3 Ways to Earn Extra Income in Spain

January 20, 2018January 22, 2018Melissa

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Finding ways to earn extra income is not a new concept to most people, from the Millennial “side hustle” to Dave Ramsey inspired “Dave Jobs,” every generation has its own methods for creating new sources of income. This isn’t any different for the auxiliar de conversacion. Here are 3 tried and true methods for earning a bit of extra money while teaching abroad, and one bonus way to start earning extra income before you even move abroad.

THE SIDE HUSTLE

According to CNN Money, 44 million Americans have a side job. Many people need these jobs just to keep up with their regular bills. One benefit of teaching English in Spain, is that you can avoid such inflated bills, since the cost of living is so much lower than many of our cities back home. As an auxiliar, you shouldn’t NEED extra income just to get by, but it can really help improve your travel opportunities. Extra income can also be used to pay down debt back home.

Creating a Budget When You Don’t Know Your Expenses

September 14, 2017January 19, 2018Melissa

Creating a Budget

Creating a budget can be very overwhelming – especially when you’ve just moved and you don’t know what your expenses will be. I’ve definitely been there. When I arrived in Spain in 2015, I came with $2000 as my starter budget, but without a plan in place, I blew through over half of it before receiving my first paycheck. If I could do it again, what would I do differently? This is what I recommend for incoming auxiliares de conversacion.

I would begin by creating a budget using the 50/20/30 Rule. Here’s how it breaks down:

50% of your income goes to cover your NEEDS – Things like rent, food, electricity, transportation, internet, etc. These are the absolute basics you will pay for every month.
20% of your income goes to SAVINGS – You may need to buy a plane ticket at the end of the year. Or, if you’re staying in Spain over the summer, you’ll need a summer fund for when other opportunities dry up.
30% of your income can go to WANTS – things that you could do without in a pinch, but make life more enjoyable: eating out, drinks, travel, new clothes, etc. These things are likely the reason you are here.

Creating a Budget with the Auxiliar Income

So how would it look for an auxiliar creating a budget based on this plan?

Debt Management For Moving Abroad

July 5, 2017June 22, 2018Melissa

Raise your hand if you have debt. Yup, me too. According to Market Watch, Americans have $12.73 trillion worth of household debt as of March 2017, topping the 2008 peak of $12.68 trillion! About $1 trillion of that is in credit cards alone. How much of that is YOUR share?

the shame of debt — You, me, and about 80% of Americans.

We all know that debt holds us back, but what can we actually do about it? The first thing you should do is acknowledge it. Add it up and get a total. I like to use Unbury Me to visualize how different steps will affect my payoff date. Then, when I need to make a payment, I use TransferWise to send money back to my US account.

Debt Management Abroad

Moving abroad with no debt is ideal, but for many of us it isn’t realistic. If you can pay off all of your debts before moving, you will have less required monthly expenses. However, you should not use up all of your savings in order to achieve this, as you will need a starter budget to help yourself get set up in your new location.

When moving abroad, you can’t just focus on your total debt. You need to break it down into individual loans and monthly payments. Many personal finance experts, such as Dave Ramsey and Suzy Orman will recommend that you eliminate debt by lowest debt first (Dave) or highest interest debt first (Suzy). I respect both of their opinions.

However, for people moving abroad, the most important thing is minimizing monthly expenses. When I moved to Spain, I had $262.27 in minimum monthly payments. That’s a lot when your steady income is 700 euros a month. Now I’m down to about $42 a month in required debt repayment. How did I do that? Let’s take a look:

What Is Your Time Worth?

June 14, 2017June 9, 2018Melissa

Time is Money. This is a well-known concept that many of us have heard throughout our lives. But what does it mean?

For me, it draws up the image of someone tapping their foot, looking at their watch, and sighing impatiently. It implies the need to hurry up. Or maybe someone gives it to you as an excuse as to why they don’t have time to spend with you, thus enforcing that they can’t slow down. Time is MONEY, after all.

But wait. Slow down. I promise, you’ve got time for this. What if we’ve been misinterpreting this age-old proverb all along? What if instead of thinking that time is MONEY, we start to realize that TIME is money. This changes everything.

Teaching English Abroad Opens Doors

June 12, 2017June 9, 2018Melissa

Teaching English Abroad

My name is Melissa, and I love teaching English abroad. Why? For me, teaching is a natural extension of a love of learning, and teaching English abroad allows me to really see the world—not just on holidays or in retirement.

Maybe you’re a teacher yourself, but your summers never seem long enough and your budgets never stretch far enough. Or perhaps you’re thinking about becoming a teacher, but you’re not sure if it’s really for you. Maybe you have no idea what to do, and you’re looking to spend a year or two learning about yourself. All of these are great reasons to try teaching English abroad.

Teach Travel Budget

budgeting