We live in a world full of wonderful technology, life, fashion, people, and most of all GAMES. Let’s face it, living in a big sprawling city can be expensive as it is, let alone having an expensive hobby like gaming. I’m here to give you some tips on how to survive the concrete jungle AND get the games you want without sacrificing food or your livelihood every time a game you want drops. If you follow some of these steps, you might find yourself more comfortable with purchases and managing your finances in the long run. Let us start!
Number 1 : Try and take my food from me
Cook. Cook. Cook. Learn how to make some basic things so you can survive. This was the number one reason why I learned how to cook at the ripe old age of 6; I loved food and I loved being able to make myself the things I wanted. I grew up as the oldest child in a poor first generation family. My parents worked long, long hours and I had to take charge of a lot of things in life — even though America doesn’t deem this as legal or “right”. Let’s face it, not everyone has the luxury of being able to afford child care among everything else they already have to stress about. So, why do I say this? Let me break it down to you, if you eat outside 3-6 times a day, how much will it cost a week?
Breakfast – $2.80 for a bagel or $4.50-$5.00 for an egg platter of some sort with homefries.
Lunch – $5.00 – $8.00 Street Vendors or $13.00 at a buffet + drink.
Dinner – $8.75 for cheap chinese food or $12.00-$22.00 for a meal elsewhere.
Coffee/Beverages/Misc – $2.00-$6.00
On the low end; you’ll be spending about $21.55/day and on the high end; a whopping $46.00/day. I’ve calculated a small chart below to show how much you’ll end up spending a month if the eating habits are consistent; keep in mind, these are subject to fluctuate depending on social settings and excursions that are either planned or unplanned.
I’m not saying you should cut out buying food outside all together, just don’t eat out too often, unless you can afford it. Learning how to cook or at least make a salad and a sandwich will cut your cost for food and increase more funds for games/recreational activities/more! It only takes 1-2 hours of prep time, 1 time during the weekend and 1 time during the middle of the week. The food you prep can last you a good 2-3 days — so in theory, you’ll only need to invest 4 hours a week to feed yourself properly. (If you eat a lot, prep more food) This is also healthier for you because you’ll know what goes into your food. *This is an article for another day*
Number 2 : 3 Games will drop next @#$%ing month!!!! I can’t afford $188.00!!!
I’ve read articles that bash the idea of pre-ordering games before the launch date but let me be the devil’s advocate and say, if someone has no impulse control — why not put money to the side, AWAY from their view to save up for a game over time? Pre-ordering games can be used as a layaway plan for those who feel the burn of dropping a shit ton of money when 3-4 games come out in the same month. I have as much impulse control as a kid in a candy store, if I have money in my wallet, chances are…I’ll USE the living shit out of it. The barren wasteland, that I call my wallet, is better off left at home — for my own good.
If you, my good people, have the same issues with impulse control like I do, I highly suggest going to your local video game store and pre-order your game – WITH A CATCH. Every week, put in $5.00-$10.00 into the pre-orders until it’s either paid off or close to it. For example, 3 games are coming out in 1 month from now, you drop $5.00 each game for the initial reservation for the games at your local Best Buy, Gamestop, Walmart, Target, whatever your store of choice is. The following week, you drop another $5.00 into each game, which means, you’ve already paid off $10.00 for each game. Depending how comfortable you are with investments, you can put more or less. Either or, the grand total when the game drops won’t be as bad as you think it will — not because it makes it less but you’ve already chipped away at it and planned ahead so the pain isn’t as obvious. Think of it climbing a long set of steps to the 10th floor but only focusing on each individual step; before you know it, you’ll reach the top and say, “It wasn’t that bad.”
Thanks for listening guys. This is it for the first segment of my tips to managing monies. Remember, sometimes you CAN have your cake and eat it too.
