Investigative Blogging: How the Money is Going; including my Current Lack of Enthusiasm

via We Heart It

ight oh. So.

The money thing (i.e: getting on top of my finances, paying back my debts and living within my means) has been pottering along reasonably well. In saying that, I have been finding that my enthusiasm for the whole endeavor has been on the wane since just before Christmas. I guess that's the Christmas condition - it's hard to live within your means without masses of organisation and I just never really got around to getting organised, if you know what I mean. And that combined with the debt repayments meant that I spent a lot of the month juggling money and spending in very strange ways. In addition, January has been a struggle as the urge to spend has been really, really affecting me. Specifically I keep thinking: Buy it All now! There will be no money next month! Gah! Buy! Spend! Lipstick! Really ugly stockings!

I guess that the Answer is to take stock of the situation and try and reinforce some of the really good things I was doing earlier, things that had inspired me and enabled me to feel good about my self control (as oppose to bored and mildly depressed). I read over my little inspiration post that I wrote way back in September and I think the things I need to do are:

♥ Start spending only cash again so I can take stock of the money I'm actually spending. I was doing this for a long time, but at some point I slipped back into using my Eftpos (debit) card to pay for everything.

♥ Take up daily tracking of my spending money. I always intended to do this, but I never quite got around to actually doing it. This is exactly the kind of thing I need to be doing in order to take control of my spending again. I've printed out a little calendar already and it's all neatly filed away in my Filofax.

♥ Complete my Money and Other People series by interviewing my little brother. Talking to people about spending and money is the best way to keep me on track.

♥ Update the Unicorn regularly! Here he is in all his glory:

♥ Rub my little Buddha's belly. It makes me think about self-control and NOT SPENDING every morning, and that's a good thing.

♥ Keep a better track of exactly how much money I have at all times. There is nothing good about not knowing what's in the bank account.

♥ Drink espresso coffee once every two or three days (instead of everyday and sometimes even twice a day *looks around guiltily*).

Furthermore:

♥ I pledge (places hand on heart) to not buy any clothes until the end of my Six Items or Less Challenge. I shall not even cruise the op shops. I shall cross the road to avoid yarn shops. I will steadfastly avoid fabric shops.

Yes indeed, I shall be Little Miss "knows-where-her-pennies-are-at". Watch this space!