Reining in My Spending to Save for My Education
Designed on canva
I've always tried to be relatively responsible with my finances. But recently I've realized just how much money I fritter away each month on random non-essentials. Grabbing takeout multiple times a week, impulse buying of things that I think my kids need, all this adds up faster than I ever expected. And now that it school period I know I need to totally revamp my spending habits so I can save up.
Funding ones education is no small expense, between tuition payments, textbooks, transportation,Knowing I'll need to cover these major costs coming up, I have to take an honest assessment of where all my earnings have been disappearing to up until now.
Too often, it's the cadence of casual, day-to-day expenses that drain bank accounts over time. That quick morning coffee or pap and milk that we take before they are off to school, the weekly scheduled mani-pedi appointments, yet Individually, these minor purchases don't seem to make much impact. But collectively over months and years, they add up substantially.
So I'm challenging myself to adopt a "needs vs wants" spending mentality. Do I legitimately NEED to buy this item? Or is it merely a temporary WANT? I have to train myself to say no to those frivolous wants more often. Because while small treats are nice, I don't strictly need more decorative pillows for my bed or another trendy lipstick.
So one last thing that I have done and will not be doing for the rest of this year is having a dress made for me or my daughter, I will not be doing any of that because it is so expensive and it wouldn't be nice to spend on something so unnecessary, this year I am not sewing anymore dresses, I will have to save up any little earning I get for now until I have enough to take out of to spend I will instead focus on buying basic items that we need, like food, clothing, and shelter. I will also save any extra money I have for the future. Finally, I will make sure to track my spending to make sure I'm not overspending.
Also I do need to complete my graduate program debt-free and launch my career. And that means cutting way back on non-vital costs for now and funneling as much money as possible into my education savings account each month. No more mindless online shopping sprees or weekly salon visits until my bank account looks healthy and of course it certainly needs to look healthy enough to cover my tuition and textbooks fee, so that coming 2024 I can be less stressed out on my spending.
Learning fiscal discipline is never easy, and resisting impulse purchases will be a mental muscle I'll have to keep flexing. But focusing on my bigger goals is great motivation to spend smarter. I know all this saving and sacrifice now will pay off enormously in just a couple years when I land my dream job wielding that shiny Hnd degree.
This is my response to the hive learners prompt week 92 edition 3
