Well, here goes nothing! It’s almost the start of a new month, a clean slate, and a NO SPEND MONTH!
I’m joining Sharon in her quest to save a boatload in February by limiting spending (I also borrowed the fantastic image above from her page). While my challenge will personally be a bit different seeing as how I’ll be out of the country for 10 days of the month, I will still be setting some lofty goals in terms of cutting expenses. I also will be allowing for a minimal amount of eating out and “extras” because this month is my first foray into being serious about reducing my spending–I don’t want to set myself up for failure by going completely “cold turkey.” Without further adieu, here are my guidelines:
Goal: To limit my miscellaneous spending to $250.00
Break-down of the miscellaneous categories:
Medical: $50
Eating out: $50
Gas: $100 (starting with a near-empty tank–hopefully this will be less!)
Extra: $50
What’s working for me:
- $50 gift card to grocery store
- $25 gift card to Dunkin’ Donuts
- Re-kindled love of swagbucks
- $5 Amazon.com credit
- A somewhat-stocked pantry/freezer
- Support from a fantastic community of readers like you!
Where I’ll need to step up my game:
- My miscellaneous spending has been $900+, $1,200+, and $700+ for the past few months–going down to $250 is a huge goal
- Saying no to my friends will be challenging, but I have a few ideas to help with this area (to be published in another post)
- Working through, and ending, my emotional spending pattern
I’m so excited to be facing this challenge head-on. I feel like February, even with travel-related spending (that has already been budgeted for), will serve as a catalyst for my new spending patterns and behaviors. While I know this will not be easy, I’m overwhelmingly motivated to get started and see where the month takes me. To any of you joining us, feel free to post your comments, goals, action plans, etc. Hello, February!! 
It looks great!! If you stick to the $250.00 you will save a lot of money!!! I'll be following you all the way!!
!
I'm doing the challenge too! I'm adding a set of links to fellow No-spenders on my blog. We can do this!!