DFG Moving On Up

It has been a busy past couple of months for the Dividend Family Guy.  My wife is due with our next installment of the clan in August and I switched jobs in June.  What I thought was a good decision turned out not to be.  Less stress is good right?  Not so much.

The 10% loss of income I talked about some time ago created more friction between me and the Mrs. Than I thought.  Sure we didn't go deeper in debt but my budget was so tight you could bounce a nickel on it.  We weren't living on mac & cheese but we weren't doing much of anything except for free or discounted family fun things.  That didn't really bother me since we had fun regardless of how much it cost.  What has been bugging me is I haven't had any cash to invest no matter how much I trimmed the fat.

Could I have trimmed more?  Sure but it wouldn't have been enough to invest again on a regular basis.  To do that you either have to earn way more money or cut a big item out of the budget.  For me that left earning more money.  Luckily an opportunity presented itself and it came with a nice pay increase.

The company I now work for is a Global Fortune 100 company and I already owned some of its stock.  I am happy to work for a company with a strong brand and reputation and who knows it may be my last job switch.  The stuff we are working on is near and dear to most people's pocket books and could change the industry the company is focusing on.  Vary vague I know but it is good stuff.

The first week of work my manager gave up his conference ticket to me and I was off to New York City.  My coworker and I were in the Financial District for the conference so I snapped a few pictures I thought you all would enjoy.

Enjoy,

DFG

The Bull - Couldn't get close to my friend that has been helping our accounts for the past couple of years.

We walked this famous street which is open to only foot traffic these days.

Tech problems sure, but the building looked cool.

Another view of the New York Stock Exchange.  I love old buildings.

This one is for you No More Waffles!

AMEX now known as NYSE MKT


Own MCD and probably the flashiest one I have ever seen.

Another time square stock I own.
Last picture but not the least.  We will remember this day forever!

Comments

  1. Financial VelociraptorJuly 10, 2015 at 11:16 AM

    Glad the employment picture worked out for you even if you had to go the long way around to the goal. Looking forward to you joining me in FIRE.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dividend Family GuyJuly 19, 2015 at 9:56 PM

      Thanks FV. I am enjoying the new job so far the paychecks are better!
      DFG

      Delete
  2. Dividend Family GuyJuly 11, 2015 at 11:39 AM

    This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Dividend LifeJuly 19, 2015 at 1:29 PM

    Hi DFG,

    Congrats on the new job - I hope it's going well for you. I guess given the choice between stress at work and stress at home, I'd go with the stress at work if I had to.

    I assume the new company has a different 401k plan? What changes will be you be making to pre-tax contributions, and what will you do with your old 401k if you have one?

    Best wishes,
    -DL

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dividend Family GuyJuly 19, 2015 at 9:59 PM

      Yeah I should have learned that lesson a long time ago. So for all you striving for financial freedom out there ALWAYS make your partner your first priority over anything. Once you achieve that everything else will go smoother. Excellent question DL regarding the 401k and good topic for a quick post.
      DFG

      Delete
  4. No More WafflesJuly 26, 2015 at 6:01 AM

    DFG,

    Ha, awesome, a waffle bar! Too bad I only read your post now. Did you get a waffle? ;)

    I'm glad to hear you're enjoying your job. Apart from some really motivated civil servants I've never seen anyone talk so enthusiasticly about a project or product!

    Hope you find a way to trim the fat a little more while making good with your partner.

    Cheers,
    NMW

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Will Dividends Teach My Kids to Work Hard?

After reading an article about education and learning from Mr. Money Mustache last week I starting thinking about my kids and their upbringing vs. how I was raised.  There was lots of discipline but also a tremendous amount of freedom.  That combined with loving parents taught me many lessons in life that I believe have led me to a great career and the joy of raising a large family.  The one thing that worries me the most is a fear that my children do not value gifts or money they receive as much as I did as a child. As a child I remember talking with my sister days before my birthday.  We share the same birthday one year apart.  We would spend the time talking excitedly about what we might get for our birthday.  Gifts were usually only on birthdays or major holidays.  Easter baskets filled with candy, or presents on Christmas or birthdays. Growing up with one TV that didn’t get the best reception left us with plenty of time to day drea...
Read more

What to write about when you have no money to invest?

Image
Without any money to invest from January all I could do is screen and learn about some new stocks that came up this month.  It is my hope still to save enough where I can actually invest on a regular basis again.  Part of me wants to start using loyal3 or computershare.com .  Buy for free and sell for free on Loyal3 or for a fee on Computershare.  That way I can continue to invest in some of the strong dividend payers these companies allow you to buy.  The other part wants simplicity and is willing to pay the fee to keep all my money in one place with one tax document.   The third part just reminded me my goal is to first rebuild an emergency fund.  That part is such a downer and is no fun.  The fourth part is my wife who wants me to put any free money into home improvements.  I avoid that conversation at all costs.   The house will hold up and last longer than me.  My time is what I want not a nicer house. I cou...
Read more

The Cost of A Vacation for Six

Image
All investing and no fun can lead to a happy me but a not so happy family .  I am the only one who actually doesn't mind managing the finances and money matters in my family.  The kids are slowly learning and my wife leaves it to me since I use my computer and online services.  Both systems work but my system allows me to get things done faster and produce reports I enjoy studying. Here is the breakdown of our 7 night trip to the beach and a 2 day visit with my brother: Lodging $1,966 This was the largest expense.  We stayed at hotels during the trip there and while visiting my brother.  Luckily we have a relative that works at a major hotel chain and is able to pass a discount on to us.  The remainder of it which was the big chunk was the condo on the beach that we stayed at.   I found it as one of the deals on Kayak.com .  Overall the site was easy to use and compare different places.  Unfortunately I should have listened to ...
Read more

Investment Disclaimer

This webpage is provided for general information only and nothing contained in the material constitutes a recommendation for the purchase or sale of any security. If you have any questions please feel free to contact me at dividendfamilyguy at gmail dot com.