Tuesday, November 8, 2016

simplicity 2016: #nospendnovember

When I was 8 years old, my mom took me to the bank, and we opened my very first savings account.

I would say that this is my earliest memory surrounding the concept of money.

The second was when I started getting an allowance and my parents used that to teach monetary responsibility.

Then I saved my money to buy my American Girl doll.

I later started babysitting and buying my own clothes.

High school came and I created a budget and was able to save up and buy a car.

And basically since then, I've been fairly good with my money. At least I thought so.

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Like I mentioned in my previous post, I'm practicing No Spend November. Or at least a Limited Spend November.

Because I wanted to see where my money was really going.

I wanted to challenge this belief that my finances didn't really need any work. That I am so good and solid I don't need to work on it.

Oh hey pride...

Anyway....when I started thinking about lessening my spending, I started to think about how I used to spend money when I was younger.

When I opened that bank account. When I saved for a my doll. When I paid for my clothes and saved for a car.

I payed mostly in cash.

Which is fascinating when you think about it in contrast to how we typically spend today.

Credit cards, debit cards, PayPal, Apple Pay, etc....

There is this interesting thing that happens when you pay with cash. When a physical transaction occurs.

You pay attention to what is being handed over. You pay attention to what you get back.
You feel the deficit, the lightness in your wallet and you are more aware of what is left over.

With these thoughts in mind, I trudged forward into Week One of No Spend November #cashonly


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Wow...

I eat out a lot and buy ALOT of popcorn.....

Now I didn't do that this week. I just realized how much I was doing it when I was spending with my debit card.

And because I am not bouncing checks or overdrawing my account each month, I wasn't really paying attention.

I mean sure, I would notice my spending was up on Mint.com, but since I was consistently saving and putting money aside for the future, I figured it didn't really matter.

How very foolish that thought process was more me....

You see, this week gave me some "aha" moments:

  • I have believed a lie about what the amount of money I make means for me and my lifestyle
  • Meal prepping is a thing and it's super good for me and my stress levels.
  • I'm checking my bank account balance less
  • The act of being able to purchase food is really powerful


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That last one stuck with me. And because it did, I want to share a story from this week.

I stopped by the store on saturday to pick up a couple things.

Yes, one was popcorn. But don't stress. I used cash.

Anyway, the couple in front of me were trying to pay for their groceries, but were having trouble with their card.

Which, is a super hard spot to be in. Especially when a line of people are forming behind you.

So I asked if I could pay for their groceries. They said yes. They got their OJ. It was cool.

And after I did, the cashier said, "Well, looks like you did your good deed for the week."

Um....gross...

Doing good and being kind shouldn't be a weekly task we check off. It shouldn't be something we do to feel better about ourself.

I truly believe that Jesus calls each of us to a constant spirit of generosity. An immediate willingness to give back to those who may or may not be having a tough time.

I didn't pay for their groceries because I wanted a high five. And I didn't share the story for praise.

I shared it for two reasons:

  1. I can totally relate to not being able to pay for something due to lack of funds.
  2. I think we all can be more generous and aware of others needs than we are.


And really, that's what I want this month to be about. I want it to be about discovering how much farther my dollars can go towards doing good. I want my life to be more about other people and less about me.

I don't think I am going to stop doing fun things, traveling or occasionally eating out. But, I definitely don't want those things to financially define me.

I just want to do some good.

#simplicity2016

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