Dimples' Divine Domain
My journey to financial empowerment.

I have always wanted to be my own boss. In college, anytime someone would ask me where I see myself in 5 or 10 years I would always say I would be owning my own business. And majority of the time the person would give me that look. That, "Yeah, sure you will" look. How I hated that look. I used to let it get to me but as I matured I started to use it as fuel. I relish the day when those same folks would be browsing the net or watching t.v. and see my name flash across the screen with the wonderful words President or Founder trailing right close behind. As much I have been talking about it the last 5 years, it is time for me to create a plan and put that plan into action. Lawd where do I start? What do I do? I am excited yet frightened at the same time. I have been searching the net for what steps I need to take. I know some of the basics but I am afraid that I may leave some crucial steps out. I want to make sure I take every step I need to to accomplish my goal ...

Everyone has been talking about Bush's plan to stimulate the economy in the form of tax rebates. I won't go into much detail about this plan. In a short, each individual will receive a tax rebate of at least $300 as long as they earned at least $3000 in 2007. The purpose of the rebate is to encourage consumer spending in order to avoid a recession. Some have reported that the checks will be mailed out by June while others report that they will start mailing out the checks at the end of June due to the tax season. I am not sure which it is. Hit me up with a comment if you know. Below is the Economic Stimulus Tax Rebate Calculator. You can use it to see if and how much of a tax rebate you will receive (thanks to Single Ma ) : I am calculated to receive $600. At first I planned on using the rebate check to pay down my credit card debt but I have two other options to add to the mix. I can use my tax rebate to do one of the following three: 1. Pay down my credit card debt. ...

I had a good friend look over my career plan for this year and he offered some very good advice. I am very serious about the goals I have laid out for myself this year. Over the past few years I have allowed fear or failure and the comfortability of my present state to hinder my steps towards success. No longer will I create a plan of action only to procrastinate and push it off to do next year. So in order to make my plan more concrete I have given myself a deadline for each particular tasks. I incorporated these deadlines into my Windows Calendar (awesome program). I also incorporated each specific task into the my calendar and set alarms. Definitely procrastinating on this plan. Below you will find my updated career plan. I also updated my original post: Check that out here . CAREER DEVELOPMENT PLAN FOR 2008 GOALS: * Become a Lead Engineer on one or more projects. – 11/1/08 * Increase knowledge and skill level in following programs: + AutoCAD – 5/1/08 + Pro...

I did a preliminary run through of my taxes on TaxAct last night. I used their Deluxe version. Currently it has me at a refund of $1172. Definitely not the $5K I was hoping for. Last year I received a tax refund of $3000. But I made $13K more than I did last year. That put me way above the EIC income limit of $34K and I couldn't even get the child tax credit either. *sigh* I am still waiting on a couple of things, hence the "preliminary" run and not an actual one. I am not sure if the few dollars I made here and there from credit card bonuses and survey sites needs to be claimed. I believe the credit card companies "said" they will be sending me a 1099-Misc form for the money I earned from them. I am also going to look into hiring an accountant to do my taxes. Hopefully I can see what number they come up with before I actually give them the go ahead. I must admit that I did not understand some of the questions in regards to itemizing my deductions. ...

I finally called my car insurance company today to inquire about increasing my deductible. I was given two scenarios: 1. Increasing the deductible on collision from $500 to $1000. or 2. Increasing the deductibles on both collision and comprehensive from $500 to $1000. Here are the results: Option 1 : Total savings of $60 over 6 month premium. Comes out to $10 a month. Option 2 : Total savings of $70 o ver 6 month premium . Comes out to $11.67 a month. Ugh! I am just not feeling those numbers. Increasing the deductible wouldn't pay itself off for 4+ years (when the savings equals the extra $500 in deductible I will be liable to pay out if I ever get into a fender bender). What do you guys think? Would you go for it?

After reading a number of blogs this past weekend, I noticed that one common theme this year is career development. As I focus in on my own 2008 Career Development Plan, I am finding more and more great resources that will definitely help me achieve my goals. So being the wonderfully divine being that I am, I decided to share those awesome sites with you all: * CLICK - Ten Truths for Building Extraordinary Relationships : I heard this gentleman, George C. Fraser, speak on a popular talk radio show that I listen to on my drive home from work. Topic of discussion: Networking. He has a book out called Click and in the book you will find 10 simple principles that will help you master the art of networking. -If you are interested in purchasing the book, click on the Amazon link below *Business and Professional Women Foundation -Career Advancement Scholarship : Grants specifically for women who are continuing their education in order to advance their careers, change careers, or reente...

