking my brain at the moment.

27 minutes ago, Yarco said:

Slightly ironic that Leo moved to Vegas and you wanna move away as well. You say nothing there to keep you there... why do you think new places you've never been to will make you feel more grounded or instantly have a connection? I think you might be disappointed to find that the rest of the world is just as empty, and meaning is what you make of it.

Fuck, you are right again. I guess knowing for sure would be a good thing though. I like a lot of places on the West Coast, and I can see myself living there. Leo said that if you are in a rut, moving can be a great way to break out of it. I can move for one or two years while developing myself. My mom will always let me move back in anyway so 'failure' isn't even bad.

27 minutes ago, Yarco said:

I think you can temporarily keep working your current job while doing the inner work to figure things out, and then you'll still be left with 12k in the bank at the end. Or just do the travel till January and have 6k left, without committing to moving to another city at that point yet.

With covid restrictions it also might be better to wait a year or so until things clear up so you can really enjoy the travel too

This is way more realistic. I realize now that I can take a more prudent approach. I can start by researching the top 10-12 cities I would like to live in, then visiting them while still working at my job. It isn't as urgent as it felt when I first wrote this post.

 

I think I am going to quit my job anyway though. I don't care for the people and I leave feeling far worse than when I came.

[Average Investor]

It's always easier for me to make more money, when I have a cushion vs starting over again. Even if you were not business or investing savy you could use some of this money to start buying things you will use in bulk. Not only that, but paying bills and such in bulk to get better rates. I do this with my cell phone and such and it has saved me a ton of money a year. 

Traveling would be awesome and could provide some great stuff with it. I am just not so sure it would be worth spending a large portion of your money to do it, but I don't fully know your position. If you think you might need to rely on credit it just isn't worth it. 

I would see if you can find some ways to work on making money with this money in the mean time. 

[NatureB]

On 9/2/2020 at 7:32 AM, Average Investor said:

It's always easier for me to make more money, when I have a cushion vs starting over again. Even if you were not business or investing savy you could use some of this money to start buying things you will use in bulk. Not only that, but paying bills and such in bulk to get better rates. I do this with my cell phone and such and it has saved me a ton of money a year. 

Traveling would be awesome and could provide some great stuff with it. I am just not so sure it would be worth spending a large portion of your money to do it, but I don't fully know your position. If you think you might need to rely on credit it just isn't worth it. 

I would see if you can find some ways to work on making money with this money in the mean time. 

You are right. I wrote this post on my first day back at my job after a really awesome meditation retreat and I was feeling the contrast pretty sharply.

I've decided to give Forex trading a go and I have some friends who are already succeeding with this.

 

I will wait until Covid passes hopefully sometime next year, and then I can really travel. Brazil, India, Spain, Africa, here I come. Thanks for the advice guys.

[Average Investor]

@NatureB That could be a good way to make some money. I see a lot of people use that very closely to gambling though. If you look around the richest investors do not trade like that either. Not saying you cannot do it, but just something to consider. I like the peace of mind and tax benefits of long term investing. There is so much to learn though and I recommend being conservative with your money if you are just getting into investing. 

[mmKay]

Hey, have you heard of vanlife? Basically you purchase a car / van, make it somewhat livable and live travelling without paying for rent. If you are a frugal person and have the savings you could go a good year or more just doing the inner work or focusing on whatever you'd like. just my 2 cents .