(not so) CHEAP SOCIAL WORKER

Salaried vs. Hourly: Which is better?

2012-02-07T16:20:00.000-08:00

In my travels, I've had the opportunity to work in and observe places that pay their social workers either hourly (typically non-exempt) or salaried (typically exempt). Here's my analysis of each one and my thoughts of which I'd rather work.

Hourly

Pros:
-Time and a half overtime pay after working 8 hours
-Guaranteed lunch and break periods, with overtime pay if they're not taken
-Time and a half pay for working holidays
-Time and a half pay for working more than 40 hours a week
-Going home after 8 hours so management doesn't have to pay overtime

Cons:
-Strict rules regarding lunches (i.e. no answering phones, no talking about work, no lunch interruptions, etc.)
-Required breaks and lunch negatively impacting a busy day, resulting in having to stay at work later
-Management getting upset when overtime is used too often
-Loss of paid time off or wages during holidays and sick days
-Loss of wages if your hours are cut from low workload

Salaried

Pros:
-Guaranteed pay, regardless of hours worked (which means no pay reductions for going home early due to low workload or sometimes illness)
-Option to not take lunches or breaks if you have too much work to do
-No worries about clocking in and out

Cons:
-Having to stay at work until it's finished (which may mean having to work more than 8 hours, weekends, and holidays)
-No extra compensation for working overtime, weekends, holidays, and during lunch
-Higher probability of burning out from long hours

Personally, I would never take a salaried job that doesn't pay anything for overtime. One you work more than 8 hours, your average hourly salary begins to drop. I've seen many co-workers stay 9, 10, even 12 hours at work, sometimes without taking a single breaks. I don't think it's healthy, and I can't help but wonder how much personal/family/self-care time my co-workers get after pulling these long hours day after day. Social workers are underpaid as it is. No need to bring down your wages further by working for free after 8 hours.

What are your thoughts on salaried vs. hourly positions? Which one do you work, and what do you feel are the pros and cons?

(not so) Cheap Social Worker's Guide to Preventing Social Work Burnout

2012-01-31T21:22:00.000-08:00

Cross-posted to Cheap Social Worker Adventures

Also, I now have a facebook page! Please add me here: Cheap Social Worker

The Body Shop Deal

2012-01-25T19:03:00.000-08:00

This past year, I've probably purchased more products at The Body Shop than anywhere else. If you open my bathroom drawers, you'll find a small collection of body washes, hand soaps, lotions, room sprays, and reed diffusers. The Body Shop appeals to me because I like the assortment of scents they carry. It also helps that the company promotes a number of social causes I support.

While I did purchase a ton of stuff from The Body Shop this past year, not once did I pay full price for a single item. In fact, I typically paid less than 50% of full price after accounting for deal of the day vouchers, sales, and discounts from the Love Your Body Club. The great thing was that this left me with extra money to spend on food, or sale items at Bath and Body Works.

For two days, Living Social is offering a $20 voucher to The Body Shop for $10. This may be a great time to stock up if you think you'll need bathroom stuff in the coming months. The Body Shop has sales throughout the year, so make sure to use your voucher then for extra savings! I already purchased mine, so it looks like I might be going shopping sometime soon!

How to Host a Cheap Sports Party

2012-01-18T12:09:00.000-08:00

Football playoff season is in full swing (GO NINERS!), and I plan on spending it on my couch with some drinks and my favorite finger foods. I know that many of you will probably be getting together with friends to catch the big games, so I thought I would offer a few money saving tips on hosting those football get-togethers!

Tip #1: Stay home instead of hitting the bars. Bar food, pints of beer, and mixed drinks are typically more expensive than throwing your own party. Don't forget other hidden costs like tax and tip! Avoid the crowded bars (and drunk drivers), buy a twelve-pack, and cook up some snacks at home!

Tip #2: Check the grocery store ads for deals. Each week, I check the grocery store ads and plan my meals around what's on sale. Grocery stores tend to stock up on snack type foods around football playoffs season, so there's bound to be some deals. Since I am lucky enough to live near several grocery chains, I use the ads to make a shopping list of sale items for each store.