I gave my daughter her allowance this morning. I increased her allowance amount to $3 and decided to change up my approach at teaching her about money. Previously, I required her to put all of her allowance in her ATM bank . I have decided to give her the option of putting her money in her ATM or use it to buy anything she wanted. Annnddddd....................... I am so proud to announce that my baby decided to put $2 in her ATM and spend $1 on something she wanted. But then she said something that about floored me. She asked me if I would give her a CREDIT CARD!!! WHY?? Because the $1 could only buy her limited things while the CREDIT CARD didn't have a limit and she could buy anything she wanted. I mean this 5 year old actually said that the credit card had NO LIMIT while her $1 did. WOW!!!!! WHERE DA HECK DID SHE GET THAT KIND OF THINKING FROM?? The only logical reason that I could come up with is my choice to use my debit card versus cash. The only time I really c...

Here is the updated and revised list: Flat panel monitor Chair or chaise for bedroom Chest for Dimples (mahogany) Sleigh or Platform Bed (Dont know which one I want yet) LCD TV – 20’+ Cell phone - Palm pilot or iPhone type MP3 player - 2G or more = $15.99 Desktop computer (just the PC) = $60 Wolfgang Puck cookware set = $73.94 Microwave (black) = $0 (free) All Tyler Perry's Plays that are on DVD = $0 Transformers DVD = $10 Why Did I Get Married DVD = $0 Rolling File Cart = $8.56 Shredder = $14 I only paid $60 to my sister. She owed me money and we decided to just deduct that amount from what I was going to give her. I also purchased a 2G Sansa MP3 player courtesy of Slickdeals.net . It is a reconditioned player and it was on sale at Buy.com for $25.99. I used google checkout and since I was a first time customer I received $10 off my order. And shipping was free (budget shipping). After doing my feng shui th...

Added some more items to my 2008 Goals list . Here they are: *Search for grants or scholarship to assist with private tuition (I have decided to enroll my daughter into the private school she attends currently for kindergarten. Check here for more details. ) -Search for grants or scholarships online -If I can't find a grant or scholarship then create a savings account for next school year's tuition ($4800) Volunteer Make an appointment with a Dermatologist (I have extremely sensitive skin and I am limited on what products I can use. They won't break me out but they don't really do anything for me either.) Find a good skin regimen Develop a good hair regimen Find a permanent hustle As I accomplish each of my goals, I will be updating the original post. I added a new section on the right sidebar, underneath my net worth chart, titled "Divine Updates". There you will find the current status of my 2008 Goals , wish list , credit card debt payoff and closing, ...

I have been promising this for a while now. I finally sat down this weekend and wrote out an outline of my career development plan for this year. I finalized it today. I'll start with a summarization of where I am at in my career at this moment and what I do: I graduated from UCF with a BS in Industrial Engineering. My last semester, I interned with a local, small engineering consulting firm whose main contract is with NASA. I was hired on full-time after I graduated in 2005. My job title is Engineer and the projects I work on involve a variety of different engineering disciplines. I currently head up a number of small projects under the main NASA contract. I am also the training engineer for many of the programs and processes we use. My main expertise is in database generation and management, project management, and cost analysis. CAREER DEVELOPMENT PLAN FOR 2008 GOALS: * Become a Lead Engineer on one or more projects. – 11/1/08 * Increase knowledge and skill level in foll...

My Credit Card Zero Debt goal for 2008 is well in progress, but I’m sure I’m not the only one that can use all the help I can get at the moment. Although there are plenty of resources out there for us to look at, I’ve found that buyers’ guides seem to offer the most useful information and one of the best I’ve found is the credit card one at About Your Money. There are too many things in life that stress us out but this guide offers tips on how you can choose the right credit card AND use it to get out of debt! The interest free credit cards seem to be particularly useful for balance transfers but that doesn’t stop companies laying credit card traps for us. This guide tells you everything you need to know, from the interest rates to the pros and cons of all credit cards and not just the interest free credit cards available, so you can avoid the traps and reduce your debt. There’s also a comparison table thrown in for good measure to help you choose one that can help you! About Your Mo...

