3 Things I Learned About Finances in College

No one has ever accused me of being amazing at handling money. It's not that I have a spending problem, I just don't pay attention to the money I spend. Most girls spend money on clothes and shoes, but I'm that girl that was spends money on books and food. While my money habits haven't exactly gotten better, my money management skills in college were absolutely horrible. I had periods of not even having a job and how I survived is a mystery to us all. 
I think the best thing that came out of my bad spending habits in college is that I was able to learn what not to do when I finally entered the "real world" and had to start paying for things like water and electricity. I guess my only complaint would be that I never learned these things in a classroom. Seriously, can they teach a life class in college that prepares us for filing taxes and dealing with landlords?
1 | PLAN AHEAD The majority of my college career was spent living off of my income checks. These were the checks that I received after my scholarships and loans paid for my school expenses. I received one of these every quarter, and the beginning of the quarter was spent counting down to when I would get these. I didn't have a job for a good portion of my college career, so I had to decide what things I was or wasn't going to do according to the amount of money I'd receive from my income check. 
Because I only received a large sum of money at one time, I had to plan out how I was going to use it. I would put a good portion toward food (because a girl's gotta eat), but I'd also leave some breathing room for fun stuff. I lived on campus all four years of college, so I was fortunate that I didn't have to worry about paying rent or utility bills. 
2 | UTILIZE CAMPUS RESOURCES I didn't really start taking advantage of all of the things my university had to offer until my junior year. Our Tech IDs also served as debit cards of sorts, and we could use our Tech Express to purchase things on campus as well as at restaurants and gas stations around campus. If I needed ketchup but was running low on funds, I would be more likely to go to the on-campus grocery store and overpay with my Tech Express rather than use my own money because technically I already spent the money with my scholarships and loans. 
Take advantage of things on campus like the gym, workout classes, the pool, free movies, cheap concerts, etc. because once you graduate, you won't have access to all of these things. Also, many places around your campus may have discounts specifically for college students. Don't be afraid to flash your student idea and use these discounts while you still can. 
3 | DON'T STRESS ABOUT STUDENT LOANS When I signed up for student aid at my school, I wasn't sure what I was doing when it came to my school finances. I think we all know that college is an expensive investment, and you should be informed about the money you're spending and know what your options are. Did you know that 3 out of 4 college undergraduates wish there was more helpful financial information available to them? I was definitely part of the former in college. 

College Ave Student Loans is a company that helps simplify the student loan process. They are an online marketplace lender that specializes in student loans, and they help current and future college students figure out what the best plan of action is for their particular situation. They offer competitive rates, several repayment options and a customer-friendly process that helps take the stress off of you. 
College Ave gives you choices for when to start paying off your loan and how long you have to pay it back, and there are no fees for paying the loan back early. The application process only takes a few minutes, and you get an instant credit decision. Another bonus: if you sign up for automatic payments, you get a 0.25% interest rate reduction. For more information about College Ave, visit: http://www.collegeavestudentloans.com/
To help you through the college process, College Ave Student Loans has partnered with Chegg on a #CollegeGoals Instagram contest where they're giving away several prizes, including $50 Chegg textbook credits and a $5,000 scholarship. All you have to do is share your college goals with College Ave (https://instagram.com/collegeaveloans/) now through June 30. For more information visit: http://blog.chegg.com/collegegoals/

Finances in college are no joke, which is why it's important for you to explore your options. Debt is a scary thing, and the majority of students don't even have a plan for how they plan to pay off their student debt after graduation. Before finalizing your financial decisions check with people who have knowledge about finances and explore the vast amount of sources available to you online. Managing finances in college doesn't have to be stressful. 
What's a piece of financial advice that you've received? 
Disclaimer: This post is sponsored by College Ave Student Loans and Her Campus Media. All opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that make Endless Bliss possible!

read more " 3 Things I Learned About Finances in College "

