The end of 2013 is fast approaching and like most people I’m looking back at the year to see how it went. Did I succeed at my goals, did I change in any way that’s important? Did I grow as a person? Did I focus on what is important to me? One of the goals that I had for this year was to turn my financial life around and become a lot more proactive instead of reacting like a crazy person to all of the events that affect my personal finances. I did a number of things to curb my spending, cut excess, and grow my income. However, I also did a number of things such as go to NYC with my mom, go to FinCon13, and continue to enjoy my life.
I am a clear poster child for the conflict between YOLO and Debt Repayment. I think that I landed squarely in the middle of both and as I gear up for 2014 I plan to make some drastic changes. Even though I cut my budget quite a bit I’ve discovered a number of areas where I could still make some cuts. My need for change has now exceeded all other goals on my list.
Item | Amount Spent | Notes |
NYC w/t Mom | $1,700 | Fantastic Mommy/Daughter Time |
FinCon | $1,000 | *booked plane ticket late due to work issue |
England/Bridesmaid | $1,900 | Was treated like a Princess, $300 over the average bridesmaid cost. |
Fancy Dinners | $300 | estimate |
Clothes | $675 | *before No Shop Challenge Jan-March 31, 2013 |
Library Fines | $110 | This is a lot less than previous years |
Gifts | $220 | Bday/wedding/colleague |
Cabs | $330 | On Average Twice a Month |
Writing Materials | $120 | Includes a ton of notebooks |
Hair | $350 | I stopped going to the beautician. This is very cheap! |
Tips | $250 | Travel related/etc. |
Food Waste | $150 | Estimate |
Manicures | $60 | 3 this year |
Gym | $162 | Around $28 a month-I do use the gym |
Starbucks | $300 | estimate |
Speed Dating | $80 | I have enjoyed this and met some great guys. Going out on a date on Wednesday! |
Romance Novels | $162 | This one is ridiculous-they all end the same! |
Flowers | $154 | For the home |
Misc | $500 | estimate |
Total: | $8,384 | WOW! |
***Please note, the amounts are based on 11 months-not the full 12***
As I move forward into 2014 I’ve made some decisions that I’ll briefly talk about now but will write full posts on later. All amounts in parenthesis are the amount I hope to save.
- No overseas trips until November 2014-that’s a year from now and I think that holding off of on overseas travel (unless I get a $100 ticket) is a good choice. This year was crazy in terms of traveling. I went on the following trips: Atlanta (work related), St. Louis (work related), England (Bridesmaid BFF), New York CIty (with Mom!), St. Louis (FinCon13), and finally Montana (work related). The irony is that left to my own devices I probably would have only gone to NYC and Montana. I do have travel set for 2014 but those are Stateside trips. (Save $2000)
- Flowers For the Home-Sadly, I will cut down to buying flowers once a month. I love them but I need to cut that expenditure. Want vs. a need. (Save $85)
- Romance Novels-Only from the thrift shop. Btw, the ones I was getting before were discounted! Trying to save ($130)
- Trip with Mom-I want to take a trip with my mom to Glenwood Springs, CO for the weekend. You can take a train and relax in the mountains. ($850)
- Starbucks-Let’s be real-I’m still going to coffee shops! I want to cut this amount by 50%. I make coffee at work almost everyday. ($150)
- Writing Materials-Use what I have. ($120)
- FinCon13-Book everything much earlier!! ($230)
- Fancy Dinners-I will try to cut this by 30% ($100)
- Clothes-Will be shopping again am putting together a strategy! I will need new boots, shirts, undies, socks, shoes, well you get the picture!
- Library Fines-Cut the fines by ($60)
- Tips-Will be working on doing more free stuff next year ($75)
- Cabs-I will try to cut down on cabs for the next year ($80)
- Total Potential Savings: $3880
Also, all of my Consumer Credit Debt should be paid off by March 2014. Have you ever tallied the monthly payments for your debt? I just did! Having the Consumer Debt Paid off will save me: $3600 a year! I also have a small storage unit that I want to get rid of that will save me: $1920. If you have a storage unit multiply the amount you’re paying monthly by 12 months. It’s too much. I don’t want to get into the story on the storage unit.
Finally, groceries-I like good food. I don’t eat bad food. But, this is an area where I could try (unenthusiastically) to save money. I spend between $250-$330 a month on groceries. I should mention that I take my lunch to work about 90% of the time! I would like to save $50 a month on groceries. The savings would amount to: $600
- $3880-Savings from the spreadsheet
- $3600-Paid off Consumer Debt (monthly payments)
- $1920-Savings from Storage Unit
- $600-Savings on groceries
- Total: $10,000 !!
