I've been out of school since December and with June right around the corner, I have noticed that all of my loans are about to go into repayment very soon. I'm working, but only part-time at the moment so I really do need to be in control of my money and how I'm spending it. Of course, I want to be able to pay my bills, get out of debt and be responsible, but I have a social life to maintain and I want to be able to help out my family. I need to start being a real adult who pays attention to their finances.

This can be pretty difficult. I'm only working so much but it looks as if my employers like me so they call me in when they need extra people so on top of the hours I'm already working I'm just getting paid more. I don't live too far away from my retail job, so I make a point to be available. More money never hurts.

But then I also mark when my bills are due. I have a wall calendar and I use that to label which days I need to pay what bills. This includes anything from Netflix to credit card and loan payments. I find that when I can see when I have to pay I'm more likely to put the money aside. I used to just star the emails that provide me the statements but those get lost in the flood of others I get and at times, I forget to check them.

I've also gotten into the habit of paying a small portion of my bills off at one time instead of saving up until the end of the month. This way, I know that my money has gone towards whatever bill I have to pay and at the beginning of each month I'm not hit with a bunch of huge bills I have to pay all at once. Sometimes when I put physical money aside to save it, I end up using it in some kind of emergency or lend it out when someone needs it. These are good reasons to spend money if needed, sure, but that money should be separate from the money needed to sustain myself.

This also means that the job I have is only temporary. I knew that from the beginning, though. I never planned to nor do I now plan to make a career out of retail work, but it was easy for me to get sucked into the routine I already had and my job search suffered. Keeping a monster account active and an updated resume has helped me keep my options open.

Things can be pretty stressful right out of college, but I hope that many people don't use that as an excuse to stop trying. Your first job out of college may just be a stepping stone or may just get your foot in the door but it's something. When you have bills to pay, that comes first. It's important to keep trying to get the job you want and you know you deserve.