College Versus Real Life

It's that time of year again when everyone is posting about graduating, and I'm just over here being old. I had such a fun time in college, and some days, I miss it so much. Some things about college were just a lot easier...
FRESHMAN 15 VS REAL LIFE 500 College: I didn't gain much weigh in college because I had to walk everywhere. actually miss having to walk to class every day. It took me about fifteen minutes to walk from my on-campus apartment to the business building with a couple sets of stairs in between. Back then, I thought it was an inconvenience. Now, I'd welcome that walk any day. 
Real Life: Everyone says they want a desk job, but then they wonder how they mysteriously packed on 20 extra pounds. Forget the freshman fifteen; when you get a desk job, that's when the pounds really start sticking around. I sit at my desk for most of my day, and because of that, my body is constantly at rest, and my food is just sitting there with no movement to help it digest quicker. It's a sad reality. 
8 AM CLASSES VS CLOCKING IN AT 8:30 College: My hardest quarter in college was probably the one where I had 8 am classes five days a week. I'm baffled by the fact that I started high school at 7:30 every morning. I don't know how I did it. Having classes at 8 am was the worst...or so I thought. 
Real Life: Because I don't have to study or even think about work when I get home, I have horrible sleeping habits. I stay up late, roll out of bed late and on weekends I make no attempt to have a steady sleeping schedule. It's an every day struggle, y'all. 
COOKING IN COLLEGE VS COOKING AT HOME College: I don't know what it was about college, but my senior year, I had my ish together when it came to planning out my meals. I would plan ahead for an entire month. I had a calendar where I wrote down what I was going to eat for each meal (usually skipping breakfast because who has time?). I went grocery shopping once a month for all of the things I needed, and I was good to go. 
Real Life: Admittedly, Jon does pretty much all of the cooking because he gets home from work a lot earlier than I do. We've gotten better at planning our meals, but I'm in no way on the level I was on back in my college days. 
RUNNING INTO PEOPLE AT WAL-MART VS RUNNING INTO PEOPLE AT WAL-MART College: Oh, the dreaded Wal-Mart. I swear my roommates and I made weekly trips for random things. Sometimes for groceries, but most times for things like an ice-cream craving or getting a Redbox movie. Running into people at Wal-Mart in college usually meant that everyone was in sweatpants, and no one judged each other. To quote High School Musical, we're all in this together. 
Real Life: When you move back to your "hometown" (I use the term loosely, because I don't consider Shreveport/Bossier my hometown) after college, everyone has one goal: Be better than everyone that you run into from high school. For that reason, when you go to Wal-Mart, you're trying to look your best. If you see someone you know, you instantly judge their life against your own. Is their boyfriend cuter? Have they gotten married? Any babies in the cart? Unlike college, we're all playing Judge Judy. 

All jokes aside, I really do love being an adult. Yes, paying rent and other bills sucks, but I love that I'm working toward a better future for myself. I love living with my boyfriend. I love being able to love on my dogs every day. I love not having to study. I love not living refund check to refund check. I miss college sometimes, but being an adult isn't all that bad. 
Are you in college or a living life post-grad? What do you love/hate about it? 

read more " College Versus Real Life "

10 Things I Would Go Back and Tell My College Self.

College was a whirlwind of highs and lows, awesome and awful, tears of joy and tears of sorrow. I learned so much during my time at Louisiana Tech, both inside and outside of the classroom. Even though I wouldn't trade a bad moment for a good, looking back, these are a few things I would go back and tell my college self (particularly my underclassman self). 
You don't have to post every picture you take.  I've always been the picture taker among my friends. I wanted group shots, smaller group shots, shots with me and each person individually. I wanted smiling faces, silly faces, selfies, everything. I was that girl. I've toned down since, but in college, I wanted to remember and document everything, which is all fine and good to a certain point.
I'm not saying I shouldn't have taken all of the pictures that I did. Of course, I wanted all of those pictures, and I'm glad I have most of them (sadly, a huge chunk of my pictures were forever lost when my other laptop crashed), but I'm not happy about all of the pictures I posted for the world to see. Seriously, I even posted pictures that were blurry or horrible quality. I posted ones that I looked absolutely horrible in and some that I wouldn't want my co-workers to ever see. Ever. 
These are a few gems I found on my Facebook page:

