Not Settling for Good when You can have the Best
During conversations with friends this past week I have started thinking about "not settling for the good when I can have the best". What does this mean?
Financially, many people (myself included) tend to nickel and dime away our money. We think it is only a little thing, or one fast food meal, or one or 10 shirts and sweaters an additional 50% off. Are you getting the picture? I'm reminded of my shopping trip to Penney's last month. Coincidentally later that day is when I delivered Baby Camryn. I spent over $175 on clothes for my kids and my husband. Were they good deals? Of Course! Everything was on clearance with an additional 50% off. Did we need these things? When you think about it need is a funny word here in middle income America. My husband did need a new pair of jeans. He only had 2 that fit well. And of course he needed a new long-sleeve, dark red dress shirt because he didn't have one it that color. And my son, needed some new longer pants because his were getting too short. And the girls, well, the are quite becoming enthralled with fashion. But NEED? No, in the strictest sense of the word. I could have spent less. I could have spent nothing.
I read Chief Family Officer's post yesterday on "How much discretionary spending do you plan for each month?" She made it her goal for January not to buy anything just because it is on sale or it might be nice to have on hand. She did not add to her stockpile or her gift closet for the entire month and found that she had an additional $500 at the end of her experiment. Realistically she believes she can cut $250 out of discretionary spending monthly and then use that $250 for saving for a new car. The deals she had been getting were good, I'm sure, but isn't a new, paid for car the BEST!
With my renewed Gazelle Intensity, I am actually doing what CFO did during January. I'm not buying anything on sale, or nice to have, or we could use in the future. I'm menu planning, eating out of my pantry, and generally just staying out of the stores. How much can I throw at Discover card this month? My goal is an additional $400. I started the month with a $2475 balance and as of this morning it is $2400. Only $325 to go to meet my February goal!
You can do this too! Be strong my friends. You can control your impulse buying. Weight Watchers has a saying that "nothing I put into my mouth will taste as good as being skinny feels". My new saying is, "I'm not settling for Good (deals) when I can have the best when I am debt free"
8 frugal friends said:
Very encouraging post Angie! Thanks for the reminder to not let a "good deal" get me spending. There will surely be one when I actually have a need.:)
I stocked up on lots of things this summer when we have more money. Right now, even if its a GREAT deal I don't need things like toothpaste, deodorant, cleaning supplies, etc. My goal for now is to spend only what is necessary. When summer rolls around again (our business is seasonal and we have more cash in the summer) I plan to re-stock my pantry and freezer so come winter and things are tight I will only need a small amount each week. I'm learning so much from you and others about using money wisely and I thank you. You are very ecouraging and I appreciate sharing with us.
Julie
Great post! Sometimes we forget that just because something is a "good deal", doesn't mean that we "need" it. That is one of the reasons I love CVS so much. When I am getting things for free or making $$ on the purchase, there is no guilt and it gets the "shopping crave" out of me. I am actually doing basically no grocery shopping this week. The deals are just not that great and we have tons of stuff to eat on hand.
Great attitude! Can you set your credit card up to accept online payments from your bank? We paid our mortgage by setting it up where I could put extra onto the mortgage at any time...sometimes, if we just send it in, it's in- that money is working for us, and we don't have a choice to spend it. If I wanted to go out to eat, but decided we'd stay home, have a grilled cheese sandwich for example, I'd march onto my computer and make a 20.00 payment! There were days I'd make 3 payments in one day. I'm not kidding. My friends and family thought I was obsessive (and I was)...I'd get phone calls asking what we were down to all the time. :)
Now, that we are completely debt free, we are working on our numbers moving up. God has truly blessed us.
Dianne that is truly awesome! I love it when friends and family are so supportive! I am making my Discover card payments online but they only accept payments every 3 days online. I'm not sure why. But I will definitely be thinking along those lines-to go ahead and pay them when I have extra money that I'm not spending! Great tip!
Thanks so much for the mention. Good luck with your endeavors - I think it gets easier and easier to stick with your plans once you start seeing the results!
No purchase can feel as good as going to sleep at night debt-free!
We're trying to use those shopping 'fasts' now to complete our debt freedom by getting rid of the mortgage.
Doesn't it feel great every time you make headway?
Great Post! A huge difference in need vs want. It is a life long battle. In so many ways I have cut down, but I have areas that are out of control still.
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