Tip #3: Potluck or BYOB. If you're hosting a party, you're probably already doing tons of work cleaning and cooking. Reduce your stress by having your buddies bring their favorite snacks or beverages. It'll also reduce the strain on your wallet!

Tip #4: Order delivery or get take-out. If you're turned off by the idea of cooking, then pitching in money for delivery or take-out is still cheaper than going out to eat. Make sure to check your Sunday newspaper ads or discount sites like Slickdeals for coupons. If ordering delivery, call in early, as these places tend to get inundated with orders on football Sundays. Don't forget to tip the person delivering the pizza, since he/she is missing the game!

Tip #5: Use leftover snacks for meals in the coming week. One of my favorite ways to use leftover spinach dip is to stuff it in chicken breast and bake it. You can also shred leftover pieces of buffalo chicken and use them in tacos (with your leftover bean dip, salsa, and avocado dip) or pita wraps. With some creativity, you can turn these leftovers into some tasty meals!

Eating is definitely one of my favorite parts of playoff season. With these tips, you'll be able to indulge in those delicious snacks while having some extra money left over for those bets!

GO NINERS!

Should We Pick Majors Based on Pay?

2012-01-10T19:29:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year, everyone! As I wrote on my other blog, I resolve to post at least once a week this year. Hopefully I can accomplish this goal!

For my first post of 2012, I wanted to expand on discuss an issue I touched on in a previous post - the profitability of our college major. Lately, I've been seeing news agencies and blogs post articles about individuals, including social workers buried in student loan debt and working low paying jobs. I'm sure these issues have been around for years, but I speculate that these news articles have increased in frequency as a result of the recession, high unemployment rates, and indebted college graduates participating in the Occupy Wall Street movement.

As usual, the comments contained as much vitriol as previous articles on unemployed college graduates. I've heard similar statement among my own circle of acquaintances (many Silicon Valley engineers) with statements like, "Teachers are dumb; that's why they're teachers", "I aced my humanities classes easily, getting better grades than actual humanities majors", and "I worked hard in college while people in [insert major here] partied all the time". With so much negativity against social science and humanities grads, I sometimes can't help but wonder if such stigma will impact these fields in terms of job prospects and student interest.

In China, it seems like social science and humanities majors are already being impacted in terms of funding. While I was out of the country last November, the Wall Street Journal published an article called, "China To Cancel College Majors That Don't Pay". The title is somewhat misleading, as China plans to phase out college majors based on employment rates, not salaries. Now imagine if the U.S. were to implement a similar policy. According to the WSJ article, clinical psychology, fine arts, and U.S. history would be some of the first majors to go. If cuts were made according to median salary, social work would be on that list. Imagine the type of society we would have if subjects like these were eliminated from our schools because they were simply not profitable enough. Maybe the elimination of social work programs would create a severe social worker shortage that would finally raise our salaries to respectable levels!

So, should we pick majors based on pay? Sure, if your goal in life is to become independently wealthy. However, realize that education, as with any other investment, comes with risk. While a job may be profitable now, there's always a chance that things might not turn out as expected. Regardless of what field you decide to pursue, know what you're getting yourself into, and consider the monetary and emotional costs of each major.

Did I pick my major based on pay? Yes and no. The reason I got my MSW had to do with my college experiences and the fact that I wanted to make a living counseling people. I never expected to become rich, and if I wanted to make more money, I probably would have picked a career in nursing or engineering instead. Now if I had the opportunity to study something out of pure passion, I would have majored in music. Fortunately, I do have a job that pays decently and gives me the flexibility to go back and study music if I desired. We'll see how that goes.

How about you? Did you pick your major based on pay? Should college students consider potential pay when picking a major?

The Non-Monetary Costs of Commuting

2011-08-16T21:33:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the lack of updates! I've had one day off this past week and haven't had much time for anything else but working, commuting, and sleeping. I'll try to post a more substantial update when I actually have more than one day off.

