CollegeSurfing Insider

I got excited for lunch the other day. It was about 10am and I asked my editor if she needed lunch (we get hungry early in the editorial department!). She told me she did and I told her that we should go to Panera. We love it there, so I didn’t really have to convince her too much, but I added in an extra perk.

I had a coupon! I prefaced that statement with the fact that I was clearly now an old woman (because I like to save money on the early-bird special and I’m usually in bed no later than 10 most nights). Hey, I’m a newly graduated writer - you do the math! My editor responded to this by saying that I just graduated and that it’s OK to want to save some money here and there. And, it definitely makes sense, but it can be difficult.

When I was in school, I wasn’t worried about the car insurance bills or saving money at all for that matter. I was a free-spirited teen, living it up Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays, and traveling to Europe (on somewhat of a budget). I may still live it up on the weekends but the whole dynamic is different.

I’m lucky enough to be able to live home for a while so that I can save some money and since my commute is under 10 minutes to work, the transportation costs are not so high either. But, as many of my friends are also beginning to see, life after graduation is very different and requires much more responsibility. The added pressure of the common question, ‘What do you plan on doing with your life?’ doesn’t help either. I guess with age you get more thrown on your plate. And it’s a definite adjustment.

Questions flood my mind. When will I be able to live on my own without having to live paycheck to paycheck? When can I be completely independent? And what if I want to go to grad school at some point? I love writing right now, but am I going to long for something different in the future?

Saving money can be hard, especially when you’re not used to doing it. And once you start your job, you’ll most likely be offered a 401K plan. Do you know what that means, exactly? I certainly did not and it took me a while to actually understand it. Great concept, but I won’t see this money for how many years?

There was an article in the Times that spoke of what young graduates can do to save, but it doesn’t always seem easy. Yes, I might be able to make my own coffee or get some office coffee, but really when it comes down to it, if I want a cup of Dunkin Donuts in the morning I’m going to go get it. I just can’t add up all the times I’ve gone because I know I could have saved a fortune. It’s called sacrificing and sometimes it can be hard.

I think what all of us — the new graduates — need to remember is that we won’t necessarily start out making a million bucks. We’ve got to start at the bottom and though we may want expensive things or to live the good life, we must pay our dues, work our way up the ladder, and earn our independence in a timely manner. And we’ll all be starting out with nothing, but as long as we work hard, we’ll be able to play hard in the future.

-Amanda Fornecker