I am not sure about yourself but I know that I invent all kinds of excuses instead of taking care of the tasks at hand. One of those tasks is looking at my expenses and seeing which ones to cut.
Before my income went up I would often keep a spreadsheet printed out that I would fill out every time I bought something. I also used to keep cash in envelopes. Well as time went on I stopped using envelops and spreadsheets. Now when I record expenses I just put it into the computer and make sure money is there.
Eating out is one of those expenses I know I have to cut, but I have used excuses like not enough time or no point in avoiding it. I used to use cash and when the cash was gone I would stop spending. But with a debit card it is now easier to over spend then with cash. I also tried to use one account just for eating out, yet when it’s empty I end up just using my other accounts.
There are two options I know of to do
1. Continue on as is This is the easiest and most simplistic. I can keep my own laziness up and not curb the expenses.
2. Try to use cash one month and when it is gone it’s gone this is what I should do, but each time I run into the issue of how much is enough?
I think I’ll try #2, But I do know that at one point $25/mo would be plenty.
But lately I have set $50 and its gone in a week or two. Yet I do know I do not want to go over $100/mo. I will give $100/mo a try and see how it goes. For this weekend I have $20 in cash, lets see how far I get with it.
What is your suggesting? Just leave a comment and let me know.