I don't know if the sum must be a large amount of money to be considered a windfall or not, but......My employer recently granted our employee raises--retroactive since October 2009. As a result, I received what amounted to nearly a full paycheck, free and clear. To me, any free money is considered a windfall! Needless to say, I am very thankful and grateful.

I have always been pretty financially responsible thanks to my grandmother. If I learned nothing else from her, I learned "If you have a dollar, save a quarter." That was probably the phrase I heard most from her. So, I have always saved a portion of all money I have ever received. When I worked a job that paid 26 pay periods, other co-workers considered this money "free money", but I would always bank at least half of it. Which is what I did with this free paycheck.

I saved what amounted to roughly 66% of the check and used the remainder to get a few things done that I had been putting off. I paid my car registration, got a few clothes altered at the tailor, brought a few clothes to the cleaners and I'm looking to purchase a quality scanner.

All in all, I think I made wise financial decisions with this "found money". What would you do if you received a free paycheck, free and clear?

5 Comments:

  1. FB @ FabulouslyBroke.com said...
    Save it. :)
    Everyday Tips said...
    Hmm, free money, what to do... I would put it toward my vacation fund and maybe go out to dinner. If it would be more than I would spend on vacation, then the remainder would go into savings.
    Serendipity said...
    I tend to think of any money you weren't planning on as a snowflake or windfall. I think you did a great job of saving it, but buying yourself a little something extra. :)
    Anonymous said...
    Assuming I have paid off my main expenses for the year, I would save a portion (50%), and put a portion toward my vacation fun (25%), and use the remaining on something I have been lusting after :)

    ... netbook....
    Rebecca The Greeniac said...
    What FB said! I mean look at it this way, how long would it take you to save that amount of money at your current savings rate?

    I guess I just don't look at it as "free money". The way I see it, all money that comes in the door goes to the same place, the bank! And all money that exits comes from the same place, the bank! It doesn't matter if you were expecting the money or not. If you let more income (whatever its source) translate into more expenses, you're never going to get ahead. Don't fall into the trap that extra spending is "treating yourself". The real treat is financial freedom.

    Yours in Frugal Green-ness,
    Rebecca The Greeniac
    www.GreeniacDigest.com

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