Focus!! Focus!! Focus!!
The end of summer is a great time to focus on your financial fitness level. We can reflect on how much money we spent in the past eight months versus the amount of money saved per our initial savings resolution. We can look at where our money was spent and what might have triggered us to spend it the way we did. Or was it a wise investment now that months have passed since we actually laid out that money.
So, the 2011-2012 school year has just started for many people and unfortunately, more money was spent than anticipated and now you're dreading the amount of money you still feel must be spent during the last four months of the year.
It's Labor Day weekend and many will travel at least 75 miles from home during this long weekend and spend lots of money by simply "socializing with family and friends around town". Right after this national holiday, you have Halloween which is ridiculously popular with an abundance of candy and costumes being bought for young and old respectively. Less than a month later you have another national holiday; thanksgiving which is known to be one of the busiest travel times of the year. For most, if they have any money left, it is usually depleted this weekend with "savings" on Black Friday. Amazingly, people tend to buy a lot of things they do not need or want but will purchase because it is on sale. Then shortly thereafter, you have several traditional religious celebrations (Christmas, Hanukah, Kwanza etc) and finally New Year's Eve to wrap up the year. Indeed this is the busiest time of the year and there is still a lot going on within the next four months which directly or indirectly surrounds money.
Now, with everyone participating in at least one of those events above, how do you plan on getting or staying financially fit until 2012? How will you evaluate whether you have met your goals for the past eight months? What are some of your financial challenges around this time of the year? What do you plan on doing differently from last year?
The end of summer is a great time to focus on your financial fitness level. We can reflect on how much money we spent in the past eight months versus the amount of money saved per our initial savings resolution. We can look at where our money was spent and what might have triggered us to spend it the way we did. Or was it a wise investment now that months have passed since we actually laid out that money.
So, the 2011-2012 school year has just started for many people and unfortunately, more money was spent than anticipated and now you're dreading the amount of money you still feel must be spent during the last four months of the year.
It's Labor Day weekend and many will travel at least 75 miles from home during this long weekend and spend lots of money by simply "socializing with family and friends around town". Right after this national holiday, you have Halloween which is ridiculously popular with an abundance of candy and costumes being bought for young and old respectively. Less than a month later you have another national holiday; thanksgiving which is known to be one of the busiest travel times of the year. For most, if they have any money left, it is usually depleted this weekend with "savings" on Black Friday. Amazingly, people tend to buy a lot of things they do not need or want but will purchase because it is on sale. Then shortly thereafter, you have several traditional religious celebrations (Christmas, Hanukah, Kwanza etc) and finally New Year's Eve to wrap up the year. Indeed this is the busiest time of the year and there is still a lot going on within the next four months which directly or indirectly surrounds money.
Now, with everyone participating in at least one of those events above, how do you plan on getting or staying financially fit until 2012? How will you evaluate whether you have met your goals for the past eight months? What are some of your financial challenges around this time of the year? What do you plan on doing differently from last year?
Life has it challenges financially for many of the stated reasons, however, I'm living by a creed to always pay myself after making sure I give the Lord his due....then I take care of all my other obligations. I've found that no matter how small the amount set aside, it's essential to make sure you have a safety net. Essentially, by honoring the Lord first and discipline I've been able to stay financially fit. I'm not where I would like to be but in comparison to my surrounding peers, whose motto is to live for the moment and worry later...I sleep soundly because I live for today by preparing for my future. Great post Shonda!!
ReplyDeleteHi Amanda!! I'm so glad you joined and posted. It's refreshing to know there are folks in our age group executing a game plan they have created. You're doing a great job by the way; and the order in which you're handling your financial business speaks volume. :)! Keep it up!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the compliment. It was placed on my heart earlier tonight so I obliged asap.
I have decided on a minimum amount of money to save each month and have met or exceeded that amount (when I received 3 pay checks instead of 2). Likewise, I pay my tithes, regular expenses and any new ones I've accumulated (car or home expenses etc). I'm definitely not where I would like to be either; BUT I've made progress since 2009. And as it relates to the last four months of the year, I will not get caught up in the cultural hype. I still enjoy life; travel, socialize etc but not irresponsibly
ReplyDeleteI like this...what ideas got for us with kids especially tuition!
ReplyDeleteWell, I'm not exactly where I want to be financially either. I always make sure that I put away some for a rainy day EVERY payday no matter what's going on. I make sure ALL my bills are paid on time! I do think I'm doing a lot better financially this year than last year. I'm not crazy for black friday (it's too cold)! I have participated a couple of times in the past though. I won't be doing it this year. It's overrated to me. Holidays I don't spend much on food etc. because everyone in the family brings a dish and we rotate houses. So, that works out well for me. I'm at work so this may sound a little rushed. I hope I covered everyhing
ReplyDeleteNikky,
ReplyDeleteSounds like you too are going to weather the last four months of the year in good shape. Being a good steward with our money or trying to is a good habit to possess. And I do agree, the weather during Black Friday is nothing to play around with (people standing outside for hours in freezing temp). The food cost can get out of control during the holidays so I'm glad you all have a cost effective family plan in place. Thanks for commenting.
@ Rifa,
ReplyDeletePlease sit down and honestly tabulate your collective debt then put it from smallest to largest and highest interest to lowest. In addition, you all should begin to thoroughly track every penny that comes in and goes out of your hands; and also sign up for mint.com (this free site allows you to link all of your accounts in mint and be able to track everything). Once this is done for at least 30 days, I suggest you begin to acknowledge wasteful spending and begin to minimize it ASAP (based on the data found in mint.com). This is a great start as you work on keeping additional spending to a minimum during the next four months. Once this is done, let me know so you can move on to the next step.
Good luck
I think people get caught up in consumerism. This society is addicted to STUFF! I don't have kids yet, but I know that some people break the bank to give their kids a "good" Christmas. What I do to keep things in perspective is make a budget and stick to it as much as I can. I find that people tend to just spend with no consideration for what their limit or cap is and then when you look around, the money is gone and you are praying for the next pay check. Also, people just don't plan ahead. These holidays come every year with no surprise to anyone, but its crazy how many people don't prepare for it. Set a goal of how much you want to spend during the holiday busy season and start saving in January. Put that money aside so that when these trips and gift expenses come up, you have it. Decide how much you want to spend and save it, then don't overspend.
ReplyDeleteI too sometimes go over budget, so I know its hard at times. But you have to start somewhere and I think a budget is the best place.
I agree Ms. S. It's no surprise that these "holidays" come around seeing they do at the same time every year....self discipline especially in this tough and uncertain economy should come a little easier but unfortunately that's not the case for millions of Americans who think they are invisible.
ReplyDelete