It’s annual salary increase time so let’s talk money

So I got my annual salary increase letter today. This is the first time I’ve gotten one at my current place of employment and I stared at the envelope with a mix of nervousness, fear, and excitement for a few minutes before opening it (yes, okay, I’ll admit I indulged about 10 seconds’ worth of wild fantasies about what if it’s something huge like a 10% raise?!?). The verdict? A three percent increase. Okay, cool, that’s nice. I’ll take whatever increases I can get! And then I started wondering what the usual annual percentage increase is for cost-of-living adjustment. Is it 3%? Usually a bit less? I believe my increase at my previous place of employment was 2.5% (maybe less? Whatever, I was making $17.25 so whatever it was bumped me all the way up to something like $17.80), but that was there. What was I supposed to make of the 3% raise here? Continue reading “It’s annual salary increase time so let’s talk money”

How I got a credit card sign-up bonus without bankrupting myself

I realized last year that my first credit card (and my only one aside from the Old Navy credit card I’d close if it didn’t have a ridiculously large line of credit for something like $7,000 which would greatly negatively affect my overall ratio of available credit if I got rid of it) was one I’d gotten in college and really wasn’t doing much for me anymore, so I got a cash back card. Who doesn’t like cash back, right? However, this year I’ve been reading about travel hacking and have always idly been considering a credit card that would get me travel rewards. Continue reading “How I got a credit card sign-up bonus without bankrupting myself”