If I could go back and do it all over again, I definitely would just choose a handful of the pictures I wanted to upload instead of uploading every single picture I ever took. Trust me. Some things are best left on the SD card.
Don't skip classes. Just because you have an allotted number of absences, doesn't mean you should waste them on sleeping in. I'm a big fan of sleep, and I used to take advantage of those allowed absences. Also, if a teacher didn't take roll, I didn't always go. I know. I'm a horrible person. When I look back at the classes I missed, I'm so disappointed in myself. I was paying for my education (correction: I'm paying for my education now. Student loans=death), and I let that go to waste by skipping classes.
Granted, I wasn't a horrible student. I didn't skip classes all the time. I actually went to class most of the time, and some classes, I never missed a day. My point is, looking back at it now, I shouldn't have missed any classes unless I had a dire reason (like that stomach flu of 2010. Yikes!). 
Getting involved on campus will turn your college experience from good to great. Don't get me wrong. I had a blast my freshman year, but I feel like my college career didn't really start until my sophomore year when I joined Union Board. Union Board is the organization that brings awesome events for the student body to campus. I got to work backstage at concerts, organize a talent show, and experience so many amazing things that I may not have had the opportunity to do otherwise. 

During the middle of my sophomore year, I tried out to be an Orientation Student Leader and was honestly shocked that I was selected. At that point in my life, I was so timid, shy and unsure about myself. I had no confidence to speak of. Being an OSL really brought me out of my shell. I had the best summer of my college career as a 2010 OSL. 

I'm so glad that I took the plunge to get involved in college. I don't think I would have enjoyed my college career as much as I did if I hadn't. 
Live on campus for as long as you can. There was a time in my college career when I did tons of research to look for housing off campus. I even drove around to look at houses for rent. I just thought that I was becoming a grown-up, and for some reason, I thought that meant that I needed to move off campus. I'm so glad that I never actually took the leap to do it. I stayed in the dorms for my freshman and sophomore years of college, and during junior year, I moved into an on-campus apartment with some friends, and we stayed there for senior year as well.  If I would have moved off campus, I would have been so broke. I didn't even work my senior year of college because I didn't have a car (thanks to someone who decided to run a red light. Still a little bitter), so I don't know why I thought living off campus would have even been an option for me. I'm sad that I wasted so much time determined to find a place to live when living in an on-campus apartment was pretty much the best thing ever. 
You know that list of things you want to do before you graduate? Go do them! Netflix and movie marathons are all good and fun, but it's nothing compared to a walk in the rare Louisiana snow (or slush, really) or a spontaneous late night drive to IHOP or your first road trip without any parents or coordinating outfits for a party or buying a drink at the drive-thru daiquiri place at midnight on your 21st birthday or grabbing every single game in your apartment and having a random game night.  I actually did make a list of things I wanted to do before I graduated, and guess what? I didn't do them all! How disappointing. I think that's why I'm so attached to my 30 before 30 and bucket lists now; because I didn't finish this list (even though it was much simpler, and everything was in relatively close proximity). 

8 am classes every day is not, and will never be, a good idea. I had one quarter where I had 8 am classes Monday through Friday. It was probably the worst quarter of my life. I'm not a morning person, so I'm really not sure how or why I did that to myself. Even though school started at 7:30 am when I was in high school, for some reason, when I got to college, 8 am classes just seemed like a punishment. My brain couldn't function properly at 8 am, and if I could barely make it to class on time, you know I wasn't eating breakfast, so that definitely didn't help things. 
Basically, 8 am classes = no. That's a lesson I learned the hard way. 
Take advantage of office hours. You know that paper you're struggling with or that econ formula you just can't seem to right? Go ask your professors about it! Seriously. I didn't start visiting my teachers during their office hours until late my junior year, but even then, I didn't really take advantage of it. I mean, think about it: You could get your English teacher to read your paper and critique it. They'll give you pointers on what to fix, and as long as you fix it, you're gold. 
Econ and finance were my enemies in college. They were my hardest classes (besides political science and a geology class that I ended up dropping). Instead of complaining to my friends about how hard the classes were, I should have gone to my professors and asked for help and further explanations. At least then they would see I was making the effort and possibly take pity on me. Maybe my grades wouldn't have been quite so terrible in those classes if I would have gathered all my pride and just asked for help. Friends will come and go, but true friends will stick around. The thing about friendship is that it doesn't always last forever. People you may call your BFF may betray you or your hectic schedules could cause you drift apart. It's not the end of the world. The important thing to remember is if someone wants to be in your life, they'll be there, and if you want someone in your life, then put in some effort. Schedule lunches or coffee dates. Meet up at a party or plan a trip together. Don't always expect other people to put in the effort. Friendships is 50/50. In college, your schedule changes so frequently. It changed even more frequently for me because my school was on the quarter system. The thing about college is there is a plethora of people to meet. College is essentially a melting pot of several different kinds of people, and your future friends are waiting for you to find them. The people you're best friends with freshman year may not be the same people you're best friends with senior year, but that's okay. The friends who are meant to be in your life will be there. 

