What would you do with an extra $1,000?

montel williams adI was watching the tele last night when Montel Williams popped up in an ad and asked me if I could use an extra $1,000?

Which is funny because I haven’t seen that guy in quite some time, and especially never hawking any products.  But hey, you gotta do what you gotta do!

So just in case Mr. Williams is reading this right now, I thought I’d go ahead and answer his question :)  Yes, I can always use an extra thousand dollars! I’d probably save it like a dork as always, but if you were forcing me to spend it I could easily come up with ways to do so. Like this:

  • 3 new pairs of jeans. And not anything under $50 either (I’m going to use this free money to splurge a bit! Although I’ll still shop at TJ Maxx and Filene’s Basement).  Est. cost – $250
  • 10 new pairs of boxers. And then throw out my older hole-y ones.  Est. cost – $80
  • 10 graphic tees. Cuz you can never have enough! Est cost – $200
  • 2 new pairs of shoes! One for $100 and another for around $50 – both comfy enough to rock my jeans & tees with.
  • A bottle of Kenneth Cole cologne. I tested out this one out in Canada the other day (I think it was called Black?) and I’ve been wanting it ever since! Est. cost $50?
  • $100 worth of scratch off lottery tickets ;) Only this time I want to try out $2s and $5s and even a $20!  Gotta try and redeem myself after last year’s crash & burn.

And then I’d probably donate anther $100 somewhere and use the last $70 to take the Mrs. out on a date (so I can sport my new outfits!).

As you can tell, I’ve been slacking on my wardrobe.  All my favorite clothes are starting to get major holes in them and soon enough I’m gonna have to do something about it.  Now that I’m actin’ all minimalist I don’t have any more fall backs! So an extra $1,000 would certainly do the trick.

How about you? What would you do if Montel Williams gave you $1,000 to blow?

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46 Comments

  1. RT August 13, 2010 at 8:54 AM

    It would go straight into my IRA. I am a little behind in my contributions for the year so far.

    Reply
  2. DH August 13, 2010 at 9:04 AM

    I actually got an extra $1k earlier this month…every penny went straight to my student loans (if I had to blow it, though, I’d put it towards an old motorcycle that I could make a hobby out of fixing up. That way I’d spend more time riding and less time elsewhere spending even more $$).

    Reply
  3. Jeff @ Sustainable life blog August 13, 2010 at 10:02 AM

    I think if montel gave gave me 1000, I’d use it to pay down debt. If I had to spend it, Id use it to buy some 55 gallon drums and some light chemicals to start a business.

    Reply
  4. MoneyMutual August 13, 2010 at 10:25 AM

    Great article, J. Money – I laughed at the “10 New Pairs of Boxers!”

    Reply
  5. Moneymonk August 13, 2010 at 10:55 AM

    “$70 to take the Mrs. out on a date”

    Mrs. out you are hilarious

    Reply
  6. Jolie August 13, 2010 at 10:57 AM

    If I were being a good girl, I’d probably put $600 of it down as an extra payment on my auto loan and use the $400 remaining to buy back to school clothes and supplies for the boys.

    If I were going to be all wonderfully self spoiling (ie – selfish) I’d probably buy a round of the Skin Care Line I adore but can’t afford ($400), some new clothes and spend anything left at a book store :-)

    Reply
  7. Stephan August 13, 2010 at 11:00 AM

    ive seen that commercial, crazy how far he has fallen so fast, i used to see him on tv all the time, not at midnight on an infomercial! anyways, with a thousand dollars i would save $500 instantly and then use the reminaing funds to get some new glasses, get certified in google adwords, and probably use about 100$ of that to go to a pro sports game, NFL season is coming up!

    Reply
  8. Laura August 13, 2010 at 11:48 AM

    I would spend it all on plane tickets to visit my boyfriend :)

    Reply
  9. JMK August 13, 2010 at 12:23 PM

    With no restrictions, it would all go to an extra mortgage payment. Getting that sucker paid off is the key to my early retirement.

    If I only got it on the condition that I blow it, then a great long weekend in New York would do it for me. I have no interest in acquiring stuff, but travel, concerts, theatre tickets etc are all good options.

