I’ve recently found myself at a financial crossroads. Over the past few months, I’ve watched my miscellaneous spending balloon. I’ve rarely turned down an invitation, and I’ve been traveling/making travel plans like crazy. As I alluded to in previous posts, I’ve been living a great life–reconnecting with old friends, making new ones, and generally taking advantage of all that life has to offer.
The downside of all of this is that I haven’t been saving much of anything compared to what I used to. I’m still tracking my spending, making automatic contributions to savings (very minimal) and retirement, paying extra on my mortgage, and paying for most everything out of my monthly budget (the only exception being an international flight that came out of savings, but is already budgeted to be put back by April), but I’m not watching my savings grow as it once did (think 100s vs. 1000s). This pains me as much the feelings of shock and guilt I experience when totaling up my miscellaneous spending for the recent months.
The most horrible realization is figuring out that I’ve been rationalizing this ridiculous spending. Further analysis has revealed that I am indeed rationalizing my money away. “Oh, it’s just $40,” “Yeah $8 for lunch isn’t bad!” “But this is a dinner with an old friend that I haven’t seen in ages!” I’ve also been “keeping up with the Jones’s” in terms of my social spending. Instead of choosing a cheaper restaurant or eating a snack before heading out, I’ve blindly accepted $50 dinners as the norm. What?! Did I just say that?? Who am I anymore when it comes to $$?? These are questions I’m currently seeking real, genuine answers to.
In the spirit of blogging, I reach out to you, any readers out there. I know I haven’t been as active of a blogger as I would like to be, but I am am soliciting your feedback and advice. Have you ever gone through this sort of phase? Are you currently? If so, how did you snap yourself out of it? If not, how do you prevent yourself from sliding down such a slippery slope?? Any & all feedback is requested and welcome…..
Oh yes, I've done this pretty much my whole life. I started to get really serious about my misc. spending last July. It's made a world of difference.Have you tried just using cash? And when it's gone, it's gone. It's worked wonders for me and my spending. And, quite frankly, I feel more powerful with cash in my wallet. Go figure.I would LOVE for you to join us on the No Spend February. You should plan ahead for your trip and use only the money you allotted. This is a personal endeavor and everyone's amount will be different. The object for me is to save at least $2,000.00. You'll have to come up with a number that works for you!
Thanks, Sharon! I've realized that I'm an emotional spender (more to this in an upcoming post). I need to overhaul my entire system, which I plan to steadily do over the next 2-3 months. I'm completely in for Feb–but my challenge will be a bit modified due to travel plans. I'm so excited to have this motivating factor in my spending awareness. Best of luck to you and everyone else joining us!!