No Buy Challenge: Phase I

This year I am going to save at least $2,000. I would like to save $5,000, but I got to start somewhere right?!?! I am starting a No-Buy Challenge. Yes, that is right, I will not be buying anything but the necessities for the next 60 days starting January 15th and lasting until March 15th. There are a couple of rules to this challenge, and they are as follows:

• No purchases other than food(from the grocery store only), gas, and monthly bills (i.e. rent, credit cards, utilities, ect).

• You are allowed two free passes--no more than $50 each.

• You are allowed to by the bare necessities. For example, you need to brush your teeth, so get some toothpaste. You are able to buy anything that runs completely out, so shampoo of the same kind or in the same amount that you paid for the product you are replacing. Why? Well, I have natural hair and there ain't no telling how conditioner that I will need. So, I will replace whatever that I have with something comparable or that costs the same amount of whatever it is that I ran out of. No NEW PRODUCTS!

• Try to use cash as much as possible. So, if you normally spend $40 a week on gas, then take out $80 when you get paid and put that amount in an envelope. Got some left over, save it for when you need have one of those weeks when you do a little bit extra running around.

To track how much you save, this is what you have to do. Take the amount of your checking account before you get your next check. Lets say it's $500. On March 15th, see how much money you have left in your account after you paid your bills.

This is just the first phase--there will be more to come! I am thinking about doing a no-buy clothing challenge in the summertime.

Want to join this challenge? Just leave a comment below and let me know that you're with me!

Money Monday...

Hey There! I know that its been a minute since I have done a Money Monday post. And there is a good reason for that. Well, not really. I know that its really, really hard to start saving money with the holidays right around the corner. If you are anything like me, you will want to save in advance for gifts and also be slightly laxed on you budget during this time of year. With that being said, I am putting Money Mondays on hiatus until January 2013. Yeah, go ahead and spend til your hearts content...but know that the new year is about thirty-some-odd days away.

Money Mondays...

 

It's October 1st, and you know what that means...The start of the Debt Diet 2012! Ugh! Are you dreading it as much as I am?!?!

In my prior post, I stated that I wanted to save $5,000 in a year. I did some research and I found that most of the websites talked about doing things like cutting your cable bill, food costs, utilities, ect. While it all sounds good in theory, you have to take some steps additional steps to get there.

To kick off the Debt Diet, we are going to start with the basics. We are going to write down every single thing that we purchase for the next month. Sounds easy right? Well, once you write everything down, you will be shocked at where your money goes. One important note, checking your account balance online doesn't count. Why??! Because you will not be conscious about what you are spending your money on.

Get going! Dust off that checkbook ledger and get to tracking! Don't have a ledger, go to your bank and ask for one--its free!

Budgeting 101: October 2012

Starting October, 1, 2012, I will be starting a debt diet. My goal is to try to save $5000 in a year. I will be using some of the things that I have learned from several books, websites, tv shows, and just common sense.