    Reply
  10. Techbud August 13, 2010 at 12:57 PM

    A nice way to kick off my emergency fund!

    Reply
  11. Jenna August 13, 2010 at 1:22 PM

    I’d blow it on a trip to San Fran. Although I would feel guilty for not putting it toward paying down my student loans, I really want to visit wine country!

    Reply
  12. Kelsey August 13, 2010 at 1:24 PM

    I would be a nerd too and either put it towards my wedding or towards my house downpayment fund. But like you, if I had HAD to spend it, I would probably take a trip somewhere…I love traveling! Maybe NYC for New Years Eve!

    Reply
  13. Nunzio Bruno August 13, 2010 at 1:27 PM

    I would probably spend some of it to make Financially Digital look a little prettier. I would def take my girl out on a day trip or two. I would try to put some of it in the savings account and the rest I think I would just let float in the checking account to cover misc expenses – ease the cost of living a bit for that month maybe.

    Reply
  14. danielle August 13, 2010 at 2:10 PM

    i would take my best friend with me to San Francisco and eat my way through the city until i ran out of money. lol

    Reply
  15. Serendipity August 13, 2010 at 2:20 PM

    I would save 500 of it and spend the rest on a laptop I’ve been eyeing for school.

    Reply
  16. Greg McFarlane August 13, 2010 at 3:12 PM

    $1000 on Red 33. You could double your money!

    But if you’re carrying consumer debt or student loan debt and you don’t immediately put it towards that, you’re insane. Or have at least forfeited the right to complain when you come home from your wine country trip to another debt statement in your mailbox.

    Reply
  17. Khaleef @ KNS Financial August 13, 2010 at 5:34 PM

    Ok, since it’s my #1 goal, I’d have to put it on debt! If I was out of debt, I would use it to help my mother out.

    If I was forced to spend it, I would buy a new laptop for my wife, a food processor, a blender, and spend the rest on my side business.

    Reply
  18. Rachel211 August 13, 2010 at 6:35 PM

    Straight to the CC – once we pay this sucker down it would free up like $600 a month! We’ve been snowballing it for a while, and the faster it can go to something else the better!!

    Reply
  19. Jonathan August 13, 2010 at 6:57 PM

    Montel done sold out, now he does infomercials that are designed to seem like they are part of the old Montel Show. Sounds like someone didn’t do any sexy budgeting when he was actually popular…

    Reply
  20. Bridget August 13, 2010 at 7:49 PM

    I’d buy an iPad! And if anything was left over, I’d just put it in savings.

    Reply
  21. Nick August 13, 2010 at 8:59 PM

    If I had $1,000 right now I would put it towards paying off my student loans. If those were gone I would invest it. But if I got it through a payday loan like this I would use it to hire a kickboxer to give me a roundhouse to my “sensitive area” for doing something so stupid as taking a payday loan and giving a payday loan company permission to access my checking account electronically!

    Reply
  22. michelle August 14, 2010 at 2:18 AM

    lol i’d use the money to further fund my new car purchase. that’d be another $1000 i wouldn’t have to finance :)

    Reply
  23. Holly @ Shopaholly August 14, 2010 at 4:39 AM

    Sounds so lame but that extra cash would go straight into my house fund. YAWN! I know, I just wouldn’t feel right having a blow out knowing I could be 3 months ahead on it otherwise.

    Great topic though!

    Reply
  24. Mysti August 14, 2010 at 10:27 AM

    Assuming we could do anything we wanted with the cash, I would pay off a student loan that is sitting right at $1000 balance.

    If this is “blow” money and we HAD to spend it on “stuff,” then I would:

    Give $300 to hubby to go do what he wants with
    Give $100 to each child (we have 2)
    The remaining $500 would be:

    Couple of new trollbeads for my bracelet
    New undergarments
    Mani/pedi
    some books
    A ticket to go away for the weekend to visit my friend

    (BTW…you can get Kenneth Cole Black on Ebay…new in the box….for about $30)

    Reply
  25. TeacHer August 14, 2010 at 5:57 PM

    I would go to the airport, randomly pick a destination that cost about 1K to get to and from, and go. I’d figure out the rest of the trip when I got there.

