I noticed something when I was doing my Christmas shopping this year. Despite a sufficiently ample income, at the end of the day I didn’t feel like I had a lot to show for it.
I’ve fallen into the habit of frittering again. A little over budget on Christmas gifts here, some “I don’t feel like cooking” eating out there, a nearly routine Grande *insert name of overly sugary beverage here* on my way to work, a not actually necessary magazine… It was surprisingly easy to fall back into old routines. It was kind of scary too.
I do alright at preventing myself from buying more expensive items. If it hits a certain dollar value (that number fluctuates), I have no problems putting the brakes on, spending weeks if not months thinking about it, and budgeting accordingly. The small stuff however? That I have a hard time with. Most things under $6 or $7 don’t get a second thought, but they pack one hell of a wallop. If I frittered that amount of money every second day of the month, it would be around $100. It’s been easy to spend more than that though.
Why was it happening? It was happening because I wasn’t watching it. I made my budget every two weeks to make sure that money was being allocated to their proper locations. Was I actually following the budget? I have no idea. The fixed costs and bills were paid, the money allocated to savings went into savings, but the variable costs? I haven’t the foggiest idea if they were inside or outside of their allocated budgets. Fuel for my car was probably close, but my food costs were probably well over despite having allocated a very reasonable budget to it. They spilled over into other areas that I could have been using towards DIY projects at home, or new clothes.
Sitting at a Starbucks, Grande Salted Caramel Mocha in hand, I had an epiphany:
I have enough money to live well. I do not have enough money to live mindlessly.
That and my penchant for sweetened drinks was going straight to my midsection, but I digress.
If I kept spending money on little things here and there, it was going to be a lot harder to do my large ticket items like investing and travelling. If I didn’t start watching my money again, I was going to keep spending. Given that I really want to start investing and travelling again, it wasn’t really that hard of a choice.
So, come January I’m going to have to start keeping a spending diary for myself again, tracking all of my purchases. It was a huge help when I was paying off debt the first go around, and I understand better now how it will help me even once I’m out of debt (again).
Do you write down all of your purchases? How do you track your money?
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I actually use my credit card to track my purchases. I pay off the whole amount every month, and I use it to buy even the smallest of purchases, like my morning coffee for $4. If I know I’m getting close to my budget for the month I put a stop to my purchases and wait for the next month. It also gives me about 30 days interest free, because I’ll buy items on the credit card and pay them off a month later without ever being charged interest. Easy!
I started using my credit card for my daily purchases as well, but it was mostly so that I didn’t use my debit card as much because my transactions were limited. I’ve been taking advantage of the interest free period as well (I haven’t paid interest on it in over a year! woohoo), but I need to work on cutting myself off better. Something to work on in 2013!
Great post! This is definitely something I’ve fallen into this year for sure. And thus, it shows in the fact that I am nowhere near completing some of my goals for 2012.
Thank you
Fortunately we’ve both identified that this is a problem for us, which is the first step in fixing the issue. Hopefully 2013 will see you closer to your goals 
I think this is a good reminder for everyone, Cassie; that we can enjoy life but that doesn’t mean forgetting that we have budgets to stick to and futures to care about. I’ve slacked at tracking my spending, since being home… but I only left a certain amount in my chequing account that I could spend, and that’s not empty yet, so maybe I’m doing ok. I hope you had a wonderful holiday season!
I’ll need to remind myself of this a little more frequently through out the year on both ends of the spectrum. Following a budget and enjoying life don’t have to be mutually exclusive!
You’ve been doing fantastic on the money front Cait
I really enjoyed reading this post Cassie! Your epiphany is priceless
I think I am going to start a spending diary as well. It would definitely help me keep track of the small stuff.
Spending diaries really are helpful, I just find I tend to let them fall by the way side. I already have a book, I just need to pick it up and start writing again! The small stuff is where I find the majority of my financial leaks. It’s amazing how much more you feel like you have when you plug the hole!
Same here. We can live on our income just fine, but we don’t have the cushion for very much mindless spending. And when we’re not being careful, we wind up getting into stuffed and starved cycles- periods of spending way more than our wallet can handle, and then really really lean times where we have to make up for our carelessness.
I see myself falling back into that stuffed/starved cycle right now as well. It definitely takes some work to stay on track, and I have to remember to be consistent in putting in that effort.
This post was a great reminder for me as well. Those little purchases add up and will kill a budget. This has also motivated me to try to keep track of my daily spending.
They definitely killed mine this month. Hopefully we both do better in January!
I have enough money to live well. I do not have enough money to live mindlessly.
Hear hear!
I’m going to track my 2013 spending in a tiny little planner I received as a stocking stuffer. Hoping it will force me into better habits!
It really does, I’ve been doing it since January 2012!
What a great stock stuffer idea! I hope it helps you
I made a rule about being vigilant with purchases under $5 too, once I conquered not buying all those cute under $20 shirts. I write down everything I spend in my planner…November and December were not pretty, but I am back on track for January! I love sweet drinks too…boba, smoothies, the ice blended Hazelnut coffee…mmm….but I try to resist and keep it to a less than once a week thing.
Those little $5 purchases will be the death of my financial well being. Tasty yes, but financially wasteful (and bad for the midsection too). I’m glad to hear you’re back on track for January! It’s going to be a strong belt tightening month for me
Once a week sounds reasonable for treats.
It’s always the little things that get you. From experience I know a lot of people who seem to always be broke but it’s not because they keep buying big ticket items, they just keep buying small things and don’t know where all their money goes.
I know quite a few of those people too. They always complain they’re broke, but they always have enough money to buy things they don’t need because they were cute or on sale. I’m just glad I start recognizing when it’s a problem!