It’s been a month since I posted the 3 things post and one of the three things that I decided to try for the month of October 2012 was only spending three times a week.
It worked like a charm.
At first it was a challenge because I was used to spending whenever I wanted to.
I decided to spend ONLY on Monday, Wednesday and Friday’s.
How It Worked Out
Friday’s seemed to be the hardest because you have to plan for your weekend starting on Thursday.
The way I decided to do it was that as long as I had “cash money” then I could spend that on Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday or Sunday, but I could not debit, charge, go to the bank (it’s been a long time since I’ve done that!) on any other day except Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
Fridays’ ended up being very busy indeed. I’d go grocery shopping, get gas for the weekend, make sure I had enough money for any entertainment or craft shows over the weekend.
For example, if I needed anything like a belt (which I still need) I committed to doing that type of need/want shopping on Friday’s only. By Monday, I’d make sure I had enough gas to last until Wednesday, and Wednesday until Friday.
I paid all bills – credit card payments, auto, mortgage, utilities on Friday’s.
The thing that made this really work was that I was “batching” all of this spending (or as I view it now consuming verses producing) that had pre-occupied EVERY day.
What a complete waste of time that seems to me after this month.
On Tuesday, Thursday’s and the weekend I could focus on other things. That has really increased my productivity with my business ideas, crafts, art, housework, house repairs, yard work, ect.
Also, another benefit has been that I have totally cut out eating out. I have had lunch out a couple of times during the week only because the place I go is like going to “Cheers” – they know my name, my usual order and it’s only $4 – so it’s like a little treat. Other than my $4 meal, eating out just didn’t fit into the schedule. Needless to say, my cooking skills have vastly improved AND I’ve lost weight…you can’t beat that as a benefit.