Spending Diet Challenge: Day #0

Tomorrow,  I start my debt diet. I am going to diet for 30 days and see

Karon Powell wrote a piece recently on Spring Debt Diets.....

This inspired me to do something similar and go on a spending diet. A spending diet is exactly what you think when you hear the term. It's a diet from spending.

What is my diet plan?

1. I waste a lot of money on things that have absolutely nothing to do with me. I'm a very giving/caring person and everyone knows it. As much as I feel the need to help others in their time of need, times are tough for everyone - me included. The first step in my spending diet is to - close the Bank of Rikki.
2. I use to be really good about cooking meals at home and taking leftovers to work the next day, but I got lazy. Second, I am going to cook meals at least 4 days a week for dinner and lunch the next day.
3. Another thing I use to do consistently was take public transportation. There are 3 bus stops within close walking distance from my apartment. Currently, I drive to the metro and ride the metro to work. Metro parking is $4.25 a day (I believe). That's a lot of money for being lazy. When I drive I pay for parking, metro, and gas to and from the station. If I take the bus, I pay for the bus and metro only. Next, I am not going to drive to the metro.
4. I like to think I'm a pretty conscious grocery shopper, but I don't use cupouns. I have subscribed to cupoun websites but don't use them. I am going to start using cupouns when grocery shopping and go back to shopping at International food markets - usually cheaper fresh fruits and veggies.
5. I have a huge sweet tooth. I love candy! Unfortunately, I am not as young as I use to be and can't eat the same things I once did. So, I am going to cut out junk food from my diet. My wallet and stomach will thank me later.

These are the first 5 things I am going to work on to begin with and as I am able to cut my spending by these methods, I plan to look at my budget again and see where I can cut back more.

The Spending Diet Challenege starts TOMORROW! The challenege offically starts tomorrow, May 8, 2012.

Join me in my spending diet. Challenge yourself to find ways to cut back on your spending and let us know how you are doing by tweeting your progress/tips/motivation/challenges to @peoplesfinance, use the hash tag #SpendingDiet. Let's get our finances in order and challenge ourselves to cut back and cut out.

"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step."

--  Confucius