In the meantime, I'm going to use this post to talk about commuting. Currently, I commute between 25-50 miles one way each day to get to a given hospital. This allows me to continue to live at home and save some money. However, I've concluded that there are a number of non-monetary expenses associated with long commutes. These include the following:

-Time: I spend roughly 2-4 hours each day commuting. By the time I get home, I don't have much time to do anything other than eat, shower, watch baseball/exercise/blog/surf the net/work on hobbies/talk to my boyfriend online (more or less simultaneously depending on my energy level), and sleep.

-Sleep: I try to get about 8 hours of sleep a night, but normally I only manage 7 hours or less because there's simply too much I want to do once I get home. Typically, I have about 4 hours of time after getting home before having to be asleep. Either I have to rush to get everything done, neglect a few items off my "to do" list, or stay up a few extra hours. Depending on how little sleep I get during the week, I spend a good portion of the weekend sleeping.

-Housekeeping: My room is a mess. My bathroom is certainly not as clean as I want it to be. While I probably should prioritize housework, I'd rather spend my free time after work doing something fun and/or relaxing.

-Exhaustion: Long commutes are tiring. Most days, I'm too tired to do anything once I get home from work. In fact, my typical routine is to get home, change my clothes, eat some dinner, and flop down on my bed.

-Safety: Driving is scary. More than once I've seen near accidents occur. Additionally, there have been times when I've had to pull over to nap because I've started to doze off behind the wheel. While riding the subway is less scary, it also doubles my commute time. Furthermore, I've been harassed by people on the subway demanding money or use of my cell phone. On top of that, I worry about the bacteria on the plush subway seats and sometimes wonder if I'll ultimately contract MRSA that way.

While I do saving lots of money by commuting, it seems like I am sacrificing a lot more. I suppose in come cases I am putting myself at risk for some steep monetary expenses, such as health bills and accident repair costs. The more I think about it, the more moving makes sense to me. Currently, I am in the process of looking at apartments closer to my multiple jobs. I'm definitely looking forward to the shorter travel times! In the meantime, I think it's time to go to bed.

How to Book a Cheap Trip to Las Vegas

2011-08-09T23:15:00.000-07:00

Since I'm fortunate enough to have flexible per diem jobs, I've managed to schedule a week of vacation at the end of this month. So far, my plan is to fly to Las Vegas with some friends and spend a few days relaxing and having fun! I didn't want to spend too much on this trip, and thanks to some shopping around and early planning I'm spending less than $150 on housing and airfare!

Here are some tips on how you can save money on a trip to Las Vegas (which can also be applied to other locations):

-Shop around and book early: I cannot stress this enough. When I decided I wanted to go to Las Vegas, I immediately started searching travel websites like Expedia, Priceline, Kayak and comparing rates. My friends and I decided to book a room at a hotel located in the middle of the Las Vegas Strip for $24.50 a night. The next day, the price went up to $27.00. Today, the same room is $33 a night. By booking early, you ensure you have a room and extra spending money to spend on money and shopping! I'm pretty pleased that I'm paying less than $7 a night to stay in a themed Las Vegas hotel after splitting the cost with my friends.

-Schedule your vacations during weekdays and non-holidays: Weekday hotel room rates tend to be significantly cheaper than weekend and holiday rates. When booking my hotel I noticed that the Friday night rate was $125, a whopping $25 more than the total cost of the four weekday nights I'm staying. Weekends and holidays also tend to be more crowded at popular tourist locations, which can be good or bad depending on your preference. Personally, I'd prefer to save some money and not wait in line when I use that said money on shows and buffets!

-Use budget airline companies: Search Slickdeals deals being offered by major airlines. Southwest, JetBlue, and Virgin America tend to offer reasonable fares, and Spirit Airlines offers low cost ticket prices for people who travel light and don't mind skimping on certain services. I'll be writing a review of Spirit Airlines at a later date.

By using these tips, I've managed to book a trip to Las Vegas that leaves me extra money in my budget to spend on other things. Knowing this definitely leaves me more relaxed, as opposed to worried about paying for the whole thing. I can't wait for my vacation!

Twitter

2011-08-04T09:59:00.000-07:00

I finally signed up for a Twitter account! Feel free to add me for the latest updates: Follow me on Twitter!

