Amrita Ramabadran | Oct 20, 2024 | 5 min read
Okay, so I’m a junior in high school and I teach figure skating part-time—about 5 hours a week for $90. It’s not a ton of money, but it’s mine, you know? And honestly, I’ve made SO many mistakes with it. Like, embarrassing mistakes. But I’ve learned a lot, and I want to share what’s worked for me because if you’re also making $90 a week (or around that), these tips might actually help.
1. Spending Money Before You Actually Have It 💸
The Mistake:
So this happened to me literally last month. I teach Tuesday and Thursday evenings, and I get paid every Friday. Well, on Wednesday I saw this cute jacket on sale and I was like “oh, I’m getting paid in two days anyway” so I bought it with my debit card.
Then Friday came and I remembered I owed my friend $20 for concert tickets, needed to put gas in my car, and wanted to grab lunch with friends on Saturday. Suddenly that $90 was already spent before I even got it, and I had like $15 left for the whole week.
Why It’s Bad:
When you’re only making $90 a week, every dollar actually matters. You can’t afford to spend money you don’t have yet because unexpected stuff ALWAYS comes up. Always.
How to Avoid It:
Now I have a rule: I don’t buy anything until my paycheck hits my account on Friday. If I see something I want on Wednesday, I screenshot it and save it in a folder on my phone called “maybe later.” By Friday, half the time I’ve forgotten about it or realized I don’t actually need it. And if I still want it? Cool, now I can actually afford it.
2. Not Tracking Where Your Money Goes 🤷♀️
The Mistake:
Dude, I used to get my $90 every Friday and by the next Thursday I’d check my account and have like $8 left. And I’d be SO confused because I didn’t buy anything big. But then I’d think about it: $6 for Starbucks after my skating shift, $12 for Chipotle with friends, $15 on random stuff at Target, $7 for another coffee, $10 for gas, $8 for a movie ticket… It added up without me even noticing.
Why It’s Bad:
When you only make $360 a month (that’s 4 weeks × $90), wasting even $20-30 on random stuff is a BIG deal. That’s like 25% of your money just… gone. And you can’t even remember what you spent it on.
How to Avoid It:
I started using the notes app on my phone. Every single time I spend money, I write it down immediately. Like:
- Tuesday: Coffee $5.50
- Wednesday: Lunch $11
- Thursday: Gas $15
- Friday: Movie $10
At the end of the week, I add it up. It’s honestly kind of shocking at first. I realized I was spending like $40 a week on food and drinks. That’s almost HALF my paycheck just on eating out!
Now I try to pack snacks before my skating lessons so I’m not starving and hitting up the vending machine or drive-thru after. It’s boring but it works.
3. Thinking “It’s Only $5” (The Small Purchase Trap) 🍕
The Mistake:
This is the one that got me the most. After teaching skating, I’m always tired and hungry, so I’d stop at Starbucks or McDonald’s. “It’s only $6,” right? No big deal.
Except I was doing this like 3-4 times a week. That’s $24-30 a week. On a $90 paycheck, that’s literally a THIRD of my money just on snacks and drinks after work.
Why It’s Bad:
Small purchases feel harmless in the moment, but they’re actually the most dangerous because you don’t think about them. If you spend $50 on something big, you notice. But $5 here and $7 there? It just disappears.
How to Avoid It:
I started packing a protein bar and a water bottle in my bag before my skating shifts. Yeah, it’s less exciting than a caramel macchiato, but it saves me $20-25 a week. That’s an extra $100 a month that I can actually save or spend on something I REALLY want.
Also, I made a rule: no spending money on the days I work. I can spend on my days off if I want, but work days are off-limits. It sounds strict but it’s actually made things easier because I don’t have to debate with myself every time I drive past Starbucks.
4. Not Having Any Savings (Living Paycheck to Paycheck) 😰
The Mistake:
For my entire sophomore year, I spent every single dollar I made. All $90, every week. I thought “I’m in high school, I don’t need savings yet.” Then my phone screen cracked and the repair was $120. I had $18 in my account. I had to borrow money from my parents and it was SO embarrassing.
Why It’s Bad:
Life happens. Your car needs an oil change. You have to chip in for a team gift. Your skating bag rips and you need a new one. When you have literally zero savings, every little thing becomes a crisis and you end up asking your parents for money or just not being able to do stuff with friends.
How to Avoid It:
Here’s what I do now: Every Friday when I get paid, I immediately transfer $10 to my savings account. I know $10 doesn’t sound like much, but that’s $40 a month, $480 a year. And honestly? I don’t even miss it.
The key is doing it FIRST, right when you get paid, before you spend anything else. If you wait until the end of the week to save “whatever’s left over,” there won’t be anything left. Trust me.
Some weeks if I have extra tips from private lessons, I’ll throw in an extra $5 or $10. But the baseline is always $10 no matter what. After a few months, I had almost $200 saved and it felt SO good to have that cushion.
5. Buying Stuff to Impress Other People 👟
The Mistake:
Last year I bought these expensive Lululemon leggings because literally everyone at the rink had them. They were $98. I saved up for like a month to get them. And you know what? I wore them twice and realized they weren’t even that comfortable for teaching. I just wanted them because everyone else had them.
Why It’s Bad:
When you’re making $90 a week, spending $98 on ONE thing just because other people have it is actually insane. That’s more than an entire week’s paycheck. And for what? So people would think I fit in? Most people didn’t even notice, and the ones who did stopped caring after like one day.
How to Avoid It:
Now before I buy anything over $20, I ask myself: “If nobody ever saw me use this, would I still want it?” If the answer is no, I don’t buy it.
I also unfollowed a bunch of influencers who were constantly showing off expensive stuff. It sounds dramatic but it actually helped SO much. When you’re not seeing that stuff all the time, you stop feeling like you need it.
The best purchase I made recently was a $15 water bottle from Amazon that I actually use every single day at the rink. Nobody cares what brand it is, and I saved like $30 by not getting the trendy one everyone has.
Final Thoughts 💭
Look, $90 a week isn’t a lot of money. I’m not gonna lie and say you can save a ton or buy whatever you want. You can’t. But you CAN make smarter choices that add up over time.
I used to feel broke every single week even though I had a job. Now I actually have money left over, a growing savings account, and I don’t stress as much about unexpected expenses.
The biggest thing I learned? It’s not about how much you make—it’s about what you do with it. You can make $90 a week and still save money. You can make $300 a week and still be broke if you’re not paying attention.
Every penny matters. Especially when you’re working hard teaching little kids how to do crossovers for 5 hours a week. 😂
What about you? What’s your biggest money mistake? Let me know in the comments!