    I’ve ALWAYS wanted to do that.

    Reply
  26. Brian August 15, 2010 at 11:59 AM

    “Good Me” would automatically send it on to my Lending Club loan. I’ve almost got it, and that would definitely purge that loan from my budget. “Bad Me” would go and buy a used MacBook Air. I’ve always wanted a Mac, since my Apple IIc bit the dust in the 80’s, and if I could survive the guilt of doing something fun, I would definitely get one now!

    Reply
  27. myfinancialobjectives August 15, 2010 at 2:43 PM

    Cool post. I would:
    Do one of three things:
    1. Buy my parents a new stove for their birthday
    2. Put it towards my Student Loans
    3. Pay for my upcoming Cruise vacation with it
    4. Put it in my House fund – A nice little jump start

    So how bout it Montel? Can I get that $1000? Obviously I need it:)

    Reply
  28. J. Money August 15, 2010 at 3:38 PM

    I like the way you all think ;) It’s interesting too that so many of you chose some sort of traveling adventure! I hope you’re able to squeeze that in even if Montel doesn’t give you an extra $1,000!!! Travel = culture = life experience = can never be taken away (unlike your car, house, things, etc etc). Unless you get amnesia.

    Some responses:

    @DH – Ooooooh I like that motorcycle idea!
    @Jeff @ Sustainable life blog – Ummm… what kind of business would that be now? :)
    @Jolie – $400 skin care line? haha.. now THAT is a good splurge :) it is like Bare Minerals, but with Gold?
    @Stephan – You can get certified in google adwords? Interesting… I might have to look into that one.
    @Greg McFarlane – That is something I’ve always wanted to do actually :) Would be such a rush!
    @Jonathan – Or he really truly believes that payday loans are *GOOD* for people (vomit)
    @Nick – Hahhaahahaah…. oh man, I’d pay good money to see that :) And I agree – although some readers have pointed out in the past that people on personal finance blogs usually aren’t the same people who need/would take out payday loans. For whatever that’s worth.
    @Mysti – I think my mother would do the same thing actually – spread it out to her children and then pick up a few things for herself for once! :)
    @TeacHer – YES!!!! Me too. Man, I should actually put all this stuff down on a list so there’s a chance I’d make it happen some day. Thanks!!!
    @Brian – Haha…Apples are awesome. So much moreso than 30 years ago, you should give it a shot ;) Although I’d probably spend it on Lending Club too… If they’d LET ME!!! (no luck in Maryland)

    Reply
  29. Fig August 15, 2010 at 4:38 PM

    I’d pay for my wedding! That would be a good chunk of it. ;)

    Reply
  30. J. Money August 15, 2010 at 8:49 PM

    Well congrats on being engaged!

    Reply
  31. wldflr August 16, 2010 at 1:26 PM

    Actually, I’ve won $1,000 twice off the radio back in the 90’s, the first time as a college student so that $ came in mighty handy then and the 2nd time a few years later just when I needed to purchase a new car (it was a good chunk of my deposit).

    Another $1K right now would probably go towards another car purchase since my current one has 127,000 miles on it and things are starting to go bad on it that are costing me $$$.

    Reply
  32. Kelly August 16, 2010 at 2:38 PM

    Emergency Fund!

    Reply
  33. J. Money August 16, 2010 at 9:32 PM

    @wldflr – Woah, you’re good luck! Must be easier to play this game since it’s happened before ;)
    @Kelly – What if you had to spend it?

    Reply
  34. Kate Kashman August 17, 2010 at 6:54 AM

    Schwing! If I had to spend it, I would take the family on a trip. I wonder how far I can get six people on a $1000? (I swear, we spend that in a weekend here in Europe.)

    If there were no restrictions, I think I would follow my plan for bonus money: give 10%, spend 10%, and then put the rest in the bank until we get the finances of this move settled. Once we know how much everything is going to cost, then we’ll put everything in excess of our emergency fund to pay off our car loan.