Here is my January budget: As you can see I added the three new categories I mentioned in my December Budget post : Dimples Car Maintenance Gym January will be a test month for the new budget. The way I have things set up right now is that any extra income I bring in will go towards my credit card debt. The new categories have pulled $90 away from my CC Debt Snowball budget. Depending on how much of a tax refund I receive, the new categories may stay or go. If my refund is large enough to eliminate a huge chunk of that debt then the incorporation of the new categories should not delay my CC Debt Zero Goal of October 2008. If the $90 turns out to delay my goal in any way, then the 3 new categories will be removed and I will try to find another way to address them. I am planning to start my business up this year so any income I receive from that may come into play. Christmas Goodies After Single Ma's post about the Christmas goodies she bought @ 75% off for a grand total of $11.9...

I bet yall minds are so in the gutter right now. LMAO I am talking about my goodies box. It's something I created this a few days ago and I thought I would share it with you all. I received a few gift cards for Christmas and I also received some very nice coupons and gift receipts from a few of my favorite retailers for my birthday . Now I am overflowing with all these goodies and have no clue what to do with them. Well I actually DO have a clue I just don't want to spend them on frivolous unneeded things. I want to use them wisely. I had some other goodies lying around the house so I put them all together in a diskette box I had. I used index cards as dividers and separated all my goodies into different categories. Here is the current inventory: CLOTHING: -$25 Macy's gift card -$10 Macy's gift certificate -$25 Old Navy gift card -$10 Old Navy gift certificate -$15 off $50 Macy's coupon (expires 1/31/08) -$10 Avenue gift certificate (expires 3/31/08) -40% o...

It's my birthday today......or my "born" day as Single Ma puts it. LOL I had a great pre-birthday weekend. I went to the R. Kelly concert on Friday (It was off da chain!). I went to Universal Studios on Saturday. Sunday was church and then I got my hair done. On Monday I cleaned all day (Yall know you ain't supposed to bring in the New Year with a dirty house; it's bad luck). I then went to Night Watch @ church (I always bring in the New Year at church). Then I hit up a friend's party afterwards and had curried duck for the first time. It was good. :-D I know my weekend doesn't seem THAT spectacular but for someone like me it was amazing. For the first time in a LONG time I focused on myself and had fun. I was care-free and wasn't worrying so much about finances, being a good mom, work, life, or anything else that has continuously troubled my mind for the last 2 years. With all that said........I have finally figured out what my theme for ...

I am going to make this short and sweet. Here is my budget results for December: I brought in an extra $2700 in income this past month. $2500 was bonus money. I used the extra $2700 and paid off 4 credit cards . I did pretty good in all categories except Misc. I blew that one out the water. I treated myself to cute Ecko bag from Ross and a new hair-do for the new year. I also got my daughter a couple of things from Ross. Here is my current net worth standing: Self explanatory. I am in the midst of revamping my budget as I said I would in my last monthly report post . Once I get that ironed out I will post January budget. I am also going to revise my PF Goals file to incorporate the finance goals I listed on my 2008 Goals post . I will post that up also.

Finally they are in!!!! I know you guys have been waiting on the edge of your seats for them (if not, humor me a lil....LOL). Without further adieu: DIMPLES GOALS FOR 2008 FINANCES *Eliminate CC Debt (current standing: $10,007) -Using my debt snowball plan ---> I will need to recalculate this. I am not sure if this will happen by October. *Double Emergency Fund to $6,000 (current standing: $3069.42) -Once I pay off all my credit cards, I will redirect all money left over after all bills have been paid to my E-fund until I reach $6K. *Get car loan balance under $15K (current standing: $19899.55) -My car payment is $392 . I have been paying $532 for the past year. I am bumping the payment up to $435 for 2008. ---> I changed this one. See all changes in red. *Look into hiring an accountant to do my taxes. ---> Negative. Didn't need an accountant. Did it all by my self. *Obtain $300K in additional life insurance. -Research additional life insurance and find ...

HAPPY NEW YEAR !!!!!!!!!!!