January no buy

[living20057]

Christmas shopping is over and I need to join on the January no buy. I have always thought about it, but my ready to commit. . I'm not sure how long I can make it.

 

[neatokimmo]

I'm there with you. But I need more like a 2012 No Buy lol Jan isn't long enough!

 

[QVCshopper]

We haven't had a no-buy thread in a while, but I'm sure some of the regulars will be by to talk about it. They are very helpful; I've continued to have some no-buy days without the thread though.

I'm due in January with baby #3 and can probably do a no-buy month quite easily as shopping is getting hard and I won't be able to go anywhere with a newborn!

 

[disneyofcourse]

I would join but I'm such a huge spender during January because of all the Sales and Clearances. Maybe next month

 

[neatokimmo]

I'm due in January with baby #3

 

[tikilyn]

I'm heading for a no buy 2012, all year long!!! We have 25000.00 to pay off this year (includes a car loan). We want to buy land and build a house and need to free up some money. There will also be no vacations in 2012 either. The only gifts I'm buying next year will be for my kids birthday and christmas presents. No birthday parties at all.

 

[charming23]

I would be in. I have been keeping track anyhow and miss everyone.

 

[junebug]

count this newbie in!

 

[beansmom]

i'm in! I need to pay off our bills and save about $5k for a trip to Hawaii and another $5k to take all the kids to disney.

 

[wendy774]

I'm in. I officially decided to be a full time SAHM so I need the xtra money. My spending can easily get away from me. I started keeping track of my spending today.

 

[neatokimmo]

I have already started working on my 2012 budget! It is scary! So far if I put everything on there that I want, I am 8K short. I *might* be able to make that up with my home biz but that is never guaranteed. I am going to have to trim a lot here and there. Or not do as much retirement savings and that makes me a little ill. I am tired of working in corporate land.

 

[Nayan]

I need a couple of No-Buy months! We're taking a huge road trip at the end of April and I really need to save for it.

 

[Riles_and_Gabe]

I would like to join. I need to start paying off my debt and get a savings account in order.

 

[jmac323]

Ok I'm a newbie to no buy and definitely want to participate. Need some clarifiations though: any guidelines/rules? Ie; obviously I have to buy groceries, but do I set a smaller budget than normal to try and buy the least amount to get by? What does no buy entail? Not buying anything? Thanks for the clarification! Looking forward to stock piling some cash.

 

[living20057]

Ok I'm a newbie to no buy and definitely want to participate. Need some clarifiations though: any guidelines/rules? Ie; obviously I have to buy groceries, but do I set a smaller budget than normal to try and buy the least amount to get by? What does no buy entail? Not buying anything? Thanks for the clarification! Looking forward to stock piling some cash.

I'm not sure how this works. My plan is aside for regular bills and real necessities, I'm not going to buy anything else. I'm limiting myself to eating out only once a week that includes ordering out at work, a quick run at a drive thru or a sit down restaurant. I'm going to try avoid Target and Walmart like the plague. I tend to pick up random things there.

 

[jmac323]

I'm not sure how this works. My plan is aside for regular bills and real necessities, I'm not going to buy anything else. I'm limiting myself to eating out only once a week that includes ordering out at work, a quick run at a drive thru or a sit down restaurant. I'm going to try avoid Target and Walmart like the plague. I tend to pick up random things there.

Oh man, I need to avoid Target myself. WIth my 5% off I justify getting way too much there. Ok well I can work this plan and just set some rules for myself. I'm on board for sure!

 

[Where'sPiglet?]

I was just wondering if this thread would resurface in the new year!

I have missed this group. I have been keeping track on my own, but it's just not the same. The last time I jumped back in, I didn't make it through the month, so I'm going to try harder this time to stick it out without crashing and burning.

 

[beaucoup]

Not sure what the rules are? No buying of anything? Or only buying of stuff you need and not things you don't need?

I go many days a month without spending money. So I should be able to do this. And snowy January is a yucky time to go shopping for anything anyway. I'm not a bigger shopper. I'm in & out of Walmart & grocery store buying only what we need anyway. Food & pet food. We live really basic. Not into buying music, movies, not many clothes, not fancy toiletries, don't have nails done, etc.

No debt anymore, but I am addicted to watching our bank accounts grow...that is when the stock market does gobble it up.

 

[neatokimmo]

I'm going to try harder this time to stick it out without crashing and burning.

Me too! lol

 

[Where'sPiglet?]

The usual way this thread works is that everybody chooses their own goal to meet, then posts updates as the month goes on. Usually people will quote themselves, remove the quote brackets, and add to their list each day.

The best thing about that is you will see how different people view spending and budgeting and get ideas. Basically, you create your goal at the beginning of the month and then the group helps you stay accountable to the goal you have selected. You choose how much information you are willing to share.

Some examples of what people have done recently are:
-Meeting a certain number of days where you spend nothing (usually not including monthly bills). Numbers usually range from 10-15. For someone new at this, even 10 is ambitious because you are building new habits. I've noticed it takes about 3 months to calibrate a new budget, so don't give up if you biff on day 2 of the first month!

-Having <$5 days and <$10 days in addition to the $0 Days. For example, you might aim for 10 $0 Days, then allow 5 more days where you keep spending within a low threshold. The reasoning behind this is sometimes when you spend a small amount on a snack, you've "ruined the $0 Day" and might as well get all that other stuff you've been eyeing! The idea is to prevent binge spending on your spend days.

-Keeping spending within certain limits, often broken down by category.

-Rationing your budget, such as dividing the $400 you have to spend all month into $40 cash every three days. This helps you pace yourself, especially if you are reducing your spending.