How the Debt Ceiling Deal Affects MSW (and other Graduate) Students

2011-08-02T01:09:00.000-07:00

After much political drama, the House of Representatives has finally passed the Budget Control Act of 2011, meant to stop the U.S. government from defaulting on its payments to U.S. government bondholders. This bill is bound to have many impacts, but for this particular post I will focus on Title V and its affects on graduate students, especially future social workers.

Title V consists of several parts:

$17 Billion to Save Pell Grants: According to a report released by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), the Budget Control Act of 2011 will allocate $17 billion towards the Federal Pell Grant Program in the next 3 years. The Pell Grant Program provides financial aid to low-income undergraduate and certain graduate students who likely would not be able to afford college otherwise. Unlike loans, these grants do not need to be repaid.

Elimination of Federal Direct Stafford Loans for Graduate Students: Currently, college students with financial need are allowed to receive $8500 in subsidized loans a year. These are loans where interest is paid for until 6 months after graduation. Starting July 12, 2012, graduate students will only qualify for Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loans, which accrue interest while students are still in school. According to the CBO report, this will save $18.1 billion in the next 10 years.

Elimination of Incentives for On-Time Loan Payments: Subsidized and unsubsidized loans have a 1% origination or activation fee. Currently, students only have to pay 0.5% - half the fee - which is refunded if they make 12 on time monthly loan payments. Under the new bill, this fee will no longer be refunded. According to the CBO, this will save $3.6 billion in the next decade.

As a social worker, I find myself asking many questions. Is saving the Federal Pell Grant Program worth the financial hardship that will inevitably be faced by numerous graduate students as a result of higher loan payments? How will this affect the social work profession in the long run? Considering that an MSW's salary is much lower when compared to other professions with the same training/education level, will increased loan payments cause those interested in social work to pursue careers in more lucrative fields?

Seems like there might be some hard times ahead for students. The amount of barriers students face these days make me thankful that I was able to finish school when I did. My thoughts are with those who will be seriously impacted by this new budget bill.

A Newbie's Take on Airline Rewards Programs

2011-07-28T16:55:00.000-07:00

Apparently, I'm going to Las Vegas next month! With ridiculously cheap weekday hotel room rates and soon to be expiring deals from airlines like Southwest and Virgin America, it's prime time for a cheap Vegas vacation (if you can handle the heat)! More on this in another post.

After booking my tickets, I spent several hours signing up for and redeeming mileage points from various airline rewards programs. It was actually my first time dealing with airline rewards since I don't fly on my own that often. Here are a few things I learned in the process:

1) Sign up for the rewards program before booking the flight: I booked my flights before signing up for the programs, and hence wasted a good amount of time trying to figure out how to get my flights retroactively credited.

2) Don't wait too long to get your points credited: Most airlines will only credit points up to 3 to 12 months after your flight. Don't wait or you may lose your points forever!

3) Don't hesitate to ask for expired points: Call center representatives have a lot of power. When I called United Airlines asking for points that expired 9 months ago, they credited my account. Airline companies want your business, and will do what it takes if it means you'll fly with them again or enroll in their credit card program. Unfortunately for the kind United call center rep, I declined the credit card. However, I'll definitely fly United again at some point!

4) Don't pay to be part of special airline discount programs: Unless you plan on traveling a lot with a single airline company, then it's probably not worth paying to be part of airline rewards or discount club programs. Make sure to read all the fine print so you're not surprised with a bill. The same concept applies for a credit card - not worth it unless you fly regularly with a single carrier.

Traveling is fun, so why not make the most of your money by getting some rewards points! Thanks to these programs, I hope to someday earn myself a free flight or two!

Discounted Restaurant Food

2011-07-27T23:38:00.000-07:00

One of my vices is going out for food. While I know I can save tons of money with a home cooked meal, I simply like going to a restaurant every now and then and enjoying the ambiance, the people watching, the food, and not having to do dishes afterwards. Unfortunately, with my plans to move out soon, I should probably curtail my eating out habits... or try to get more food for less money!

