Peace out old ways + closed mindsets.
Maybe this may shock you, maybe not but Matt and I, have always been hesitant + scared to get on a budget. We work hard, make a descent income together and we thought we would feel restrained/restricted. But the truth is.. we make to much money to not be on a budget. Matt and I, were foolishly throwing thousands of dollars around. Ultimately, slowly getting us back into a little debt and feeling like we were being sucked back into the rat race of life.
So, what the heck did we do about it? First we had a uncomfy discussion and sat down to look over ALL of our expenses, this is something we never did. We simply just paid our bills and moved on (insert face slap emoji). Then we did these steps.
- Stop using credit cards
- Used cash for everything
- Find out where your money is going
- Save at lest a 1,000 before anything
- Make changes in your lifestyle
- Practice goal setting
After having a frustrating conversation with a friend of mine, about how we needed to do something about our lifestyle or budget or money or honestly I did not have a freaking clue....all i knew, is we just needed a change. Our friend, told me about this Blogger/Youtuber Jordan Page and how she applied her budget methods with Dave Ramsey's. I personally didn't care for Dave's envelope thing (thats just to much for this lazy gal.). But i've heard some of Dave's tips and when I got home that night I looked up Jordan Page. (Don't worry ill link some great videos below of hers!)
Jodan Page's method is super simple.
70% - 20% - 10%
70% of your income is what you should be living off of.
20% Put into your savings.
10% Investments + give back. Such as IRA’s, stocks, giving to your church or favorite charity.
Matt and I sat down together and cut what we could and eliminated whatever we needed to get into living within 70% of our take home income. Our savings was already over a thousand so we started using the 30 precent left over towards our debt. Our goal is to not owe anyone anything. To pay cash for everything and make smarter choices financially for our family.
We are used to living off of credit cards. Shitty + embarrassing but never the less true. We would use them as a crutch. We used them for instant gratification. We used them for reward points.. and that is a tricky blurry grey line. We’ve been debt free once but didn’t fix our lifestyle habits. Matt and I have never lived on much of a budget. We did not know where our money was going and we definitely didn’t realize how much we were spending. Our bills were always paid, and on time so we just kept swiping away.
After sitting down and looking at all our bills and seeing where our money was actually going.. we realized we were spending SO MUCH money on FOOD. Food was our problem area. We were spending $1,600 on average a month on groceries, eating out and on Starbucks runs. WHAT? To me thats insane! Jordan Page recommends a family of four should spend $400 a month on groceries. $100 a week. We instantly saved $1,200 a month. That has been our biggest change and it has made the world of difference.
If you’re anything like me, you’re thinking.. UM NO WAY JOSE’. No way can we live off a $100 a week. I’m here to tell you.. you definitely can! We started using what we already had in our pantry. Which by the way was always slapped full. We started using what we’ve been ignoring in our fridge and freezer. Matt and I started to think in advance and plan our meals.
I switched from Publix to Aldi and shocker even the Dollar store. Did you know the Dollar store has so many name brands in food? I was completely mind blown. We get groceries every Friday and just plan for the week. I don't over think it or over buy. After a few weeks it became so much easier. I also recommend using Instacart. Its saves your recent purchases, which makes it super easy. Ordering groceries online, keeps you on track, you are able to see how much money you are spending before you hit order and the best part.. to shop with no temptations!
You know.. its funny.. Matt and I were just having a conversation the other day. I said to him. “Its weird, I don’t feel like we’re going without, do you?” And he thought for a second and relied. “Nope!”
Having control of where our money is going, being more mindful and making smarter choices has been an eye opening experience. I believe we've both been changed by this budget. We can use our money in smarter ways. Having it work for us rather then against us.
I'm linking three great videos from Jordan Page below! I hope you take the time to check them out. Creating this lifestyle change has opened up our mind's to so many other possibilities. Matt and I are kind of obsessed to see how much we can cut and how much we can save. We've learned having less means actually having more.
xo Kristin
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