Comments on: Day 26) Where Do We Go From Here? http://financefreelancelife.com/2009/02/26/takeaways-from-wheres-my-money-going-month/ Sat, 20 Mar 2010 15:34:03 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.1 hourly 1 By: Maureen http://financefreelancelife.com/2009/02/26/takeaways-from-wheres-my-money-going-month/#comment-39808 Maureen Fri, 27 Feb 2009 15:28:02 +0000 http://financefreelancelife.com/?p=1331#comment-39808 If you tell someone that you're going to track everyday they may respond with, "Oh my gosh, how are you going to keep up with that?" However as you've mentioned it became easier to track everyday. I have maybe a couple of no-spending days (fewer than most) because I buy food everyday as the supermarket is near and I'm cooking for one so I need to carefully plan. My daily total usually come to about €5 which is reasonable to remember. At the start of my tracking I'd just generally list a food bill without the individual items and their prices which may be of help to some. I became dissatisfied with this though as I knew it'd be a deterrent when I saw how much exactly I spend on snacks. I like listing fruit and veg separately so that I know I'm getting my 5-a-day. If you're hopeless at doing it daily then make the effort to collect all the receipts and at the end of the day try to write down what you've collected. This is a good start to remembering your purchases for when you stop collecting receipts in future as you will begin to notice your spending patterns. It's also key not to lie to yourself. If you can't remember exactly how much you spent on something go for a higher figure than a lower one. Even though neither is accurate it does mean that you not deceiving yourself into thinking you've spent less than you have. If you tell someone that you’re going to track everyday they may respond with, “Oh my gosh, how are you going to keep up with that?” However as you’ve mentioned it became easier to track everyday. I have maybe a couple of no-spending days (fewer than most) because I buy food everyday as the supermarket is near and I’m cooking for one so I need to carefully plan. My daily total usually come to about €5 which is reasonable to remember. At the start of my tracking I’d just generally list a food bill without the individual items and their prices which may be of help to some. I became dissatisfied with this though as I knew it’d be a deterrent when I saw how much exactly I spend on snacks. I like listing fruit and veg separately so that I know I’m getting my 5-a-day.

If you’re hopeless at doing it daily then make the effort to collect all the receipts and at the end of the day try to write down what you’ve collected. This is a good start to remembering your purchases for when you stop collecting receipts in future as you will begin to notice your spending patterns.

It’s also key not to lie to yourself. If you can’t remember exactly how much you spent on something go for a higher figure than a lower one. Even though neither is accurate it does mean that you not deceiving yourself into thinking you’ve spent less than you have.

]]> By: Sandy http://financefreelancelife.com/2009/02/26/takeaways-from-wheres-my-money-going-month/#comment-39723 Sandy Thu, 26 Feb 2009 17:32:28 +0000 http://financefreelancelife.com/?p=1331#comment-39723 Oh my gosh it sounds like something we should all do but I have to confess a wee bit of pain at the thought. I have to follow how you did and see if I can suck it up and do this! Oh my gosh it sounds like something we should all do but I have to confess a wee bit of pain at the thought. I have to follow how you did and see if I can suck it up and do this!

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