Deal of the day sites such as Groupon, Townhog, and LivingSocial have increased in popularity these past few years. While I've used these places to get discounts on shopping, I've predominantly taken advantage of the great restaurant offers. Thanks to deal of the day sites, I've been able to try food from places that otherwise would have been out of my price range. My boyfriend and I have also gone on numerous dates to nice restaurants while only paying half price.

Once I'm moved out, I anticipate I'll be more diligent in checking these sites daily for deals. Every dollar spent is an extra dollar to spend on something else!

Carmageddon!

2011-07-14T00:23:00.000-07:00

I don't know much about what's going on in Southern California with the shutdown of the 405 freeway. However, you know your public transportation system is flawed when you need to take an airplane to travel a distance of roughly 40 miles. This is almost the same distance separating the airports in San Francisco and San Jose.

I suppose this is another reason I'm lucky to live in the Bay Area. Between buses, BART, and Caltrain, I have many ways to get around if my car is ever unavailable. Bay Area public transportation is great, and location relative to public transport has played a key factor in my apartment search. My eventual plan is to rely primary on buses and BART to get to work, and use discounted commuter checks provided by my job to save money on fares.

Good luck to everyone that will be affected by the 405 shutdown! I will admit that $4 (with $1 extra for first class) is a great deal to ride JetBlue . Definitely something I would have considered if I lived down there.

Happy 7/11!

2011-07-11T09:23:00.000-07:00

Good morning! This is my first mobile post!

In honor of 7/11, 7-11 will be giving away free slurpies today! A great way to treat yourself on this summer Monday!

Social Work and the Laws of Economics

2011-06-30T23:06:00.000-07:00

In an older post, I discussed why other majors seem to make more money than others. While this article focused mostly on the surplus of humanities and social science majors relative to job demand, I briefly touched on social work and how its altruistic nature results in less profit and hence lower salaries.

What differentiates social work from other humanities and social science fields is its increasing demand. According to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics, social worker employment is expected to grow faster than average in the next decade. Contributing to this trend are the aging baby boomer generation, growing student enrollments in schools, and prison systems increasingly requiring substance users to participate in rehab programs as part of their sentence.

Now, a demand for social workers combined with a shortage of social workers due to retirement or burnout should result in higher wages, right? Unfortunately, many of us working in the field know that this is not the case. Why is it that basic economic rules seem to ignore the social work profession entirely?

While exploring some online forums, I came across a relevant blog post by fellow social worker Dr. Lynn K. Jones. In "Better Wages for Social Workers...Why Not, Dr. Jones further elaborates on points I've made in the past regarding why social workers are underpaid, such as lack of title protection and self-advocacy within the profession. I won't attempt to summarize here, as her article essentially speaks for itself.

The only part of Dr. Jones' article I will discuss here is the "Career Strategy" section, which tells readers to take control of their careers and not leave it up to "chance". As a first year MSW student, I also told someone that I was led into a social work career as opposed to choosing it. However, I also went into my masters program with the intention of obtaining a decent paying job upon graduation, exploring options within my targeted wage and areas of interest. While I'll never make as much as an engineer, my current salary is pleasantly higher than what I had expected. Indeed, by doing some research and having a game plan for what to expect from a social work career, one can definitely obtain a job that is both financially and emotionally fulfilling. I feel this is the best way for social workers to improve their wage prospects while waiting for our advocacy efforts to produce results on a macroscopic level.

Anyway, check out Dr. Jones' blog post. It's a must read for all social workers concerned about the future of their wages.

Cheap Sunday in San Francisco

2011-06-26T23:13:00.000-07:00

Today, I went to San Francisco to enjoy a free concert in Golden Gate Park with my boyfriend. While I was expecting a pretty mellow day in the city, I completely forgot that the SF Pride Parade and an SF Giants baseball game were happening on the same day! Indeed, it seemed like the entire Bay Area was packed into San Francisco today! While I had a good time in the city with seeing parts of the Pride Parade, getting free stuff at the concert, and eating cheap food at SF Chinatown, I think I'm done with battling large crowds for a while!

