I was sitting on the toilet today at the office, and a random thought came into my mind,
“If I suddenly had $10,000 in cash, what would I do with it?”
As my mind starting whirring the possibilities seemed endless…
With 10K I could:
- Implement the marketing plan I put together for one of my businesses. 10K could sustain it for 4 months, and could result in huge gains in revenue, clients, and reoccurring profits
- Avoid my personal bankruptcy filling. Spend 5K negotiating and paying down some personal debt and spending 5K on the business.
- Put it in my savings account@ emigrant direct
- Go on a fancy vacation to Tahiti.
OK, so the last one never really crossed my mind. When my mind had stopped whirring, I realized something that didn’t even cross my mind: depositing the 10K into a trading account. A year ago that’s the only way I would have thought of using a 10K windfall. I would have visualized that 10K turning into 60K (which, I did once in a month in 2006), and then that 60K into 250K and so on and so on. You see how screwed up my thinking was?
Of the options I listed above, with a 10K windfall I would likely choose the 2nd option of splitting it between investing it in my business and using it to avoid the BK.
So, what would you do with $10K?
{ 12 comments… read them below or add one }
businesses often go as far or farther on thrift then on ten k.
I’d probably put it in my HSBC Online Savings account at first as a temporary step before putting it into the stockmarket (Ameritrade) for long-term investment. I’m looking for a second leg down in this correction which may or may not happen first. Next option is to use it to reduce my margin loan balance in Australia. Trading (stock index futures mainly) is my “business”. You seem better at the line of business you are now doing.
Why not apply $10,000 to your debt and thus be $10,000 closer to paying it off? I guess I don’t understand the concept of doing anything else with it – you’re hemorrhaging, use any windfall to plug the holes so you can get to the place where you control your own money. I’m sorry, but even thinking about sticking that money into a savings account strikes me as a bit selfish and unethical – unless you don’t have an emergency account. Then I guess I’d put it in my emergency account so I didn’t have to fall back on credit in an emergency…
Hmmmmmm. With $10,000 right at this moment I would probably pay off the last $1100 left on my car (my last debt besides my mortgage, Yay!) and put the rest towards the larger car we’re going to have to buy to fit the number of kids we’ll have come March. Otherwise I’d stick it in savings until I knew what to do with it. In my days of focusing on debt I would have joyously made a large debt payment.
I’d put it toward expanding our emergency savings account. There’s money in there now in case my wife or I lost our job, but it needs to be bigger. Right now it would only carry us through one month before we’d have to start running up the credit cards. Ideally I’d like it to be three or six months’ worth.
Pay off debt. If 10k falls in your lap and you have debt, why not put it towards the debt? I don’t think it’s wise to save or invest 10k if you have debt, because you wouldn’t borrow money to invest it. Pay off debt.
Pay off my student loans!
Right now I’d stick it into my HSBC savings for use as a down payment on a condo/duplex/house in January. If I had a house already I’d do a tour of either Europe or SE Asia.
I would pay if off debt. Any unexpected income is a great way to pay extra off debt and $10,000 would make a difference to the principle on one of the loans, so the savings would actually be more than $10,000 once you work out the interest saved. by the way you are doing great, I really admire your attitude.
If $10k would keep you from filing bankruptcy, you shouldn’t file bankruptcy. You can work out settlements without the $10k.
Put a little in the business and put the rest in an emergency savings. Survival is your number 1 priority right now. Your credit is smashed anyway correct? Look out for yourself a little. You still have time to decide whether or not to file bankruptcy.
Pay off the window loan on our house… or better yet pay off the balance on my wifes car.
what no desire for Sweeeeet arbitrage?
I would go to Thailand. Actually, it’s only because I’m already planning to take my family there for vacation in a few months. If that trip were off the table, I’d put it into the account I already have set up (money market and a few short term CDs) for our future first home’s down payment.