Budget Divas

Back To Basics Money Series: Stop Doing This To Your Budget (And What To Do Instead)

January 25, 2023 Jenn Trinidad Episode 53
Budget Divas
Back To Basics Money Series: Stop Doing This To Your Budget (And What To Do Instead)
Show Notes Transcript

Ep #53 How to live on a budget without going scorched earth. If you haven’t heard of this term before, basically it means to remove all discretionary spending from your budget. So think of it as the only things in your budget are the money to support your four walls – shelter/utilities, food, transportation, and necessary clothing. So this means getting rid of all the extra spending in your budget – cable, dining out, any subscriptions, gym memberships, lattes, and anything else that would be considered as a non-essential expense. 

So we did this in the first 2 years of our debt-free journey. I was OBSESSED with finding every article and YouTube video that I could on how to live on practically nothing. In the first few months of doing this, it was kind of fun because it was like a challenge. Like oooh let’s see how many days I can go without spending any money. And I would read all of these articles and watch these You Tube videos of how people were walking to work, DIY’ing everything they could, learning how to cook recipes from their kitchen inventory, making their own laundry soap, and so forth. 

But as time went on, what happened is that my family and I were just miserable. I would feel so guilty everytime we left the house to do something fun because that meant using gas and spending money on going out to eat when I knew that the money should be going to our debt instead. 

It was only in that third year of our debt-free journey that I started to turn things upside down and that’s when life got really fun and I started to actually enjoy the debt-free journey instead of frantically wanting to be at the finish line. The end result was that we made so much progress in that third year of our debt-free journey, to the tune of paying off $41k in 12 months. 

So in today’s episode, I want to give you some tips on how you can also pay off a lot of debt but also enjoy the journey along the way. We’re always in such a rush to get to the finish line that we forget to be present and enjoy what’s happening around us. 

1.       The first tip is to make a list of what you want to keep in your budget. Most people start working on their budget the opposite way. They start slashing their budget to practically nothing only to burn out in the end. 

2.       Cut out everything else in your budget that is no longer a necessity or is draining your budget

3.       The last tip to living on a budget without going on a scorched earth budget is to find a side hustle that you love to increase your income. For us, it was mystery shopping. We wanted to find a way to have our cake and eat it too and mystery shopping allowed us to enjoy the debt-free journey. In that third year of our journey we discovered how we could get paid to shop and reimbursed for our purchases. If you’re interested in learning more, you can access the free on-demand training at https://www.budgetdivas.com/mysterytraining. This is a mini training that is an introduction to the mystery shopping course that I’ve put together if you’d like to become mystery shopper. 

 If you have enjoyed this episode and are getting value from the Budget Diva

You're Invited to a free LIVE training: How To Get Out of Debt Faster With Mystery Shopping. Register here: https://www.budgetdivas.com/faster

Mystery shopping? What's that got to do with my finances? Mystery shopping isn't just about scoring free meals or testing out luxury cars; it's a powerful tool that can turbocharge your journey to financial independence! Imagine paying off your student loans, credit card debt, or that pesky mortgage years ahead of schedule! Head over to www.budgetdivas.com/faster and secure your spot. Seats are limited, and you won't want to miss out on this life-changing event. It's time to take control of your financial future and unlock the potential within you.

Welcome to another episode of the Budget Divas podcast. 

I am your host Jenn Trinidad and we are currently in our Back to Basics Series. Today I want to talk about how to live on a budget without going scorched earth. If you haven’t heard of this term before, basically it means to remove all discretionary spending from your budget. So think of it as the only things in your budget are the money to support your four walls – shelter/utilities, food, transportation, and necessary clothing. So this means getting rid of all the extra spending in your budget – cable, dining out, any subscriptions, gym memberships, lattes, and anything else that would be considered as a non-essential expense. 

So we did this in the first 2 years of our debt-free journey. I was OBSESSED with finding every article and YouTube video that I could on how to live on practically nothing. In the first few months of doing this, it was kind of fun because it was like a challenge. Like oooh let’s see how many days I can go without spending any money. And I would read all of these articles and watch these You Tube videos of how people were walking to work, DIY’ing everything they could, learning how to cook recipes from their kitchen inventory, making their own laundry soap, and so forth. 

But as time went on, what happened is that my family and I were just miserable. I would feel so guilty everytime we left the house to do something fun because that meant using gas and spending money on going out to eat when I knew that the money should be going to our debt instead. 

It was only in that third year of our debt-free journey that I started to turn things upside down and that’s when life got really fun and I started to actually enjoy the debt-free journey instead of frantically wanting to be at the finish line. The end result was that we made so much progress in that third year of our debt-free journey, to the tune of paying off $41k in 12 months. 