Anyway, I wouldn't have known about the free concert in Golden Gate Park if it weren't for FunCheapSF, a website that compiles a list of free/cheap things to do in the Bay Area. My boyfriend and I frequent this site when we can't think of anything to do on a particular weekend, and have many fun cheap dates as a result!

What are your favorite websites for fun cheap events in your area?

The Costs of Moving Out

2011-06-20T20:47:00.000-07:00

Hello, and once again, my apologies for not posting for so long! For a quick update, please check out my post here.

Currently, I'm working towards moving out of my parents' house. Given that I have fairly reliable work hours and a decent sum of money saved, I feel that I can support myself on my own. However, while the ideas of independence and self-sufficiency are appealing, I'm somewhat pensive about the fact that I won't be able to save much, if any, once I move out. Here's a sample budget I've drafted showing my monthly expenses:

Rent: $850 for a studio (Bay Area housing is expensive)
Utilities: $50
Internet: $50
Food: $250
Health insurance: $250
Car insurance: $100
Gas/Car Maintenance/Commuter checks/BART (subway) parking: $150
Hygiene, cleaning supplies: $50
Grand Total: $1750

Eeep! While my estimates look pretty scary, they are a little on the high side. I know I can cut down on some of the costs by conserving energy (using energy saving bulbs and skimping on heating and A/C), taking advantage of cheap internet deals, downgrading my health insurance plan, and cutting down on food. Here's an updated budget accounting for this:

Rent: $850
Utilities: $30
Internet: $20
Food: $150
Health insurance: $200
Car insurance: $100
Gas/Car Maintenance/Commuter checks/BART (subway) parking: $150
Hygiene, cleaning supplies: $30
Grand Total: $1530
Annual Cost: $18,360

The above budget does not include retirement savings, rainy day fund, vacation spending, entertainment, shopping, and future home savings. If I were to move out, I would have to make some sacrifices when to comes to my remaining expenses. For instance, I could choose to max out my IRA and 401K, but that would leave me no vacation money, no rainy day fund, and a small sum for a future house down payment. Most likely, I'll choose not to max out my 401K (since none of my jobs offer one anyway) and delegate that money towards other things.

I suppose other methods I could employ to save even more money include finding a cheaper apartment, getting roommates, finding a part time job with health benefits, and/or settling into a full time job with benefits. Another option is to stay with my parents. However, I feel that the non-monetary benefits of moving out outweigh the money I'd save by staying at home.

The apartment hunt will likely continue over the next few weeks/months. I'll try to keep everyone updated on my progress! Wish me luck!

Opening a Roth IRA

2011-03-19T20:04:00.000-07:00

Today, I opened a Vanguard Roth IRA thanks to some help from my boyfriend. It was a fairly simple process that took me less than 10 minutes. While I am roughly six years behind my peers who opened accounts after receiving undergraduate degrees, it's never too late to start saving for retirement.

What makes a Roth IRA different from a Traditional IRA is that you're taxed when you deposit money as opposed to when you withdraw it. Since I'm an entry level social worker working per diem, my income and tax rate is not very high. A Roth IRA seemed like the practical choice as I'd rather pay taxes now than have to pay more later.

I feel that as a social worker, I should be especially conscious about saving money. I'm not only saying this because of my profession's reputation for being underpaid. By being knowledgeable about money issues and applying money saving tactics to my own life, I can better counsel individuals and families with their own money problems. One tip I will definitely suggest is to open an IRA and put as much money as possible each year. As of today, I have maxed out my IRA contribution for 2010 and plan to max out subsequent years.

This is not to say that I don't like to shop and have fun, as I've been doing a considerable amount of shopping lately and have a few excursions planned for the immediate future! However, there should always be some balance between spending now and saving up for more fun down the line. I suppose I will (hopefully) see the money I deposited today again in 35-40 years!

I'll post another update later about the different funds I picked and why. This is all new to me, and I have a lot to learn about the investing process!

(not so) Cheap St. Patrick's Day!

