I can't believe it's been almost a year since I've created this blog. It's been a struggle and I'm not proud of how many times I've fallen off the horse, but I'm hoping 2016 will be better. I think since I've tried to quit cold turkey so many times, I treated myself to large purchases and tried to use the length of my successful fasts as justification for spending a lot of money. The longest I was able to retail fast for was almost three months, but I then I went into withdrawal and basically spiraled out of control. Shopping is an addiction, and it can be serious. As I sit in front of my products and see how many things I have bought this year, I feel all sorts of emotions- happiness, yes... but also guilt and shame. I feel like I have failed myself and those who were cheering me on.
Now that the new year starts tomorrow, it's time for a new plan. I'm not going to deprive myself of shopping, but I want to make shopping a reward. For every $1000 I can save up, I will allow myself to make a $50 purchase from Sephora. If there's nothing from Sephora I want, then I will wait until I reach the next $1000 and see if I change my mind, but I'm still setting the limit at $50. I'm moving the small amount of money I have out of my main bank account and into a different account, just to make saving a little easier. This way, I can start the year with $0 and see how much I can save!
I started a change jar halfway through the year with change that I acquired after spending only cash on purchases. For the amount of times I went shopping, I really should have more change... but since I swiped my card a lot, I only have one mason jar full of change. Now that the year is coming to an end, I will put my coins into one of those machines where they count your change, and use it as spending money.
I also want to start the year with $100 spending cash in my wallet, and try to make this last as long as I can. Hopefully this will help me acquire more change for my new change jar and maybe at the end of next year, I'll have at least $100 saved up in change! My main problem is swiping my credit cards too frequently without checking the balance. This always sends a shock thorough my body whenever it's time to pay my credit card bill at the end of the month. To eliminate this issue, I am storing my credit cards away for a while and removing all saved payment information from all the websites I like to shop at. Apps on my phone for places I love to shop at are now gone.
I'm hopeful that this will work out. I'm ready for a fresh start and am determined to save some money! 2016... Bring it on!
