Money on treesAsk any of my former employers (and a few of my ex-boyfriends), financial forecasting is not my strong suit. I haven’t technically balanced a checkbook since I was in college, and I have trouble thinking past this month in terms of expenses and income.

I’ve announced here on my blog that I’m making a living as a copywriter. This is absolutely true. I am making a living. Today. In fact, I’ll be making a living tomorrow. My gauge after 4 months of running my own business for whether I’m making a living is pretty forgiving. In summary, if I don’t have to move into my parents’ basement next month, I’m good to go. If I can spend $45 at the grocery store, so much the better. That’s financial security to me right now.

I’m actually making more than the bare minimum for living expenses these days, but I’ve gone into starvation mode, squirreling money here and there for the inevitable time when the money runs out. Sure, I’m busy right now. But in January, will I have work? In March, will I have finished the big projects I’m on now? How about this summer? Will other people’s vacations leave me without an income? I didn’t have any money saved when I went into business, and now I’ve probably got enough money to live on for three months if all the work dried up tomorrow.

One of my major goals for 2008 is to start thinking further ahead. I wrote in this post of copywriting guru Peter Bowerman’s financial planning. He broke his yearly financial goal into a daily goal, posted the daily goal on his wall and figured out each day how to meet that goal. I’m not there yet. But I do need to figure out how to think past one rent and two car payments.