2011-03-17T17:16:00.000-07:00

Happy St. Patrick's Day! Similar to how I typically only eat roasted turkey during Thanksgiving, St. Patrick's Day is the one day out of the year I eat corned beef and cabbage! In past years, I've gone to restaurants to enjoy this dish. Since I'm currently living at home, I decided to modify a corned beef and cabbage recipe
and make it in my parent's kitchen.

When I've eaten at restaurants on St. Patrick's Day in past years, a plate of corned beef and cabbage cost me upwards of $12. A pint of green beer or Guinness usually cost about $4. Add in (California) tax and tip and you have a St. Patrick's Day meal that sets you back roughly $20.

For my St. Patrick's Day meal, I decided to take advantage of the weekly deals on corned beef, cabbage, beef broth, and Guinness at Safeway. Here's my cost breakdown:

3.06 pounds corned beef brisket * $3.99/pound = $12.21
32 oz. box of beef broth = $2
2.26 pounds cabbage head * $0.39/pound = $0.88
1.06 pounds of baby red potatoes * $0.99/pound = $1.05
0.70 pound of carrots * $0.99/pound = $0.69
FOOD TOTAL: $16.83

After a cash register mishap, I purchased a 4 pack of Guinness for $6.77 with tax included.

GRAND TOTAL: $23.60

$23.60 for a St. Patrick's Day meal for 4 to 6 people seems like a pretty good deal compared to paying $20 per person at a restaurant. Since there are only three people in my household, there will be plenty of leftovers. Maybe I should start cooking every year!

How to Make the Most of Birthday Freebies

2011-03-15T13:52:00.000-07:00

I recently celebrated my birthday, which is not only a great excuse to have fun with friends, but my favorite time a year to receive free stuff! In this post, I will share how I go about maximizing my annual freebies. My view is that all my meals should be free or have a freebie the week of my birthday!

Step 1: Start preparing for your birthday several weeks in advance. Many freebies can be used as soon as two weeks before your birthday up to two weeks after.

Step 2: Scour websites/blogs/forums for lists of birthday freebies. The main ones I use are on slickdeals.net and fatwallet.com

Step 3: Sign up for websites that offer birthday freebies! If want, you can even open a new e-mail address so your inbox doesn't get cluttered by a barrage of e-mails when your birthday hits. Remember to sign up early, for these e-mails can start coming as soon as two weeks before your birthday. The year I started, several restaurants gave me freebies for just signing up for their mailing lists, making for extra free stuff on my birthday!

Step 4: Wait and watch as you start receiving birthday freebies in your e-mail. When printing out/writing down your freebies, organize them by expiration date. One year, I missed out on a free meal because the coupon expired sooner than I expected.

Step 5: Enjoy your birthday freebies!

A few side notes:
-Don't try to cheat the system! Many restaurants check ID to make sure it's your birthday. At Denny's, they actually wrote down my driver's license number.
-Make sure to tip for the amount before discount! Restaurant employees deserve full tips for good service!
-Offer to split the cost of buy one/get one free meals with your friend. You can also get your friend to sign up for birthday freebies and pay the full priced meal then.
-Have fun and make the most of your special day!

Quick Ways To Help Japan

2011-03-15T01:03:00.000-07:00

The situation in Japan is both horrifying and heartbreaking. While I know that many of us want to help, traveling to Japan might not be possible. Therefore, here are some quick and simple ways to assist the relief process:

Donate via text:
-Red Cross: Text "REDCROSS" to 90999 to make a $10 donation.

-Salvation Army: Text "Japan" or "Quake" to 80888 to donate $10.

-World Vision: Text "4JAPAN" to 20222 to make a $10 donation.

An extensive list can be found here: Text to donate

Donate via Paypal:
You can use your Paypal account to donate to one of eight charities.

Please spread the world so we can provide maximum assistance to those impacted by this catastrophe. Also, if you are looking for a loved one please know that Google has launched a people finder that might have some information.

It seems like so many places have been impacted by natural disasters recently. Let's hope that they can all recover as soon as possible.

Happy Social Work Month!

2011-03-01T21:26:00.000-08:00

Today marks the beginning of Social Work Month! While I usually like to keep my non-financial related social work discussions on my other blog, I've decided to use this particular entry to pay homage to my profession. Social workers work tirelessly to improve the lives of the less fortunate. While their financial compensation is not reflective of their importance in society, the sense of fulfillment social workers receive from helping others can be worth more than anything money can buy.