Travel. I'm so mad at myself for not taking advantage of the endless opportunities for travel in college. We had so many breaks, including a three month long summer, and for most of those, I sat around the house or worked or did nothing. I should have been traveling. 
Now when I want to go somewhere, I have to take short weekend trips or plan it around my allotted vacation time at work. Granted, I get a good amount of paid vacation time, but I still have to come back to a lot of unfinished and/or new business. I'm lucky to have a job that I literally barely even think about on the weekends or when I'm on vacation, but it's a sad wake-up call when I get back in the office. It was so hard for me to get back in the groove after my two-week long vacation in Europe!
Looking back, I wish I would have taken advantage of my time off to see the world, or even just take some epic road trips around the US. I could have even studied abroad or worked as an au pair for a few months overseas. Now, I'm a big girl, and opportunities like that aren't plentiful. I did take a lot of awesome road trips in college and also celebrated graduation with a senior cruise, but there's so much more world to see!

This was before the whole getting stuck at sea disaster. 

Never miss an opportunity to learn. College isn't just about learning, but, obviously, learning is a huge part. College is supposed to prepare you for whatever life holds for you after graduation, and while life can be pretty unpredictable, there are so many ways for you to learn and grow and cram as much knowledge into your brain as possible. I wish I would have taken advantage of the Career Center at my school and "free" counseling sessions, and the Writing Center. I was also in a sea of professors with so much knowledge, and I just let all of those potential mentors fall through the cracks.
Something I definitely wish I would have had back in college is ProSky. Even though I grew up in the social media age, I feel like social media and online marketing is always adapting. There's always room to grow and always more to learn. If I would have known that a year after graduating college, I would be blogging and a huge part of my full-time would be social media-related, I would have taken advantage of awesome things that ProSky has to offer. 

Basically, ProSky offers online 9-12 week courses in Social Media Marketing, Business Intelligence, Sales, Digital Marketing, Brand Strategy Design, SEO, Financial and HR Software Systems, and so much more. All of the classes are designed and taught by professionals from Facebook, Twitter, Marc Ecko, Sony, and more. You gain knowledge and insight in the course of your choice and work on real-life projects that you can add to your resume. Plus, you can collaborate with other students and mentors from other universities and professional industries worldwide (including LinkedIn, Zappos, Benessere Foundation, Stance Socks and more!). 
What's great about ProSky is that you can learn at your own pace, which means you can work around your hectic schedule, unlike traditional internships. ProSky not only allows you to learn skills through your chosen course, but you also get to do hands-on work by leading projects and also networking with industry professionals as well as students around the world. Think about it this way: If you did two ProSky series every year, starting your freshman year, you would have done eight projects for eight different companies, all of which can go on your resume. That's basically getting your foot in the door of eight different companies all from the comfort of your dorm room.
There are so many opportunities for you to learn and grow during your time in college. Take advantage of all of them!
What things would you go back and tell your college self?
Thank you to ProSky and HerCampus for sponsoring today's post. 

read more " 10 Things I Would Go Back and Tell My College Self. "

Roll My Windows Down and Cruise.

