Long story short, I've worked in music almost my entire adult life. 2019 was shaping up to be a windfall year for me. I landed a film score that was going to pay more than I made in 2018. I also landed several TV projects that had large back end compensation. Wasn't getting rich, but it felt like my hard work was paying off.
Then about a month of ago I was introduced to a friend of a friend, a guy who's been very successful in business. His gig is tech startups. He'd build them from the ground up with the intention of selling them - he enjoyed building companies, not running them. We hit it off, ended up grabbing lunch together nearly every day for 2 weeks. Eventually he asked me to come work with him on his newest startup, not as an employee, but as a partner. The thought of stepping away from music was hard, but his newest startup has a social impact that I am hugely interested in, and has the potential to do some real good in the world. It's also ahead of the curve and there are only a few other startups right now with a similar focus, though none of them operate on the scale he's structuring. So I took the job. I'm signing papers next Monday. It's actually been exciting for me, and I get to use just as much of my creative brain as I did with music. I will be heading up new product development, as well as branding and messaging for the time being. Mid January I get to hire 5 full time employees, most of whom will be assigned to the branding/messaging, while I put more focus on new products with our industrial designer.
Living on the brink of poverty for the last 15 years has left me with bad money management skills, and also a heap of messes that need to be cleaned up.
- First and foremost I have TERRIBLE credit. I pulled it a few years ago it was low 500s. I've had a few minor medical bills go to collection, as well as some credit cards. The medical bills total less than two thousand dollars, and some of them are from as far back as 2004. The credit cards total less that $500. I know there are other collections out there after me, because I've been methodically ignoring them for most of my adult life. Again, nothing huge. Sometimes I don't even know what they are. I'd like to get them all resolved and start rebuilding my credit.
- I have about $10k in student loans that has been in deferment for about 10 years. I'd like to get that taken care of.
- I've driven the same Toyota Camry since 2004, it has 220,000 miles on it now. It's been an amazing car and still runs well (anal about maintenance), but i've beat it to hell inside and out, it needs a new front bumper, and in the next year will need a new transmission. I think getting a new used car would be a better option than sinking a new transmission in it. I've never gotten to own a nicer car. A buddy drives a Lexus CT200h, the hatchback hybrid. It's a Prius with a different body. There are used ones (looking at 2014-2015) for sale in my area for $17k-$20k. I plan on driving my next car for 200,000 miles, so getting something I'm going to enjoy and that will last is important to me. My dad will cosign with me, he has perfect credit. Just not sure how much I can spend, how much I should put down, etc.
- My mother is partially disabled and disability kind of screwed her over. I'd like to contribute to her expenses monthly, but again, not sure how much I can afford.
- On a lesser issue, I don't have any "office wear." My friend hasn't mentioned it, but that might be partly due to the fact it's just me and him working together right now. We have some big meetings coming up, one of them international, and I don't have anything to wear. I've never had money for nice clothes, and I couldn't stomach spending a lot on a new wardrobe, but I know I need to get a few things. How much do I spend on clothes??? Such a dumb question for most, but for me changing careers and income brackets, it's mystifying.
- Someone suggested to me that I live solely on credit cards for a few years, paying them off at the end of every month. This make some sense in regards to rebuilding credit, but interested to hear what you guys think.
These are my set monthly expenses:
- -Rent $750 (includes electric and water)
- -Studio space rent $300
- -Internet $65
- -Phone $88
- -Car insurance $37 (will go up with a new car)
- -Software subscriptions for music production $40
I'm going to keep my studio space because I have an insanely good deal on it through a friend, and I will still be taking some jobs on the side as time allows. This was kind of pushed on me by my friend who hired me. He said it's important I keep doing that as much as I can, to keep my happy and working for him, haha.
I want to save as much as possible. I have no doubt this venture will be hugely successful, but there is always the chance my heart aches being away from music and I can't do it for more than a few years. So I don't want to build a lifestyle around a salary I might not always have.
I've been thinking about hiring someone to help me budget and set up my personal finances, but I have no idea how much that would cost and if it would be worth it for someone in my shoes.
Any advice would be HUGELY appreciated!!
Submitted November 22, 2018 at 05:32PM by cv_mason https://ift.tt/2R3tJY8