Ten Thousand Dollars!! That is a substantial amount of savings. When I imagine what I want for the future that money would make a huge difference for me. I am really proud of what I’ve done this year but it’s time to push myself a little harder! I feel so empowered and supported by the pf community and know that I will be able meet this challenge head on!
**Pic off of Google Images**
I would like to encourage everyone to look at their budget for this year and specifically focus on your discretionary spending.
- Is there a line item or a number of line items that you spent money on that surprised you?
- Do you plan on eliminating that/those expense(s) or adjusting your budget for next year?
- Where you surprised by how much that item changed your yearly budget?
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save. spend. splurge. says
Gulp. To be honest, I am not even sure I want to list what I bought for clothing this year which includes 3 winter coats, starting at $500 – $1000 each…..
That’s my weakness, shopping.
Good on you for listing out your purchases! You’re right about those romance novels however ..
Michelle says
I love romance novels but the amount that I’ve paid for them is absolutely ridiculous! Right now I’m really missing shopping for fall-spring clothing 🙁 There is so much nice and shiny stuff out there to buy. It was painful to list my discretionary/yolo spending and admit that I’ve decided to recalibrate big time for 2014. It is a first world problem that I have to wait until November to go on an overseas trip.
Budget & the Beach says
I think it’s good to check in with yourself and your budget every once in awhile to make sure it’s aligned with your goals. For me I’d give up starbucks in a heartbeat to keep eating good food and traveling, but everyone is different. I’ll probably try to do fincon a little cheaper next year with the food. Seemed more people got free meals than me. ha ha.
Michelle says
It was something that I’ve been thinking about doing for awhile. Now that 2013 is winding down it’s time to figure out what works and what doesn’t. I am a little fussy about food so I’m always a little nervous to cut on my food!Starbucks isn’t really the issue…it’s going to coffee shops in general! I love going for coffee and chatting with friends for hours while sipping on delicious lattes. When I visit L.A. we will go to Urth Cafe, ride some bikes at the boardwalk and chill out. Isn’t that a great way to hang out with friends?! We’ll have to get a group of PF bloggers together. Am looking at cheap (Super cheap) tickets for the Spring. My friend V. is a medical resident at UCLA so I have free housing and am spoiled rotten when I’m there!
Budget & the Beach says
I can see when it’s built into your social life how you’d enjoy it then. My weakness is movies. Especially this time of year. I love to see the Oscar-ish type movies before the oscars. That would be great for you to come visit!
Michelle says
Are you going to do an Oscars Themed Pot Luck? I want to see 12 Years a Slave, Catching Fire, Enders Game, Oldboy (Spike Lee), and a couple of others that I won’t mention. The problem is that I hate watching movies in the movie theater with OTHER people who talk too much, eat too loudly, and basically annoy the hell out of me. Also, I only like to go to the movies when the weather is crappy out…am so complicated.
KK @ Student Debt Survivor says
The budget line item for romance novels totally cracked me up. Next year I’m hoping to cut my eating out budget. I don’t know exactly what I spend, but I know it’s far too much and I need to cook at home more.
Michelle says
Umm, it’s super ridiculous! But, I just love romance novels 🙂
catherine says
You should consider a kcup maker and buying Starbucks kcups? Goood luck with your goals lady!
Michelle says
Catherine, I actually make coffee a lot! Almost every day. The problem is that I like to go out to coffee with friends-I have a European affinity for it. Maybe picked up from my days in Paris?!
Kylie Ofiu says
You saw mine this year, lol. I think you have done well and it is important to still live while paying off debt etc. Your goals for 2014 are fantastic and the desire to change is so important. You learn and grow and as long as you continue to do that I think your finances will follow. 🙂
Michelle says
I’m really trying to focus and push forward during 2014. I feel like it’s going to be a really pivotal year for me and I’m going to work my butt off to make what I want to happen-happen!
Dear Debt says
I love seeing these numbers out in the open. I love how honest and rad you are! Sounds like you had a lot of fun though 🙂 My Achilles heal is always eating out. I justify it because I ‘need to eat’ and ‘I deserve it’ and ‘YOLO’. I think it’s always a balance and it’s a hard one. You want to be responsible, but also not miss out on fun and opportunities.
Michelle says
It was a little painful to see those numbers. Obviously going to my bff’s wedding was a non-negotiable. Because I did so many big things this year, I’ve decided that next year will be pretty low key. That will free up a lot of money for debt repayment and I think that I will be able to make a lot of progress in 2014 as long as I focus and execute a well thought out plan.