No Spend Month

[Rocko]

"No Spend Month" is short for "No Spending Except for Basic Essentials This Month."

Basic essentials: Rent, mortgage, bills (electricity, water, etc), food (but your stockpiles first), medicine.

Back when I was a student, pretty much every month was like this. So now when I've gotten adjusted to actually having something to spend, it's hard not to. I think September is going to be my month this year.

Have anyone tried it? Can you do it?

 

[theMot]

I'm 34, if I had to think like that I would probably neck myself.

 

[smokehouse]

I don't do anything that extreme...but I do put a cap on things from time to time. We spend money in waves, and some of those waves are pretty large. I'll keep and eye on our chacking and when the wave gets too big, I'll tell my wife that we need to "cool it" for a month or two.

 

[oliverclaude]

Basic essentials: Rent, mortgage, bills (electricity, water, etc), food (but your stockpiles first), medicine.

You mean like rent a motel for yourself plus lover? Pay the mortgage for your mistress' house featuring bills for electricity, water etc.? Paying for food in a Michelin starred place? ...and yes, medicine, or should I say some extremely potent, yet complete mellow high, no paranoia, genetically engineered by the U.S. government G-13 pot?

Essentials, eh? Man, Rocko, you live like a king every goddamn month.

 

[Ip Man]

i've done this many times. i don't like borrowing money or taking out small loans. so i just cut everything that isn't an essential. it's all about discipline. but if you're married, it might be a little harder for you.

 

[WoodyXP]

Have anyone tried it?

Yes.

Can you do it?

Yes.

I get two pay checks a month. We'll use the first check for essentials(bills, food, etc) and bank the other. There's usually a couple months out of the year where we'll splurge and buy luxury items, travel, etc.. It's a good system, IMO.

 

[jdotaku]

did it for a few years just recently but i am married now and it is much harder as she feels cheated if she can't eat out or splurge once and awhile which means every paycheck but she is at least reasonable about it. for me gaming and travel are where i want to blow money but feel i am pretty restrained the plan is to do some saving out of each check and always pay the bills no matter what so far so good but yeah life is too short not to be both financially sound and enjoy life to so i work overtime a bit to have spending money

 

[Rocko]

I'm 34, if I had to think like that I would probably neck myself.

The point can be to save money because you have limited resources, but it doesn't have to be. Some people do this to really enjoy what they actually have, instead of always looking for new things to buy. Some people do it for environmental reasons.

 

[Lastblade]

I have done it a few times, but that's not that difficult. The trick is to reduce spending consistently, by reducing frivolous spending that really doesn't add much to your life. I see people buy Starbucks everyday, and for me, it is too expensive and it cease to be a treat when you have it regularly. I get it once every 2 to 3 months instead. I save hundreds by drinking office (free) coffee and truly enjoy an occasional drink out.

 

[Montatez]

You can and should do it xmas and the holidays pack on extra bills. As the seasons change so does my spending habits. Like an internal clock. Plus Jeep parts are not cheap need to save up.

 

[ki_atsushi]

I rarely have the willpower. I should make September a no spending month. All of my vacation time will be spent by then anyways, lol.

 

[Tanooki]

A month no, a week sure. We're not in the best of shape due to a wife with minimal work and a partial disability so we get a hand up from family which sickens me as I hate asking for anything (b'day and christmas gifts included.) I find myself forced to do nothing but go free places or stay home at times and I don't like it. I find it far easier to set a $20 max allowance in a week and stick to that for myself to help save some.

 

[uiengineer]

i spend what i want, when i want. but generally, i don't go too crazy. i've got a pretty decent amount in savings, so i don't have to worry too much about money.

 

[GregN]

Does it include going out to eat?

 

[DanAdamKOF]

This was me as a student. I managed to not go under.

 

[cr8zykuban0]

this was definitely me during purchasing a home. it was hard not to spend money on games for a while but was worth it.

its almost impossible for me since i do have the extra cash to blow after the bills are paid of course.

i might try it when i get back from peru on the 3rd of august until Sep.1st

 

[max 330 megafartz]

A month no, a week sure. We're not in the best of shape due to a wife with minimal work and a partial disability so we get a hand up from family which sickens me as I hate asking for anything (b'day and christmas gifts included.) I find myself forced to do nothing but go free places or stay home at times and I don't like it. I find it far easier to set a $20 max allowance in a week and stick to that for myself to help save some.

i am not trying to be a dick, seriously. this sounds so ridiculous, but you can find fun things to do for a whole week on $20? honestly that is awesome. i just cant fathom how i could figure out a way to do that (i would love to though.) i mean i took my new girl to a pool party at a buddy's place on Sunday, i spent over $20 just buying chips, salsa, macaroni salad, and beer to bring along as a good guest. they provided the main food which was 10 pounds of grilled chicken.
if we had stuck to our initial date plans, id have spent $50 at least on gas, food, and a few drinks for sure.
how the hell do you manage $20 a week?

 

[theMot]

i took my new girl to a pool party

pics?

 

[Rocko]

Does it include going out to eat?

Very good question since it's a bit of an edge ball. I'd say eating out, even though it technically is food, doesn't belong to "basic essentials".

 

[MuppeT]

pics?

 

[Rocko]

Man, you only need like a bucket of water to fill that pool.

 

[Zak]

This is going to be me for the next few months - PCB prices are ridiculous now.

 

[Montatez]

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[lithy]

I have done it a few times, but that's not that difficult. The trick is to reduce spending consistently, by reducing frivolous spending that really doesn't add much to your life. I see people buy Starbucks everyday, and for me, it is too expensive and it cease to be a treat when you have it regularly. I get it once every 2 to 3 months instead. I save hundreds by drinking office (free) coffee and truly enjoy an occasional drink out.

Yup, going without for a month doesn't mean anything if you follow up with buying everything you skipped the previous month and then continue on as usual. Changing you buying habits means setting budget limits, avoiding impulse purchases, knowing what you want to spend on something and sticking to it, and generally just saving more.

If you are spending everything you are bringing in, you need to track spending for a year or two just to see where everything goes. Then look at the big picture and make changes according to your goals.

$50/week on going out to eat might not seem like that much, but when you get to the end of the year and see more spent eating out than on groceries you might consider a change.

Our spending has slowly crept up since having a kid, but the increases are minimal and peetty much offset by tax gains. We are still happy with our balance of spending and saving and how it will affect future plans and ultimately retirement, so it isn't bothering me too much at the moment.

So all that rambling said, definitely challenge yourself if you want to set a goal, don't do it just to say you can.

 

[LoneSage]

Since coming back home I'm not sure what to spend money on. Games, blu-rays, whatever, idgaf about buying that shit anymore. Just been taking mom out to lunch and dinner like every other day since coming back. Now she tells me she doesn't want to travel anywhere and she's all old and fat now so I guess going to Yellowstone or Rushmore is out of the question.

So what do you guys spend your money on?