Money, Money, Money: Getting Organized, Getting Inspired
Talking about money is uncomfortable, at best, but worrying about money is infinitely worse. Constantly fretting about money eats away at our sense of well-being and security, and robs the joy from what would otherwise be the little pleasure-filled moments of our day, like picking up a cup of tea or snagging a bouquet of flowers at the deli. Money matters are top of mind for so many of us these days. Better to bravely look those concerns straight in the eye than let them torment you and keep you from falling asleep at night.
Mint.com syncs up with all your accounts so you can keep track of every dollar and look at your investments, savings, credit cards, student loans, and checking accounts all in one place. It may just change your life, and it’s free.
Pretty file folders (that won’t wreck your budget) from OfficeMax of all places for organizing all those papers that collect on your desk and stress you out.
I love Suze Orman. I find her approach to personal finance is empowering and unintimidating, and her Young, Broke, and Fabulous was exactly the book I needed a couple years ago (highly recommended). Her new book, an action plan for 2009, is available for free download here.
udandi and the craft of money is about living the thrifty life and loving crafts — a girl after my own heart. (via Meal by Meal)
What adjustments and clever tricks have you implemented to deal with economic downturn?
Sara Rose: Well here’s a few things we do:
-Cancelled our gym memberships and I got familiar with my dvd player, parks and neighborhoods, and bought some hand and ankle weights. Saved $40 per month.
-Bought an espresso maker and make my own capuccinos and lattes and chai. Saved at least $30 per month.
-Switched us to a more limited cable plan and cancelled our home phone. got netflix for movies. Saved $60 per month.
-Installed an electric thermostat that is programmable for night and day. Save roughly $45 per month.
-Got familiar with frozen, dried, and canned veggies instead of ALWAYS USING fresh (hey beggars can’t be chosers)
-Weatherized our house to eliminate drafts and such. Also helps with heating and cooling expenses.
-Never turn on lights during the day- I open our blinds instead.
-Buy all our books and dvds used. Buy a lot of Eva’s toys and some of her clothes used too. Resell clothes we aren’t wearing or have outgrown. Resell books, dvds, etc., we are done with too.
-Watch sale ads for the grocery stores religiously
Funny- even with all those money saving things we do- we’re still broke! LOL. Oh well. We try!1 year ago
Anne @ Pink Galoshes: Great post! Those file folders are just too pretty!1 year ago
Meg: Oh I am so jealous of my Southern neighbors. Mint.com seems to be just for US internet tool enthusiasts with money-management challenges.1 year ago
Kim: Thank you so much for posting this Sarah. I signed up for mint and now I’m obsessed with it. (I hope you get a kickback from them
1 year ago
Sarah: sara rose, your list is definitely a model for ways to cut back.
anne, aren’t those adorable? i love them too.
meg, oh, that sucks! maybe there’s something similar in canada?
kim, kickbacks? yeah, i wish.
but its a great service and i’m more than happy to spread the word, just to help my ladies out.1 year ago
love,gidget: i read this post right after i was making an attempt to budget my life! i am going to have to go and check out that Young, Broke, and Fabulous book. i hope my library has it
1 year ago
Andi: Mint is deluxe! especially if you are more familiar with ledger paper as a background for scrapbooking than for book-keeping!
Thanks for the link love, this post will be added to my journal! I’m glad our blogs crossed paths at meal by meal.
one more thing, even before I was a librarian, I was without cable and netflix in favor of the library’s offerings. I live in a great system, but I am patient, too
1 year ago
kayobee: Meg, try Yodlee.com — I think it’s for all of North America.1 year ago
Joy: Greta post Sarah. I love doing budgets, I just have problems sticking to them. To save heating I have made a draft excluder for the flat door and I snuggle up to a hot water bottle on the sofa. I also go a bit mental when people leave lights on/use the tumble dryer…
PS Egg.com do a similar (but not quote as good it seems) money management thing in the UK. It might be available in Canada too?1 year ago
EB: A)I started an official budget and writing every purchase down.
B) I started to seriously menu plan. I only buy groceries needed for the menu so I’ve saved lots of cash on random purchases.
C) Because I’ve been planning and can prep ahead, instead of ordering takeout on rushed nights, I’ve taken to eating my veggies and in turn lost 5 lbs and saved tons of cash!
D)Again, due to meal planning I have been able to brown bag nice meals and have not bought a single lunch in weeks!1 year ago
Leah: Two words: DIRECT DEPOSIT.
If the money goes directly into my somewhat inaccessible high-yield online savings and not into my checking account, I don’t really miss it…1 year ago
Meg: Thanks Kayobee… I will give that a try
1 year ago
miss fae: I have been using mint for months, but have yet to really get it to be a good system. I keep an excel spread sheet and balance my chkbook that way. Still, i like mint. I just need it to happen
Now, how i live unemployed:
I never eat out. Ok, that’s not true. I eat out 2-3 times a month (like tonight, going out with M to an indian food place, probs) I stopped paying for yoga and everything else, except trapeze (it’s my reality avoidance of choice) Buy my metrocards on craigslist. I split my internet with another apt in the building, paying them $10 a month to use their web password. I go to lots of free events.1 year ago
Sarah: leah, so agree about automatically having money taken from checking to savings. this is the only way i’ve ever managed to really save.
miss fae, such a good idea to share internet! and buying metrocards on craigslist is really brill. give mint some time. it can categorize things in a wonky way which i’m always having to corrent, but it can be helpful if you set up a budget and can see how much you’ve spent on your budget.1 year ago