Again, it seems like
forever since I have posted anything on here. However, I have made it my
mission this month to FINALLY pay off my CC and other debts. It's on my 30
Under 30 list, so why not do it now?!
Backstory on why
this is a big deal for me and the reason most of you will roll your eyes and
call me crazy...
I don't have student
loans, I don't have car payments, and I don't have a mortgage to
pay. So where does my money go?!
It goes to the
places you'd think a single girl living in the city would put it- clothes, hair
and beauty products, getting your hair did, restaurants and happy
hours, books you intend to read someday, DVD's, the things you need and don't
need for your apartment, and all of the other shit you decide to
"Treat Yo' Self" with...
And
there are the regular bills- plus cell phone, internet, gym, food, and
Netflix. If you're lucky you can throw in some trips and vacations.
I can afford to
treat myself to a few things here and there and I can afford my lifestyle
(remember how I said I have no real bills?!). So, why the the plan?
For about the past
year I've been stuck in the awful cycle of never carrying cash and using my card
to pay for things, but at the same time getting used to the nice chunk of
change growing in my bank account. I'm really good at paying my bills, and even
paying off the one store card I have but my CC is stuck in a nice $400 - $1200
limbo.
I used to be very
good about paying it off, but I headed into the adult world and had to start
making some adult decisions/purchases without having the adult job yet. (No one
told me how expensive regular healthcare was even with insurance!) I can't
blame anyone but myself and it's time to turn this all around.
I decided to declare
this month "No Spend July" because I want two kill two birds with one
stone- pay off my CC and not freak out about losing the money I enjoy having in
the bank. Also, I will be heading to Taiwan again this Fall for my brother's
wedding and moving in with my boyfriend in September and will probably need to
contribute to the many things that "we" will be purchasing for the
house.
Here
are the rules thus far for "No Spend July":
- No new
clothes/shoes/jewelry/etc.
- No new
make-up/lotions/soaps/hair products/etc.
- No online shopping - I'm
looking at you Amazon!!!
- No
Groupons/CrowdCuts/LivingSocials/etc.
- No unnecessary grocery trips-
Plan ahead and eat the food you have!!
- No home goods- I'm moving,
but this stuff can wait
- Only 1 lunch and 1 dinner can
be eaten out per week
- Only 1-3 drinks may be
purchased at HH's (I tend to stay long)
- No fancy coffee drinks- I
work in the skyway, the coffee shops are a nice break
- The ONLY exceptions are things
that I actually need- ie, run out of face wash, running shoes fail on me,
all of my undies disappear, gas
- Signing up for races is also
an exception- if it keeps me working out, it's worth it!!!
I
already paid a good chunk on my CC and the plan is to use my next two paychecks
to finish it off- there will need to be a rent check taken out of the next one.
Without revealing too much, I'm already well under the $1,000 mark and I could
just pay it off right now. However, I am trying to budget and save and part of
that is putting myself on notice and planning ahead. (Who knows, I could just
buck up and decide to get it over with.)
I started my day by
paying my $3.60 over due book fees (You're welcome, Hennepin County Library!),
so I think I'm on the right track. I'm also 9 days in to July and I've stood my
ground, maybe I could carry this over to August and sort of re-set myself,
because once the money starts flowing it's hard to stop it.
I've already got a
few plans, other than packing and moving, to keep myself distracted. :)
