Customize Your Savings Plan – Part 2

Everywhere we turn in the financial world, we hear about a spending plan, an investment plan, a budgeting plan. Just find a plan and follow it, right? Well, what about a savings plan? If only saving money was that black and white.

Let’s face it, cutting back on expenses we’ve come to rely on can be a little painful. It’s not just “inconvenient” that we can’t go out to eat as often, it can seriously dampen our social life. And how much does it suck to not be able to go to a concert you really wanted to check out? It feels unfair, like we deserve these things, and we feel like we’ve been wronged somehow. You worked hard for those things (or used to anyway before you got laid off). Well, I say, you can use these feelings to pinpoint the areas of your life where you shouldn’t cut back.

You can use your feelings of loss (I know, it’s a dramatic word), or whatever it is that comes up for you, as markers for your values—things/experiences that really matter to you—and by doing so, you can customize your own savings plan.

So, take a moment to sit down and go through your bills from the last 2 or 3 months. Highlight those things you spent money on that you really enjoyed, that if you didn’t experience again, you’d be super bummed about. Be honest here, otherwise you’ll highlight everything and will have not gotten anywhere. I personally know that there are clothes I’ve bought, and nights at a bar that I really didn’t enjoy—that I wouldn’t miss if I never relived those moments. But I’d feel really deprived without new books, movies, and museum visits on a regular basis.

Chances are, there are a few recurring themes in your expenses. You do some things regularly because you love them. And you do other things that you don’t love, but you are just in the habit of doing them regularly (say a mani/pedi every month, or all those magazines you get that you never even read).

Now, you have to do some cutting. Cut out those things that are going to waste—those things that you wouldn’t miss. You’d be surprised how easy it is to break the habit of spending money on those empty-valued items. Over time, you won’t even remember those things you used to buy because they never meant anything to you in the first place!

So, when it comes to choosing what you are going to cut out of your life, I recommend looking into your values—those “rituals” that you have in your life that you can afford, that bring you joy. And, all those other things you do that offer you no real fulfillment, should be where you cut your expenses. Good luck!