Hellobee

I’ve had the goal since the beginning of 2016 to reduce my consumption and addiction to retail spending. I’m not a shopaholic or a hoarder, but I know there is significant room for improvement in my outlook and spending behavior. Last year, I got lazy and didn’t really changes my habits all that much, even though it was a goal of mine. I continued to fill up my shopping cart at Target with items of dubious utility, and I can’t tell you how many times I hit that “order” button on Amazon.

In 2017 I want to do better, and I work best with concrete goals. So with that in mind, I came up with a twelve-month plan to 1. save money, 2. change my shopping habits, and 3. reduce my desire for material goods. It feels like a tall order, but I’m excited to get started. Instead of boring/overwhelming Mr. Cotton Candy with a massive to-do list, I thought I’d share with you the things I’m going to attempt to do this month to form a new, healthier relationship with money and retail.

January: Retail Detox

I didn’t give myself any hard-and-fast rules for this January detox. Instead, I’m thinking once, twice, three times about every single purchase I make. Do we need to buy the expensive filters for our fridge water dispenser or will the cheaper ones suffice? (In this case, the pricier ones won out because they actually filter out harmful chemicals instead of just making the water taste better.) Do we really need a winter comforter or can we live with a big pile of warm blankets for one more year? (The answer? No, we don’t really need the new comforter.) I’m retraining my brain to not dwell on things I don’t have or covet what others have. I’m working on reducing our grocery budget (meal planning, meal planning, meal planning) and my personal spending. At the end of the month, whatever is left over from my personal spending budget will go straight to paying off my student loan.

February: No Online Shopping

Next month the plan is to buy nothing online. If I really need something, I can go to a store and find it. If I think of something I “need” online, I’ll add it to a wish list and check back in a month to see if I still want to make the purchase.

March: Secondhand Shopping

This month my goal will be to only make secondhand purchases at consignment shops and thrift stores, as well as using apps like Poshmark & thredUP, and Facebook resale groups. This, of course, does not include groceries and eating out, but I will continue to try and reduce spending in those categories.

April: Meal Planning

This month the goal is to use a combination of meal planning, couponing, and strategic shopping to reduce our grocery budget by $100 a month.

May: Use Up and Inventory Household Goods

I think of myself as an organized person, but after having a kid I definitely have let some of my organizational systems slip. I will use this month to take an inventory of everything I have in the way of cleaning products, makeup, toiletries, pantry staples, and miscellaneous household items. I will write everything down, organize it, and buy in bulk the things that we are lacking.

June: Renegotiate Bills

I’ll take the opportunity this month to go through our insurance, including car, house, personal items, and life, and decide whether to increase or decrease certain policies. I’ll also take a close look at cell phone and internet bills to see if we can make any cuts. Finally, I’ll look at any monthly subscriptions we have, if applicable, and decide whether any can be cut.

Trying to focus on the stuff that matters

July: Buy Local

This should be a fun month. Austin has a ton of great local businesses and restaurants, and it will be an exciting challenge to hunt down my needs using only local businesses. I’m already good at eating locally and shopping at independently owned gift shops. But it will be a nice challenge to seek out locally owned hardware stores, frame shops, bookstores, etc.

August: No Restaurants/Bars

After a month of fun, I will attempt a month of not eating out or going out for drinks once. It should be a tough one, but I am envisioning treating myself with a glass of wine and a homemade taco on my own back deck (that Mr. Cotton Candy built!).

September: Saving

This month I will reassess our income, our spending, and our savings targets. I will cash out our credit card rewards points and deposit them into Little Cotton Candy’s college fund. I will do the research and finally create a 529 account for the money we have saved so far for Little CC’s college.

October: Spending Freeze

Oooooh, scary! How appropriate is it to do a spending freeze in October? This will include everything except monthly bills, groceries, gasoline for the car, and emergencies. I’d better plan ahead and get Little Cotton Candy’s Halloween costume before this month starts!

November: Month of Giving

The focus this month is on giving back in whatever ways I can conceive of. I will donate money to charities with missions I’m passionate about, bake cookies for our neighbors, send cards to people when I’m thinking about them, over-tip, and try to be as generous as possible with my time. I’d like to volunteer as much as I can all year long, but there will be a special focus on it this month. Anytime I think about buying something for myself, instead I will turn my focus onto giving back.

December: Make It a Forever Habit

December is all about putting together all the lessons I learned over 2017 and incorporating them into my life. I want to end this year strong, with a fresh, healthier relationship to spending money. I don’t want to obsess over money for the rest of my life; instead, the goal is to spend smartly and be happy with what I have.

What do you think? Have you tried any of these techniques for spending less money? What is your biggest goal for 2017?