    Reply
  35. philip August 17, 2010 at 4:25 PM

    If I had answered last week I would have said use it in Vegas and try to make more with it! Unfortunately that trip is over so I have to choose something else. Right now it would be tempting to beef up the emergency fund etc. If forced to spend I am doing ok clothing wise for the most part but could pick up some stuff for going out. Next up would be using it for going to a couple more mountain bike races than I am going to otherwise, or back for another college football game this season!

    Had to point out that you just called out the exact cologne that I use! Kenneth Cole Black.

    Reply
  36. J. Money August 17, 2010 at 9:28 PM

    @Kate Kashman – Oh yeah, keep forgetting you’re over in Europe!!! So cool :) Really like your bonus money idea though, that’s an excellent way to divvy it up (might have to tweet that too)
    @philip – Hah! I think it’s a sign that I buy it then :) I mean, after all if a guy like you wears it?

    Reply
  37. vicki September 22, 2010 at 10:10 PM

    first of all, to all of you who have said that montel williams has sold out ,or went down hill from t.v. to infomercials. before you speak, you need to do some research, so let me clue you in. on the day that ended montels career was on t.v. the goverment or t.v. station, i;m not sure who told him [ not to tell the people the truth ] about situations that were talked about, [ and he chose us the people ] and told us the truth, even when his job was at stake because montel is a man of integrity and truth, and anybody who ever watched his shows many times knows this about him, so if you all think he has really went down hill remember it was 4 you and me. 1000 $ get a home with no mold so i could be well

    Reply
  38. Greg McFarlane September 22, 2010 at 10:13 PM

    I love when crazy people comment, but especially a month late. I think that comment includes every punctuation mark except a period.

    Reply
  39. Khaleef @ KNS Financial September 22, 2010 at 10:24 PM

    @ Vicki…To make sure I understand, are you saying that Montel was threatened by someone about telling the truth on his talk show and when he refused to stop, they fired him? Where did you get all of this information from?

    @ Greg, yeah I just had to come back to see what she was talking about. What I got from all of that is Montel cleaned out the mold in her home for $1,000 – pretty good deal!

    Reply
  40. J. Money September 22, 2010 at 10:28 PM

    @vicki – Interesting…don’t know too much of his background, but pretty cool if that’s true. Hope you get better! Mold is no joke :(
    @Greg McFarlane – You are bad :)

    Reply
  41. vicki September 24, 2010 at 1:25 AM

    go to you tube, montel turns the tables on a fox morning television show. it was the day after this show that montels show was cancelled and until the end of the season reruns were used. as you watch this segment you will see that once again he stood for the people asking questions asking that the goverment and people be accountable and bring awareness to how many lives are being lost and yet no one hears the truth about this,but yet we can have hours, months and even years when it comes to the rich and famous

    Reply
  42. Greg McFarlane September 24, 2010 at 2:43 AM

    Occasionally, Montel comes to me in my sleep (we’ve become very close, that’s why I use just his first name.) I don’t mean figuratively, i.e. in a dream. I mean the actual guy, Montel Williams, through the bedroom window. He sits on the corner of the bed. He usually brings food – Thai is my favorite – and we swap stories about the good old days before the infomercials and the mold.

    Reply
  43. Def May 31, 2011 at 10:14 PM

    Lt. Commander Montel Williams has some serious issues with credibility. It’s a shame for such an accomplished person to stoop this low. First, there was Sylvia Brown, then the Obama coin (which turned out to be a sticker glued to a coin!?).. Then we get the Montel Williams juicer, finally Commander Williams joins the likes of Magic Johnson and Russell Simmons in deceiving their own communities with these predatory lenders in disguise.

    Reply
  44. William August 9, 2012 at 3:10 PM

    Id buy this cheap old van to have a place to live..as i am almost homeless

    Reply
  45. J. Money August 10, 2012 at 5:17 PM

    Sorry to hear, William :( Hope things get better for you!

    @vicki – Interesting, never heard that before? And also, sorry for commenting back so late! haha… you weren’t waiting around for 2 years were you? ;)

    @Def – Obama coin? I’ll have to Google that one… sounds vaguely familiar but must have happened before I started collecting them more. Shame either way :(

    Reply

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