Have you ever skipped out on an expense? There is great power in doing this trick. I am not suggesting you never buy something again or go without an item for an extended period of time, but rather going without for a short period. Doing this has a few benefits, which we will detail in this post.
So what exactly do I mean when I say skip an expense? For the most part, this means you simply don’t buy something you regularly do. For example, try going a week without grocery shopping. Instead of buying food, use what is in your pantry or freezer.
Another option would be to skip out on dry cleaning your clothes. Maybe they don’t really need to be dry cleaned. You could wash them on the gentle cycle instead.
Again, the goal is not to never grocery shop again, it is just to go without shopping for groceries one week. Nor is it to never use the dry cleaner again, it is to go without that expense this time.
So why would you choose to go without grocery shopping one week? It has two main benefits. First, you realize that you can go without buying more food and still survive. Second, it saves you money.
Looking back at the grocery shopping example, let’s say you skip a week of grocery shopping once a month. If your average cost of food each week is $125, you just saved yourself $1,500! That is a fairly large impact for just skipping out of groceries once a month.
While it might feel scary to not grocery shop, thinking you will run out of food, you won’t. You have plenty of food in your freezer and pantry to get by.
As you realize you can get by on less food shopping, you will begin to feel empowered. You will start looking at other expenses and question what else you can go without for a short period of time.
Maybe you can skip out on eating out once or twice a month and save that money instead. You could even still choose to eat out, but skip the appetizer or just drink water instead of soda.
Of course, there are some expenses that you cannot skip out on, no matter what – like a rent or mortgage payment or even a credit card bill. But there are a lot of other expenses you can begin to question as to whether or not you can skip.
The reality is, many of us have it pretty easy. We don’t have to think that much about things. We just do it because it has become a habit. But it doesn’t mean we really need it, we just do it because it is so ingrained in us.
By skipping expenses, we break this habit and realize that we can go without a lot more than we think and not really experience any pain or suffering. In fact, we experience the opposite: freedom and empowerment.
I challenge you to find expenses you can temporarily cut from your budget. Again, you aren’t looking to never add them back into your budget, but just to take them out from time to time. Doing so will improve not only your finances but also boost your self confidence as well. What are you waiting for? Start examining your expenses now and see where you can take the challenge!