I'm a firm believer in thinking that a cruise is the best vacation you can take. Seriously. You visit multiple countries (or multiple parts of the same country), you get to eat all the freaking time, there's always something to do and you don't have to worry about drinking too much because you don't have to drive anywhere. I went on a cruise with my family when I was a junior in high school, and that was fun and all, but I didn't fall in love with cruises until I took a trip with my Tech Fam, aka my best friends in college. We traveled with Carnival on the Triumph (yes, that's the one that got stranded in the middle of the ocean for five days. It was fine when we went though, obvs) to Cozumel and Progreso in Mexico. We went two days after graduation, because we weren't playing around. We were ready to celebrate.
It started with a road trip. I love road trips. I especially love them two days after a college graduation. The first day was a blur. We ate a lot. Explored the boat. Did lots of the random activities that the boat plans for everyone.

That night we got all cute and did some karaoke. I'm not talking about the karaoke that happens in smoky bars and gross bathrooms. We're talking legit karaoke with a band (yes, a band). We also got back-up singers. Y'all, I can't sing at all, but man, I had a blast. The first night, my fellow Swiftie and I belted out some "Love Story." Don't hate.

It was ladies night at one of the clubs onboard, and all the girls got a free glass of champagne. Couldn't miss that. It wasn't that hoppin though, so we just got our free drank, danced to a couple songs, and left. 

The next day was a lot of random. We did a bunch of stuff on the boat. We played some games in the library. Okay, that sounded really nerdy, but y'all just have to understand that we love us some board games. There was some pool  and water slide action on the boat too. 

Winners of the game being too cool to look at the camera.

Losers of the game being awesome.

That night, we got all fancy and ate expensive food that wasn't expensive to us because you can eat as much of it as you want! Seriously, if you're thinking about going on a cruise, don't diet beforehand because you'll just gain all that weight back. You can't not eat all the time. Plus the food is good. When were we not eating? The answer is never.

The next day was the first port - Progreso! We didn't make any plans for Progreso. We just thought we'd see what would happen. We started with a beautiful sunrise on the boat. So gorgeous. Then we walked through the shops. We decided to wait until we were about to get back on the boat before buying anything. We got a comfy spot on the beach, and all these people kept asking us if we wanted massages. One of the people I was with talked these people into letting us get super cheap massages, which led to Jon and I having our very first couples massage.

We ate lunch on the beach. It was fabulous. I don't like Mexican food, but apparently I like Mexican food in Mexico. It was so good, y'all. So good. 
We couldn't leave Progreso without doing something exciting, so we decided to go on a banana boat! Omg! Y'all. I just can't even describe how fun this was. We met these two guys after banana boating that were pretty cool, and they were on the same cruise as us. I mentioned them in one of my first blog posts way back when. 

When we got back on the boat, we all showered and got dressy-ish. We took some pictures on the deck because the sunset was just absolutely gorgeous. We also went to a magic show that was a little risque and then we went to a Burlesque show. Then of course we went back for some more karaoke. 

The next day - COZUMEL! We booked an excursion not through Carnival and pretty much ended up having our own private beach (with just a few stragglers, but they don't count). We got some snorkle lessons (which I really struggled with. The whole mouth-breathing thing is a lot easier said than done. For me anyways). We also got to use the snorkle gear as much as we wanted, plus -- we had an Open. Bar. Yeah. Open. In Mexico. 

We also ate some lunch somewhere in there and did some shopping.

The rest of our time on the boat was spent doing a lot of random - mini golf, pool, hot tub, meeting people, dancing, karaoke (can't get enough), eating (duh), seeing magic tricks (table side), going to a comedy show (where I got called out because he couldn't figure out what my race was. Don't remember what was said, but I do remember laughing), drinking, going to the arcade, wasting money at the casino (I broke even though), playing board games and just a lot of overall randomness, including playing a murder mystery game. Yeah. We all share a special kind of friendship. I wish I could afford to go on cruises all the time.

When is my next cruise you didn't ask? BLOGCATION! I can't even describe my excitement. I can't wait to meet my three roomies and go to my first bloggers conference. Plus, I get to go to the Bahamas, which I've never been to before, and I'm freaking excited. There's potential Mary-Kate and Ashley movie remake possibilities here. Can I just go to Atlantis? 
Anyway, the point is - I love traveling, and cruises are the best way to do it because you get to see multiple places in one vacation. Plus, you don't have to drive. Cruises just make you feel like royalty even though there are hundreds of other people on the boat feeling like royalty with you. My next cruise is going to be way too much fun - meeting people that I never ever thought I would get the chance to meet. It's gonna be a blast, and if you're a blogger and haven't signed up yet, what the heck are you waiting for?!
********************************************************* Meet one of my March sponsors, Neisha!