On my other blog, you can find an extensive post on Social Work Month. If you happen to know any social workers, don't forget to thank them for the vital services they provide to our society.

Balancing Financial Needs With Becoming a Social Worker

2011-02-22T19:57:00.000-08:00

Let me preface this article by stating that no one goes into social work thinking that they will become rich. Similarly, no one becomes a social worker thinking that they will have to struggle financially for the duration of their careers. There must be a balance between doing what one loves and having the money to pay the bills, feed the family, and engage in some quality self-care. While many social workers live within their means and are happy with their lifestyles, there are some that ultimately burn out and switch careers to earn better wages. This article provides advice on how one can balance becoming a social worker with wanting a higher standard of living. I'm sure some of these tips could be extrapolated towards other careers as well.

Tip #1: Evaluate the standard of life that you hope to have. There's nothing wrong with wanting a big house, luxury car, fancy wardrobe, private jet, and vacation house in the South of France. However, if you're expecting to fulfill all of these dreams on a social worker salary, then you may want to reevaluate your college major and career aspirations. Please read my article on why certain majors are more profitable than others.

Tip #2: Get your degree from a public school (unless you're offered a generous scholarship to a private school). I obtained my masters degree from a state university. Currently, the only difference between me and my co-workers who attended private schools is the amount of debt we have to repay. Given an average social worker's salary, it just seems unwise to spend $50,000 a year to get a bachelors or masters degree. Even if a more prestigious school were to offer a slightly better education than a state university, I don't think it's worth having to repay student loans until I qualify for Medicare. Those hundreds of dollars a month could be better used on a car, house down payment, or vacation in the South of France.

Tip #3: Get paid to receive your degree. There are several ways to accomplish this. One way is to work for an employer that will pay for you to go back to school for a degree. Another way is to choose paid internships while in school to offset tuition costs. Additionally, scholarships and grants are a great way to lower education costs. In California, the Title IV-E offers generous stipends in exchange for two years work at a child welfare agency upon graduation.

Tip #4: Target higher paying social work jobs in government or the medical setting. These jobs typically pay significantly higher salaries than positions at smaller non-profit agencies. If you have a social work license and enjoy counseling, consider opening a private practice. However, if you happen to enjoy your current setting then by all means stay. The happiness and quality of life brought from working somewhere you love simply can't be purchased with a higher salary.

Tip #5: Obtain your social work license. Not only will you be able to privately practice therapy, you will open the doors to a number of new social work positions which require licensure, hence increasing your income potential.

As stated above, if you are hoping to become exceedingly wealthy as a social worker, then you might want to consider changing your career for your sake and the sake of your clients. For everyone else, it is more than possible to have a rewarding and financially stable career as a social worker with some careful financial planning. I suppose part of the beauty of my field is that I get paid for following one of my passions in life, and I consider myself lucky in that respect.

Recent changes to this blog

2011-02-21T13:00:00.000-08:00

Lately, I've been thinking about the scope of this blog. While I enjoy writing about money saving tips and social work issues, I feel that having both topics on the same blog may be a little too much. Hence, I've decided to divide my writing into two different blogs!

(not so) Cheap Social Worker will focus on my attempts to make the most of my social worker salary. This site will not just be for social workers, but for anyone who wishes to maximize fun while minimizing expenditures.

Adventures of a (not so) Cheap Social Worker will function as my personal blog. Here, I will talk about happenings in my life along with random social work topics. As many in our field like to say, "Social work is not just a career, it's a passion!"

As you can see, I have already moved posts leaning more towards social work and my personal life to my Adventures blog. I hope this new format works well for everyone, as I am pretty excited about this change!

Bad Publicity Yet Again

2011-02-18T00:40:00.000-08:00

Post has been moved here: Bad Publicity Yet Again

Reflections from a Wounded Tiger Child

2011-01-20T21:06:00.000-08:00

Post has been moved here: Reflections from a Wounded Tiger Child