Pay attention here: there are two ways I'm gonna tell this tale. These big beefy paragraphs in the beginning will tell the story of my college years. Towards the end I'll make another section that gets into the "nitty gritty" stuff... like managing your money and making sacrifices. So if you want to go straight to that- save yourself some time and scroll til you see it.
I began my college career straight out of high school in 2016 at St. Cloud Technical and Community College. It wasn't my first choice, but after considering all of my options, I decided that it was the best route for me to take. I had the opportunity to pursue a degree in a field that I had excelled in and interested me, Business Management. I also had the opportunity to continue to play baseball, which was more important to me at the time than my education- I absolutely loved the sport (but no, I never let my grades slip). In the beginning, a few of my teammates and I had tried to rent a house that was close to campus... that ended up falling through for a variety of reasons. So, I would be living at home, no big deal. It ended up working out for the better- I could save some cash by living at home and not paying rent. I wound up getting a part-time job at the local hardware store, and when I wasn't at home or busy with baseball, that's where I was. I didn't get many hours, mostly because I didn't have many hours to work, but I was able to earn money while going to school and being involved in athletics.
This ended up being a good gig and my routine for my sophomore year of college as well. I lived at home again, played a lot of baseball, and spent a lot of time at the hardware store. It wasn't until the end of my sophomore year that things really started to change. I got a little restless again and needed another change, a big new change. I decided to start googling ranch hand jobs. So I did that for a couple days and then I remembered that I had a connection. One of my coworkers from the hardware store had a girlfriend who worked at a guest ranch out in Colorado on their horticulture team, so I gave her a call to see what it was all about. After a few phone calls and a couple interviews I wound up getting hired and spent the summer of 2018 working at The Home Ranch in Clark, Colorado- just north of Steamboat Springs. There I was able to experience new things about life. Things that I had never experienced before. However, I had to make a sacrifice and give up the only thing I truly knew: baseball. I think all good things come with some sort of a price though... and I guess we just gotta hope to hell that it's worth it in the end.
My Junior year of college was a different type of transition. I went from a junior college to an actual university and needed to make sure that everything transferred. I ran in to just about every problem that a transfer student could run in to. I had countless meetings with different advisors to straighten everything out, but I finally got it all figured out and had my degree plan mapped out with each course that I needed to take and when I needed to take it, along with each prerequisite that each course required. This transition was more difficult because I didn't really feel like a college student. I was working nearly full time tending bar while also doing promotional events for local radio stations. I didn't have time (or much interest) in going out and drinking to oblivion each weekend (but hey, I still knew how to have a good time when one was needed). Along with a new school and working almost full time came a struggle to meet other folks in my classes. I pretty much went through junior year solo. In addition to this, I was still living off campus at home. Then the summer of 2019 came and I decided to go back to the ranch, I just couldn't get enough of that place.
Senior year was different again. I finally moved out of the house and lived with a couple high school buddies off campus. I went back to working full-time at the bar. My work week went from Friday through Monday. Sometimes I racked up to 40 some hours a week, on top of school. Oh, I also helped a neighbor out with wood work and tree trimming during the week to earn some extra cash. I was always busy- my end-goal was finally in sight and I wanted to be absolutely sure that I was going to accomplish it. I had put too much time and worked too hard to come short. I'm not sure why, but senior year came very easily. I made a couple good buddies in my classes because we were all in the same major and had most of our classes together. Made it super easy to do group projects. Spring break came, and then COVID-19 came. Everything went online... and I lost my job. Luckily I was able to receive unemployment benefits and some relief from the CARES Act, as well as my stimulus check. It kept me on track with my end goal and was roughly the equivalent of what I would be making at the bar.
When I got to the end I was already so focused on the next move that I was making that I think I missed out on some of the rewarding feeling that I should have felt. Nonetheless, I did it. I did what I set out to do. If you want the nitty gritty, keep reading...
The "nitty gritty"
Yeah. Doing this was tough. Sacrifices were made. I hardly ever felt like a true college student living the true college lifestyle. In a way I felt like I was always missing out on something, and that kinda sucked. But it was worth it. I don't think I was cut out for that lifestyle anyway... When it comes down to it, you're gonna sacrifice sleep, drunken nights with friends, concerts, festivals, football games, Netflix, free time, dining out, and little luxuries like desserts, new clothes, nice clothes, or really just anything new and nice. I was okay with that.
Housing:
Let's talk about living situations first. Freshmen year we looked into renting a house near the CC, it had some electrical wiring problems.. a surge blew up TWO of our microwaves. Needless to say, we got out of that situation and never signed a lease. Sophomore year we tried to look for another house, and found one in one of the worst neighborhoods in St. Cloud. The rent was super low- and for good reason, this place was an absolute shit hole. We had mice. We had bats, a lot of bats, and in my room too! One September night it started raining and there was a steady stream of water leaking in from the skylight above my bed. It stained my comforter and my bed was soaked. Eventually I called a city inspector and had him evaluate the house. It turned out not to be up to code on a few different things. So I started Rent Escrow-I payed the court my rent money for each month that my landlord didn't fix the problems. Eventually I had enough and we went to court and came to a settlement. I got out of the lease and got my rent money back. Amen. Junior year came and I didn't even want to deal with another shitty housing problem so I stayed home and saved money. By senior year I had saved up some cash and decided to move out.
Working:
Even before college I was working a little bit, I had a summer job tending baseball fields and earned just enough cash to have a little bit of fun sometimes (probably around $600 each summer). This was a lot of money when I was 15/16! Junior year of high school I got a dishwashing job at the local pub, and I absolutely hated it, but I was making some change which made it bearable for a few months. The point is, I knew I had to be making a few dollars so I wasn't begging mom and dad for some spending cash all the time.
