About a month ago I had this random thought to do a “No Spend January”. An entire month with no extra spending. By the time December 31 rolled around I was actually a little (a lot) terrified of what I had committed to. Some people would find this challenge incredibly easy…I am not one of those people. Usually if I go a few days with no spending I am patting myself on the back. And then probably rewarding myself with a treat. I knew this would be good for me so instead of giving up before I even started I shared on social media for a little accountability.
A Perspective Shift
I recently had a conversation with one of our kids after they claimed somebody else was rich. When I told him that we were actually rich too, he didn’t believe me. I used this website to show him how our family’s income compares to the rest of the world. *highly recommend by the way…puts things into perspective.* We spent a lot of time talking about how blessed we are. How much we have. How little others sometimes have. Now it’s time to preach that same message to myself. I’d love to learn a lesson in contentment this month. To shift my focus on things that aren’t bought. To look at what I have instead of what I think I need.
Other than a little personal growth there are a few practical reason I wanted to do this challenge in January!
New Budget
I recently stepped down from my part time job and while it wasn’t necessarily a huge money maker, it was an income stream. We’ve readjusted our budget and I thought cutting out unnecessary spending might make the transition easier.
Holiday Hangover
Ok, I’m not actually hungover. But my wallet might be. Over the holidays there is a lot of extra spending on my part. Between gifts for 12+ people, Christmas parties, Christmas treats, events, and all those Christmas memories we try to make I shell out A LOT of money the last few months of the year. Every January is a bit of a reset for us and I thought doing it officially might give me a little more structure.
Cultivated Discipline
I think the main reason I wanted to try this no spend month was simply to prove to myself that I could. Spending money is easy for me. I love to shop. Even grocery shop. I don’t actually like to spend a lot of money, but I spend small amounts frequently. There’s no difference when it comes to my bank account, but it often times goes by unnoticed when the amount is small. An occasional Sonic run. A trip to the second hand book store. Clearance clothes for my kids. Late night Amazon orders. I am certainly always mindful of my budget when I spend money, but I could benefit from a little patience and asking myself if I really need the next thing.
As I talked through this challenge with my family, I came up with the rules and exceptions for this challenge.
- We will set aside $100 for a January birthday we have. Cake, decorations, dinner, whatever we want to spend it on.
- We will spend $25 each week buying fresh produce, milk, and eggs.
- We will (obviously) continue to pay our bills, fill our cars up with gas, and likely will be spending money on medical expenses and medications.
- We will have no large Costco runs (an every two week occurrence in our house), no target, no amazon, no date nights out, no late night trips to the store for chocolate. (Day 1 and I’m already mourning that last one.)
- If anybody in the family has gift cards or money they got for Christmas they’re allowed to use it.
I’m giving myself grace here. Honestly if I make it a week I’ll be thoroughly impressed!
I’ll update next week on how week one went!
- What we ate.
- What I wanted to buy, but (hopefully) didn’t.
- How I’ve prepared our pantry for this month.
I hope y’all are wishing me lots of luck!
Have you ever done a no spend challenge?