Hi, I'm Neisha, the girl over at Neisha's View. Over on my little space I talk about all (read:most) of the happenings in my life and all the crazy little thoughts that run through my mind. I love God, positivity, green tea binges and I'm a firm believer that our big world is still filled with genuine little people.

What is your favorite thing about blogging?

My favorite thing about blogging is being able to interact with so many different people. I think that this is the coolest part about being a blogger, there are so many different people in the blog world. I just love it!

What motivates you?

Hmmmm I'm often motivated and inspired by people who have defeated the odds and achieved their biggest dreams. My heart becomes so full of joy for these people. It makes me feel like I can do anything!

If you could live a day in the life of anyone, dead or alive, who would you choose and why?

Ohhhh man, I don't know. This question is hard for me. But I'll choose Bob Goff; many people don't know who he is. He wrote a book called Love Does. He is such an amazing man. His life is filled with adventure and leaps of faith, it's almost unreal. He's also very personable and kind...the man has his very own personal number in the back of his book for gosh sake.

What song are you currently obsessed with?

There is no song.....sorry. I love everything, well almost everything. I just like good music. I am obsessed with Regina Spektor at the moment though. She's great.

What makes you awesome?

This question makes me wish I did some cool trick like tying a cherry stem with my tongue or putting out a hit album without any marketing or promotion but no....I'm just ordinary. Not plain, but ordinary. But I'll say I'm awesome because I stay true to who I am.

To learn more about Neisha, follow her via the links below:

Blog | Bloglovin | Instagram | Twitter

read more " Roll My Windows Down and Cruise. "

a million reasons to be thankful.

I won't name all million of them (mostly because I don't know every single reason, but there has to be a million. I'm sure.). My 4-day Thanksgiving weekend couldn't have been more awesome if I wanted it to be (other than a celebrity run-in with the entire cast of Harry Potter, Ellen DeGeneres, David Giuntoli, NSYNC, and the cast of Pitch Perfect all at once. But what are the chances of that happening? ... Exactly. Moving on.).  One random thing that happened over my mini break was that my blog reached over 200 followers on Bloglovin! It made me super happy to get the email (just ask my sis. She was there when it happened), and many many THANKS to all of my beautiful followers. Y'all are so sweet.  Thursday Happy Thanksgiving! I stayed the night at my parents' the night before and woke up in time to watch lots of TV and a movie and a half (Pitch Perfect!!!) with my sister. My mom had to work, but my sis, my step-dad, and I ate a delicious Thanksgiving lunch. Yum! 

At 5:30, my sister and I were on the way to Wal-Mart for some Black Friday shopping. It was a cluster. More crowded than last year. By 7, we were already in line for Target. 

I bought 27 movies (yea! TWENTY-SEVEN! I ended up going back on Saturday and buying Silver Linings Playlist), 2 scarves, and some black riding boots. I mostly go for the movies, but the other things are a little bonus. Friday I had stayed the night at my co-workers because I house-sat the whole weekend while he was out of town. 

Chiweenies. The cutest.

I woke up extra early so I could drive to Converse to see my friends, Tyler and Analeigh, and then ride with them to DeRidder to see my friends, Anamaria (she flew home from Chicago) and Mandy, and Jon came later. We talked, laughed, played games, and ate a lot. I forgot how much I missed those crazy people. It made me sad to leave them because who knows how long it will be till I see them again? College reunions are the best for real. Miss them already. Anamaria also gave me an early birthday present, but I want to wait to post what it is later! It's super awesome though.

I got a little too aggressive trying to surprise Jon for a funny picture. 

Saturday I caught up on some TV shows and cuddled with the puppies before Jon got to my co-worker's house. Then we watched a movie and passed out because we were super tired.

Sunday Jon and I ran a few errands and then watched Despicable Me before he had to leave me until my birthday. Sadness. What a weekend! I wish every weekend was as awesome as this one. I hope everyone had a lovely Thanksgiving weekend!

read more " a million reasons to be thankful. "