$5 at the corner store. A quick dollar menu lunch from McDonald's. The daily Starbucks latte. These little purchases may not seem like much, but that's the problem. It takes a few of these before you are able to really notice a big dent in your account, so it's easy to justify making these purchases everyday. By the end of the month, you may have spent $100 or more than you planned!
This has happened to me too many times in the past. I would buy anything that was under $20, so it was not uncommon for me to check my account after a typical weekend and realize that I had spent $100 in 3 days. The worst part about it was that I spent money going to restaurants and partying, so afterwards I really had nothing to show for the money. Once I became serious about managing my finances, I had to take notice of the little money wasters that were eating up my income. I reviewed my bank statement at the end of a typical month, and counted up all the purchases that I made that were $20 or less. I took note of the places where most of my money was going (Target was the number one place!), and made an effort to limit my trips to those places until I was strong enough to resist the temptation. I also started using cash more, since it hurt me more to break a bill than to swipe a card.
If I could give you all any words of advice, it would definitely be to take notice of the small purchases that are ruining your budget! Remember that every time you swipe that debit card or break that $20 dollar bill, you chip away at the mountain of savings you are trying to build. The same way small changes can lead to a major transformation, tiny, routine setbacks can keep your financial goals at arms reach...Now let's make progress!
I totally agree!! I am in the process building up my emergency fund for those pop up problems that seem to come along every now and then. That way, I won't have to dip into my daily/monthly expense money. I have become more cautious about my spending. I'm always thinking "that $6.00 lunch could go towards that emergency fund". Those things add up just like you stated in your post. This usually makes me change my mind and eat what I brought to work.
ReplyDeleteSo true! All the little things do add up. I have kept myself out of stores period. And Lord knows its hard. I only go for things that I know I need, and then I'm out. LOL
ReplyDelete@Indulgenceiskey I've limited my $6 lunches to 1 day a week or 1 every two weeks. Sometimes I really don't want to eat what I brought but like you, I think about the money I'm saving & change my mind!
ReplyDelete@BeULuv You have some strong will power! Congrats lady!
first, i LOVE the name of your blog, so creative and cute!
ReplyDeletethis post is so on point, I realize now that I eat away so much of my money with small "unimportant" buys that add up big time over a week or so. Must watch that and spend better :)
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