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Email ThisThat beauty you see is my new car. It’s great. It’s fuel efficient. I can trust it not to breakdown in the middle of the road (at least for a couple years). And it’s just plain pretty.
While purchasing the car was quite the hassle, it was my first morning as a new car owner in which I experienced a panic attack. Not just anxiety but a real panic attack. I’m a person that likes financial security (who doesn’t?). My advantage is that I’ve always had financial security.
With a new car loan and increased insurance payments my paycheck is being stretched. Combine that with increased gas and food prices and I am now for the first time in my life practically living paycheck to paycheck. To think that I laughed at Upper Middle Class America when they complained about the impact of the poor economy. The good news is that if I change my spending habits I can start saving some of my paycheck again.
In order to force myself into a budget I am officially declaring here that starting August 4th I will be attempting to curb my spending and stick to a budget for 3 months
Here are some ideas I have already have for curbing my spending:
- Suspend Netflix - Netflix allows you to suspend your subscription for 3 months at a time. It seems like a movie only comes on Netflix that I really want to see every couple of months. By waiting 3 months I’m not wasting money on movies I have no real interest in seeing but watch out of obligation. If in 3 months there is nothing I want to see I will go ahead and cancel.
- Stop Shopping at the Upscale Grocery Store - My heart belongs to Wegmans, along with my pocketbook. I will use ALDI for what I can and Walmart for the rest of my groceries. The majority of my grocerty list is produce which will be purchased from the farmer’s markets in the area.
- Stop Driving Home for Lunch - When I got my second job I started driving home for lunch everyday to ease the strain on his puppy bladder. He’s no longer a puppy, yet I still drive home everyday. It’s only a 3 mile drive one way but that adds up to 30 extra miles each week that I waste. I’ll start by cutting back to only 3 days a week of driving home.
Leave me more ideas in the comments.
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The easiest thing I ever did to reign in my spending (which was pretty bad) was to carry cash and not use my debit card for anything other than fuel. It made me realize the small expenses that added up to wasted money. I take out my cash for the week on Sunday, and when it’s gone, it’s gone.
Also, take your lunch. Cut premium cable channels. Buy off-brand at the grocery (It’s all pretty close to the same, anyway). Use coupons. Don’t eat meat for at least one less meal a week. Try to organize all of your chores that require driving for all-at-once. Drive slower. Ditch the $50/month gym membership for a $15 one (Cardinal Fitness in my area). Ween yourself from Ebay.
And I would say the most effective is to finally quit (or at least decrease) feeding your vice (e.g. Shopping, alcohol, smoking, etc.).
Good luck creating your “budget!” It’s the hardest thing I have ever done and tried to maintain! It’s worth it in the end!
Are you seeing movies in the theater? Cutting that out would probably save you more than suspending Netflix. We’ve discovered that there are an awful lot of movies that we’re perfectly happy to watch at home, and the Netflix membership is a lot cheaper than buying two tickets to all of those movies. If we don’t see them as new releases, so what?
Good advice. Things I’m doing:
- Avoiding bookstores at all costs (try to avoid shopping at places that are your weakness, even if you are “just looking”)
- Paying for things in cash.
- Taking my lunch to work.
- comparing the sale papers of the 3 major grocery store chains and that week shopping at the one that the highest amount of things I regularly buy on sale.
- Cutting back on meetings/activities. I used to go to A LOT of meetings. I’d pay a meeting fee, pay for dinner, tip etc. So I choose more carefully now - do I really want to go to this event? Will it be beneficial? Will I meet the kind of people I want to connect with?
- Got a job closer to home. Saved me time and money. Then I sold my car, which saved me more money! (You just bought one, so I know you aren’t looking to go that route!)