Freshmen year of college was where I really committed to the goal of graduating debt free and I was searching for a job that was flexible enough to work with my crazy college schedule. I found that at the local hardware store making $10.50/hr. It wasn't much but it fit what I needed and it was a really fun working atmosphere with some really fun and knowledgeable guys. I learned a lot there, and this became my job until the summer of 2018.
The summer before my junior year I wanted to travel, but I also wanted to work. So I traveled for work and got a job on a ranch in Colorado. Awesome gig, full time, got to travel, got to work, got new experiences, and learned a lot. During the school year I got a job with the local radio stations doing promotional events during the day on weekends. It was fun, but I wasn't getting enough hours. Somewhere in October I committed to learning to bartend and began doing all sorts of research, I had never worked in service before and knew that bartending wasn't something that you could jump into easily. I made a list of everywhere I wanted to work, made phone calls, typed up resumes, and even bought my own bartending utensils to practice with (I might have went overboard, but I really wanted this!). By the end of November 2018 I was hired by the local VFW to bartend. Not what I expected, but hey, I did it (and was making good tips too!). I was able to get my foot in the door of that world and gain experience. By January I was working solo shifts and shutting the bar down by myself. Now, this was where I was really dragging. I hardly slept on weekends. On Fridays I went to class, then to the bar to work, usually til about 2am. I was up Saturday morning, usually by 7 or 8 to get started on the promotional event for the day, then back to the bar around 5 in the afternoon til 2am, again. Most Friday and Saturday nights I only slept a couple hours, and it was sometimes tough to even get a meal in. But I was making pretty good money, and these were the sacrifices that I was making in order to do so. I gave up nights out at the bar, I gave up sleep, I gave up eating often and healthy... but I told myself it was only temporary. This continued through my Senior year, but I quit the job with the radio station and spent more time at the bar- I made more money there anyway, and I was becoming a pretty damn good bartender.
My Diet:
This is where I saved a lot of money in comparison to my peers. It helps that I'm not a picky eater. I wasn't living off of ramen noodles, but I had a very plain and boring diet. I ate almost the exact same thing for breakfast, lunch, and dinner nearly every day. Breakfast: 3 eggs, 1 slice of pepperjack cheese, a little bit of Tony Cachere's creole seasoning, all on two slices of toast with a side of yogurt. I bought everything in bulk- eggs in packs of 60, yogurt in packs of 12, lunchmeat in the big containers, same with cheese, and also bought the cheap pastas.
Lunch was usually a protein shake, a ham and cheese sandwich, some sort of fruit, and a granola bar or two- all of which was also bought in bulk.
Dinner was usually some sort of pasta, a couple slices of bologna, maybe hamburger helper or a pizza, or some burgers. That was really the only meal that changed.
I hardly ever went out to eat, and when I did, I didn't get much. This probably saved me hundreds of dollars over the past four years, at least. I also never really bought alcohol, which for a college kid might be crazy, I know, but I didn't go out often either.
Miscellaneous Stuff:
I touched briefly on not having new stuff or nice stuff. This is a bigger sacrifice than you might think. I drove a 2001 Honda Civic since I got my license. I told myself that I would drive that thing until the wheels fell off, and I nearly did too. When I got it, it had around 210,000 miles on it, it ate oil like crazy, and I had to do a few self repairs on it (Youtube is a wonderful thing). It wasn't a chick magnet by any means- but hey if they couldn't handle me driving a POS, then I s'pose that's their problem and not mine... it's what got me by! I drove that sucker up to nearly 280,000 miles by the time I sold it. And yeah, I SOLD it even after the abuse I put it through, good ol Honda's!
As far as clothes went, I don't ever even remember going out shopping for new clothes. I was still wearing the same clothes for years. I mean sometimes I would have to get new jeans because I have a habit of blowing the crotch out of those after a few months, or a few years, idk... nonetheless- I wasn't wearing designer by any means.
I also never had a girlfriend, you might say that this didn't really play a role, but fellas, you KNOW this plays a huge role. Having a girlfriend wasn't something that I thought was sustainable for me in college. I hardly had time to eat sometimes, let alone find time to spend with a girl! So I never really pursued anything because I knew I didn't have the time, and I figured whoever I'd pursue deserved a Zach that had the time for them, and he wasn't there yet.
In the End
All in all, each little sacrifice contributed to the achievement of the end goal. I'm sure I could have moved out, partied my way through college, worked when I wanted to, gone to all the concerts and festivals and football games, bought new clothes, got a girlfriend and signed a lease for a nicer vehicle, took out massive student loans, and been able to survive just fine paying them off for the next 20+ years while working my desk job until I die. I just didn't want to. I didn't want to be burdened and tied down by debt from choices that I made while my brain wasn't even fully developed. Not before I could even go out and see the world. So I worked at it, made money, saved money, and paid off my debt before I graduated. Looking back, it was 1000% worth it. I have been able to afford a life that many folks can't in their early twenties. I've traveled across the country, lived in different states, and experienced things that many will never dream of. I'm incredibly grateful for everything that has happened for me along the way, for the support system that I've been blessed with, for the friends I've made along the way, and for everything in between.
I guess the key takeaways are:
- Get a job
- Save your money
- Don't spend your money on stuff you don't need
- Live minimally
- Buy food in bulk
- Find hobbies that don't cost a lot of money
- Be ready to sacrifice and miss out on what your friends are doing
- Enjoy the little things (cliche, I know, but so important)
- Stick to and commit to your word
Comments
Post a Comment