So in today’s episode, I want to give you some tips on how you can also pay off a lot of debt but also enjoy the journey along the way. We’re always in such a rush to get to the finish line that we forget to be present and enjoy what’s happening around us. 

1.       The first tip is to make a list of what you want to keep in your budget. Most people start working on their budget the opposite way. They start slashing their budget to practically nothing only to burn out in the end. If someone were to tell me that I can no longer have my coffee in the morning for 2 years (which basically would feel like my entire life), you know what I would be thinking about 24/7? That I want coffee and I want it now. The same goes for the budget. If you start slashing everything in your budget until you only have your four walls, you know what you get? A very dull life. So I want to challenge you to flip that mindset upside down and do this instead. 

a.       Get out a piece of paper and write down everything that you currently spend on that brings joy to you. Maybe it’s your morning latte on your way to work, getting your nails done, getting a monthly massage, clothes shopping, going on fancy trips. I LOVE getting poke bowls at my local grocery store and eating it on the beach with my husband. It’s our go-to date night – we love having a picnic on the beach. Now that you have your list, you need to analyze that list especially if your list is very long and you are currently on a debt-free journey. There might be some things on the list that you are OK with cutting out for now and the rest you want to keep in your monthly budget. 

b.       This was totally a game changer for me. Not only did it energize me but it kept me motivated to keep moving forward. I realized that I didn’t have to give up what I loved just because I was on a debt-free journey. 

 

2.       Cut out everything else in your budget that is no longer a necessity or is draining your budget

a.       When I used to work in the office, I remember I used to feel obligated when my co-workers would go out for lunch. Instead of saying no because I had already brought my own lunch, I would justify it by saying that I was spending quality time with my co-workers. But that wasn’t even the issue because most of the time my co-workers would pick up lunch and bring it back to the office to eat in the lunchroom anyway. This was not only draining my budget but I would feel bad because then I would have to either pay less to my debt or give up the things on my list that brought me joy. 

b.       So this is why it’s important to make that list. Make that list of what you want to keep in your budget and what you want to get rid of in your budget. This will help you to stay true to yourself and you won’t feel guilty spending your hard earned money on the things that matter to you. 

c.       There were a TON of stuff on the list of things to cut out of my budget. But because I made the list of items to KEEP in my budget, it didn’t feel restrictive at all. In fact, it energized me to keep cutting  the things that were draining my budget. Things like cable, buying fast food, buying food on the run because I hadn’t prepared a meal ahead of time, buying tons of clothes and shoes each month that could no longer fit in my oversized closet and so forth. When I analyzed my budget, I found that I was spending money on fast food runs that 1) wasn’t healthy at all and 2) it was so frequent that those small $10 to $20 transactions were adding up to hundreds of dollars per month. 

Then there was my clothing and shoe addiction. My son used to tell me “Mom, your closet is so full that it looks like it’s about to throw up.” This process was so empowering because now I had extra money in my budget to spend on morning lattes and getting a massage once a month and to put extra towards my debt. 

 

3.       The last tip to living on a budget without going on a scorched earth budget is to find a side hustle that you love to increase your income. For us, it was mystery shopping. We wanted to find a way to have our cake and eat it too and mystery shopping allowed us to enjoy the debt-free journey. In that third year of our journey we discovered how we could get paid to shop and reimbursed for our purchases. If you’re interested in learning more, you can access the free on-demand training at https://www.budgetdivas.com/mysterytraining. This is a mini training that is an introduction to the mystery shopping course that I’ve put together if you’d like to become mystery shopper. 

a.       The most important thing is to find a side hustle that you enjoy and works with your schedule. It will help you pay off debt faster and also help you pay for the things in your put on your joy list – the list you created with items to keep in your budget. Maybe you feel good and confident when you get your hair or your lashes done, or it brightens your day when you have that morning latte on your way to work. 

Just to recap, here are the three tips we talked about today. 

1) Make a list of items that you want to KEEP in your budget 

2) Cut out everything that is no longer serving you and can definitely do without (think fast food runs that can quickly add up to $50 per transaction)

3) Find a side hustle that is going to bring in extra income per month – to help pay for the items that you want to keep in your budget and help you to pay off debt faster 

 

If you have enjoyed this episode and are getting value from the Budget Divas podcast, I would so appreciate if you left a review to let me know that you’re enjoying the show and also share this episode with someone who can benefit from these tips. 

Also if you’re interested in learning more about mystery shopping, go to budgetdivas.com/mysterytraining to claim your FREE on-demand training. 

Until next time, keep moving forward one step at a time.