February Financials, Month to Month Comparison, and Goal Updates
I'm back after a bit of a hiatus! As I've mentioned before, I work in the public accounting world, and this time of year is not kind to me. We're now more than halfway through March, and I'm just now getting my February financial statements and portfolio updates into the blog. I apologize to anyone who was urgently awaiting the updates (*crickets*) - so without further adieu, let's take a look!
Comparison
It's been a very good month for me, as you can see everything moved in the right direction other than my credit card balances.
With me being so busy at work, I do not spend too much money this time of year. Also, most of the things I spend money on (gas, food, travel expenses) are reimbursed by my employer as I'm often out of town on business or working late in the office. Because of this, my cash position increased a hefty 13.5%, and that's before my recent tax refund hit my account! Some of the increase is due to the timing of the work reimbursements as well, as they can sit in my account a few weeks before I have to pay my credit card bills. But regardless, I'll take the increase!
My taxable investments had a nice increase as well, mostly driven by market appreciation as I have a lot less time to research individual investments. I've also been focused on getting my last bit of IRA contributions into my account for 2018 (I bought some VOO and VYM, repeat purchases for me), so I have been less focused on taxable investments during February. Also contributing to the increase in my retirement accounts has been my steady 401k contributions, and again, market appreciation. Nothing fancy there.
The credit card balances are up a scary 25%, but this is due to the fact that I'm travelling so much for work, and having to put rental cars, hotels, and food bills all on my cards. Most of this balance is going to get reimbursed by my employer and will be paid off in full every month.
February's in the books, and it was another good month! I grew my net worth 3.5% with very little effort other than making some IRA and 401k contributions and sticking to the model of being mindful of my spending habits. With March halfway over now, it's shaping up to be another solid month - let's see if there's any big happenings before my next set of financials!
Goal Updates
Back in January, I laid out a set of goals that I had set for myself to achieve in 2019. I figured while I'm on the subject of updating my financials for the month, I might as well give some updates on my goal progress.
Increase my Annual Dividend Income to $3,750
As of my most recent updates to my portfolio on March 17, my forward looking annual dividend income is at $2,720. Back at the end of January, when I set my goal, my dividend income was right around $2,500. I've been able to increase my income by $220 in this time frame, with minimal effort, as I've been too busy lately to do much investment research. With eight and a half months left in the year, at this pace I would add around $1,250 before the year is over. If that plays out, I would be well above my goal, coming in at $3,970! Let's hope the dividend increases keep on coming!
Focus on my Health
With the help of the Lose It! app, a focused effort to get to the gym, lots of salads, and a friendly weight loss competition at work, I am actually right around my goal weight of 165 pounds, down from 175-180 at the beginning of the year. I can actually feel my clothes fitting looser, and am starting to notice a little difference when I look in the mirror. When my work slows down a bit, I will finally be able to get back on a regular workout routine, and cook my own meals again. Meeting this goal in such a short period of time feels great! Now I just need to keep up the hard work.
As far as the mental health side of this goal goes, I obviously have not been able to open up more free time in my life these past couple months (quite the opposite, actually). I have, however, found myself choosing very carefully what I spend my time on outside of work. This is a step in the right direction, as I've always been sort of a 'yes man' in the past. More updates to come on this goal!
Write 30 Blog Posts
How have I done on this goal? Not so well... This is only my second post since setting my goals, with the first being my January update. I do have another post in the works, but it's a bit longer and more involved. However, I anticipate the posts will be more plentiful after my busy season wraps up at work (I see a theme developing here).
--
With the strides that I've made in both my financial position and my goal progress over the past month, I'm feeling energized to keep moving forward! I'm sure I will hit bumps along the way, but pushing through when the times get tough is what really makes it all worth it in the end. How's your progress going? How are you going to stay on track when you hit a bump in the road? Drop a comment below!
- FI Anon
Comparison
It's been a very good month for me, as you can see everything moved in the right direction other than my credit card balances.
With me being so busy at work, I do not spend too much money this time of year. Also, most of the things I spend money on (gas, food, travel expenses) are reimbursed by my employer as I'm often out of town on business or working late in the office. Because of this, my cash position increased a hefty 13.5%, and that's before my recent tax refund hit my account! Some of the increase is due to the timing of the work reimbursements as well, as they can sit in my account a few weeks before I have to pay my credit card bills. But regardless, I'll take the increase!
My taxable investments had a nice increase as well, mostly driven by market appreciation as I have a lot less time to research individual investments. I've also been focused on getting my last bit of IRA contributions into my account for 2018 (I bought some VOO and VYM, repeat purchases for me), so I have been less focused on taxable investments during February. Also contributing to the increase in my retirement accounts has been my steady 401k contributions, and again, market appreciation. Nothing fancy there.
The credit card balances are up a scary 25%, but this is due to the fact that I'm travelling so much for work, and having to put rental cars, hotels, and food bills all on my cards. Most of this balance is going to get reimbursed by my employer and will be paid off in full every month.
February's in the books, and it was another good month! I grew my net worth 3.5% with very little effort other than making some IRA and 401k contributions and sticking to the model of being mindful of my spending habits. With March halfway over now, it's shaping up to be another solid month - let's see if there's any big happenings before my next set of financials!
Goal Updates
Back in January, I laid out a set of goals that I had set for myself to achieve in 2019. I figured while I'm on the subject of updating my financials for the month, I might as well give some updates on my goal progress.
Increase my Annual Dividend Income to $3,750
As of my most recent updates to my portfolio on March 17, my forward looking annual dividend income is at $2,720. Back at the end of January, when I set my goal, my dividend income was right around $2,500. I've been able to increase my income by $220 in this time frame, with minimal effort, as I've been too busy lately to do much investment research. With eight and a half months left in the year, at this pace I would add around $1,250 before the year is over. If that plays out, I would be well above my goal, coming in at $3,970! Let's hope the dividend increases keep on coming!
Focus on my Health
With the help of the Lose It! app, a focused effort to get to the gym, lots of salads, and a friendly weight loss competition at work, I am actually right around my goal weight of 165 pounds, down from 175-180 at the beginning of the year. I can actually feel my clothes fitting looser, and am starting to notice a little difference when I look in the mirror. When my work slows down a bit, I will finally be able to get back on a regular workout routine, and cook my own meals again. Meeting this goal in such a short period of time feels great! Now I just need to keep up the hard work.
As far as the mental health side of this goal goes, I obviously have not been able to open up more free time in my life these past couple months (quite the opposite, actually). I have, however, found myself choosing very carefully what I spend my time on outside of work. This is a step in the right direction, as I've always been sort of a 'yes man' in the past. More updates to come on this goal!
Write 30 Blog Posts
How have I done on this goal? Not so well... This is only my second post since setting my goals, with the first being my January update. I do have another post in the works, but it's a bit longer and more involved. However, I anticipate the posts will be more plentiful after my busy season wraps up at work (I see a theme developing here).
--
With the strides that I've made in both my financial position and my goal progress over the past month, I'm feeling energized to keep moving forward! I'm sure I will hit bumps along the way, but pushing through when the times get tough is what really makes it all worth it in the end. How's your progress going? How are you going to stay on track when you hit a bump in the road? Drop a comment below!
- FI Anon
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