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They say the first step to recovery is admitting you have a problem. I know I am a shopoholic. So I had already taken the first step years ago. I buy shoes, clothes and accessories compulsively. But other than that I had never really done anything about it other than cutting back when my husband was out of work. Now that we are empty-nesters I have had to take a step back and re-evaluate my life. Do I really need to keep accumulating all these material goods? What plans do I have for the rest of my life?
First was to lay out my priorities for our money:
1. Retirement.
2. Vacations to visit our cherished friends.
3. Renovations to our home.
These are all really important to me and if I don't stop spending all our money then I can not accomplish these goals. So that means I will have to actually set myself a budget and stick with it.
So today is the first day of my budget. I have three envelopes with each goal on it and I will put a defined amount of money into each envelope each payday. After a few months I will put the accumulations in an Roth IRA for the retirement and use the others as needed for my goals. I think that I am finding that "things" don't always make you happy, but friends and experiences do.
Pel
I have every confidence that you'll find clever ways to feed your girlie impulses with super bargains, thrift, swaps, etc. If I can do it, you certainly can. ;)
ReplyDeleteI know I can do it if I try hard enough. It is just sooooo easy to buy something. I think "Oh I have the money, why not?" Well, I deserve to have a decent retirement, a nice house and vacations with my friends too :) My little granddaughters need a little more spoiling as well *grin*
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