nobody wants to start the new year off with debt from the holidays. well, at least i don't. parker & i just went on a trip to san francisco (where & when i learned that francisco is spelled with two Cs not two Ss) & trips always put us back a bit in our financial goals. (we're working on that & learning still!) but now with the holidays + the new year just around the corner, we're gettin serious about our finances & will be sharing our 30 day trial of HARDCORE FRUGALITY.
after searching the interweb for a few hours + rewatching a few of fun, cheap or free's videos, we've made a list + a few goals for how we can save some moola & even earn a little bit extra. we're sharing our 30 day trial with you for accountability purposes but also to invite you to try it out with us!
here are a few of the ideas that we've found that we're going to try in november:
1. cash in our change jar. we've had a running change jar for the entirety of 2017. i made a goal at the start of 2017 to pick up every coin i saw on the ground. with the exception of one penny, i have done that. [it was literally a penny & i purposely did not pick it up because it was next to a homeless person & i felt bad about picking it up. but it was a conscious decision not to.] so in november, we are going to cash that sucker in. it only has $62.41 in it, but when you think about it, WE'VE FOUND $62.41 ON THE GROUND.
2. unsubscribe from all unused subscriptions. we are suckers when it comes to subscriptions-- they're easy & convenient. but they add up REAL fast. so we're going to go through our credit card statements, email addresses & apps on our phones to see what we are subscribed to & unsubscribe from anything that we don't really need or use. (we plan on doing this right away because we want to see the savings in november!)
3. stop eating out + meal plan. this month's 30 day trial is a 2for1. we are going to try to cook at least 15 times this month (and make enough for left overs!!!) because we have KILLED ourselves with just eating out. when we meal planned at the beginning of the year, we saved SO much money because we only spent $50 or less a week on groceries (without any coupons) AND we were eating healthier + parker ate left overs for lunch. our goal is to get back into that because seriously, that was awesome.
4. drink WATER. this one is going to be hard for me because i don't particularly like the taste of water, but my skin neeeeeeeeds the hydration AND WATER IS FREE. (well, the more i think about that statement, the more untrue it is, but you catch the drift)
5. have a no spend week. fun, cheap or free explains how to do a no-spend week here. i can't wait to try it because if anything else, it won't rack up more money on our credit cards. (we use credit cards because we love the rewards + love that it builds our credit. however, credit cards can also be a huge hinderance if you're not careful. we weren't as careful as we normally are in september + october & we are paying for it. literally.)
a few other ideas we've had for saving money + making a few extra dollars this month are:
- sell plasma
- work over-time
- babysit/nanny
- become an uber driver (more for parker... i'm not about to let strangers in my car.)
- do a social media fast or scroll fast (i'll explain this more later)
- say "no" more
- set up automatic transfers
- selling temple prints on my etsy shop
- booking a few extra photo shoots
- utilize pinterest for my blog & online shops
social media fast/scroll fast explained: i use social media every day for my job. it is a vital part of my business. so even though sometimes i would love to just not be on social media & disappear for a few days, it's not really plausible for me because i rely so heavily on the marketing & referrals that come from social media. SO instead of just staying off of social media for a period of time, i'm planning on doing a scroll fast. i will still make my daily posts, but i won't scroll through my instagram or facebook. it seems like everyone & their dog has been at disneyland for the last two months & i get antsy & jealous. & then i feel like we should book a trip to disneyland. EVEN THOUGH WE CAN'T AFFORD IT. so for one week in november, i'm going to do a scroll fast on all of my social media accounts. i'm excited to see how that will affect my day + our bank accounts.
what creative ways do you have for saving money?