Money Musings 💠Use it or lose it challenge
Our friend Becca at @blondebrokeandboujie launched another fun and inspirational challenge that I decided to join in - the Use it or Lose it Challenge.
Here’s how she defined it:
"I am on an endless mission to use up all the items that just sit around in my apartment. There are so many things I’m saving for a special occasion, or I keep just in case, or I honestly forget I have.
Join me as we tackle at least one category a week. We’ll either use something from that category or lose something from that category (or maybe multiple if you want to show off)."
For me, it’s the beauty products and candles. WHAT am I saving these beauty products for? A special occasion? Or backups for when I run out of the ones I actually use and like? Candles that I plan to light when I’m done with my never ending to do list or the new daily ritual I keep promising to start? Who knows.
But Becca’s right. It’s time we use them or lose them (and by losing them - I will try to find them a better home).
Who’s going to start using or losing this week? What categories of things do you tend to accumulate?
Hit reply and let me know!
P.S. I was on the TODAY Show with Stephanie Ruhle last week talking about New Year's budgets. It's been a dream ✨ of mine to go on the show! You can watch the segment here.
MONEY MOVE OF THE WEEK
TEST OUT "LETTING GO" OF AN EXPENSE.
It can feel really hard to reduce our expenses if we imagine the change as permanent. Imagine, deciding never to spend on X, Y or Z again. The irony is that we often budget this way. I’ve done it myself. We see a certain expense is higher (or much higher) than we thought (or want it to be). We delete the Lyft app and swear never to take a Lyft again. This is typically not realistic and sets us up for budgeting failure.
An easier strategy is to test out "letting go" of an expense (or reducing the amount of that expense). That way, if we miss it or it’s critical to our lifestyle, we can add it back. It’s an experiment.
Are there any expenses you might be ready to let go of? You don’t have to cut it out completely. Test out letting go of an expense for a few days, weeks or months (depending on what it is).
Then reflect back, did you miss it? If not, great. Keep it out. If so, is there another way to get it? Or add it back into your budget.
YOU GOTTA SEE THIS
MONEY STRESS IS MAKING WOMEN SICK.
Money stress has an overwhelming impact on women’s mental and physical well-being - much more so than for men. The pandemic has only made things worse.
In this article, Ellevest highlights how money is making us sick. Nearly half of women feel financial stress has taken a toll on their mental and emotional health. Although we talk about other forms of wellness, we don’t talk about financial wellness nearly enough - and that has to change.