There was a lovely and thoughtful discussion over at Northern Cheapskate on the difficulties that people would have had with the No Spend Challenge. I want to stress that it was a completely voluntary experience and that while I committed to a no spend month, I wanted people to modify it to their lifestyle and what they felt comfortable with. If a day was what you were comfortable with, if it is a habit you are trying to break, if a week would shed light on your finances- then those were all great and wonderful ways to implement a challenge in your life.
Most of the comments said how difficult it would be to not go on a spending binge after the challenge was over. What a valid point that is! I have also received some comments and emails since the challenge was over wondering if I was having problems with spending and if it will have saved me money in the long run.
The weird thing for me is that other than my little $15 in yarn excursion for some gifts I am working on, a hair cut (which typically happens each month), a necessary birthday gift for my husband, and my $1 Diet Coke that I buy myself after grocery shopping, I had no inclination to run out and spend loads of money.
Here is the weirder part… My husband’s birthday is this week and I got him a watch for his 30th birthday (a killer deal that I scored off of eBay). I took it to the mall to get it engraved and they told me it would take an hour before it would be ready. I had all of this time to shop and instead, I took my daughter over to the play area, whipped out my knitting project, and just sat and knitted while she played for an hour.
She was so happy running around and talking to the children and counting the blocks on the floor, and reciting her 1-2-3′s at the top of her lungs and I drank all of that in and worked on my project. There was no tug to shop… although I did feel a tiny tug to get a cup of coffee.
What did change is that the challenge did shed light on some problems that I have with my spending.
I now know that there are a couple of days that are harder for me with my work and I am trying to get dinner prepared ahead of time or work on slow cooker meals for those nights to reduce our eating out.
I realized that I need to scale back on outings that cost money and so I am choosing to do one thing a week instead of a few.
I am entertaining more because, frankly, my house looks better when I know I have people coming and it breaks my day up.
And most of all, it has made me conscious of my spending habits and how I can improve them. Even a money-savvy gal like myself, needed a little wake-up call into how we could improve our financial situation.
As for the economy and the negative impact I had on it by challenging others to a No Spend Challenge… well, I won’t apologize for that and I know that might anger some people. I live in a part of the country that is particularly plagued with job loss and I am doing what I can to prepare our finances and make our situation stronger. My husband lost his job for a year and it took us five years to recover from that. I want to build a safety net for my family and not spending helped us gain perspective on how we can make that happen.
I might not have the influence of Oprah, but I still hope I made a difference on how families can improve their finances. And can I say to Oprah, I thought of the No Spend Challenge first? You know, just in case someone needs that information for historical purposes.
Are you reducing your spending to protect your family or are you increasing your spending to protect the economy? Do you believe it is an either/or philosophy?
What I found most interesting about doing the challenge was that I had money left over at the end AND I even had spent money during the month on small splurges plus some pantry stocking. I do admit that I spent a tad more this week, but it was spending I would have done even if I had not done the challenge last week because it was all pantry stocking with good sales. I think that I cannot let the economy keep me from getting the things I need, but I can let it keep from getting everything I want.
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Amy, you did GREAT!!!! I think to change behaviors obviously will take more than a month, but you were challenging yourself to go a month. And, you already changed something by not shopping and just sitting while you waited (that’s willpower, girl).
And, for any naysayers about how we aren’t stimulating the economy, well, I surely hope they are joking! I think fiscal responsibility is much more necessary by us – and our government – in this economy! It will be my preparation in this time that will help me to stimulate the economy little bit by bit if/when things get worst.
Glad to see you have some new yarn too
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I thought your plan was very interesting and seemed like a lot of fun. Reminded me of an article I read in Reader’s Digest back in October about the Hochman Family:
http://www.rd.com/advice-and-know-how/hochman-family-cuts-spending/article99718.html
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I have a question…do you do all the deals that you see so often on blogs for CVS, Walgreens, and the like? How would you rate the benefit of them (getting stuff for free, better than free, or really cheap) over the freedom of not shopping. Most of my shopping these days is for deals like that…and I am trying to decide whether or not to take a break. It would free up time and energy…but it really does help our living expenses. Not sure how to find the balance.
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Kim- I have to say that I stockpile when I need to stockpile, but do not do it weekly. I really don’t enjoy shopping and try to go as infrequently as possible to the grocery store
In all honesty, I think you just need to find a good balance for yourself. If your life is feeling out of balance, maybe you could space out your trips more? Do what feels right for you! Truly!
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Amy, you know that I was involved in the conversation over at Northern Cheapskate. And (in case you missed it), I failed at the No Spend Challenge, but more because I decided the timing was not right. I just felt this overwhelming urge to stock up on essentials while I could and it turned out to be a good thing, since it is very possible that my husband will be losing his job within the month.
We have planned for this, it is why I went back to work after being home for over 10 years, and I do have the opportunity to work full-time, which will save us.
I posted today about how we all are done with spending excessively and a lot of us realize that it is just not worth it to have debt and other things weighing us down. I was posting about my frustration that our leaders are wasting so much time trying to keep the status quo by “getting people spending and borrowing again” rather than realizing that we need a very basic shift in how things are run and work in our economy.
I hit a nerve, because those who are already faced with unemployment did not appreciate the idea of the economy having to change directions, but I think that the longer we ignore that reality, more and more of us will suffer.
Thanks for getting conversations going about this – it is necessary for us to move forward.
Here is the post:
http://www.leavingexcess.com/2009/03/what-gives.html
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Thank you for the insightful thoughts reflecting on the No Spend Challenge. I followed your blogs through it and have thought about doing it for a week (haven’t yet, though). Just following you through the challenge however, has made me more aware of my spending “sucks”. And now that little voice in my head that asks, “Do you REALLY need this?”, is just a little bit louder!
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Don’t apologize for not spending any money! It’s all the crazy spending that has gotten our economy into such a mess. Continue to be an inspiration to live frugally!
I’m grateful that frugality has been a lifestyle choice for our family and not a necessity. I also know how quickly our situation could change. I think it’s smart to prepare for that… and a “no spend challenge” is just one of several ways you can do to prepare for financial challenges.
Thanks for challenging my thinking and for helping me better prepare my family for whatever may be on the horizon.
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I want to commend you on what you did in the No Spend Challenge and thank you for sharing it with others. I think that taking responsibility for your finances, your behaviours, and your impact on the environment should never be apologized for. And I think taking the time to really think all of that over is the greatest gift we can give our world right now. Thank you for inspiring people to do it.
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Amy,
The idea that a no-spend challenge would have negatively effected the economy is ludicrous! Personally, I believe we are all responsible for OUR OWN economy. We do feel for the people who are struggling – WE ARE THEM – as we have been without work for almost a year, and through a ridiculous twist of fate are owners of two houses.
I do not mean to sound flip at all, or out of touch or calloused to others’ situations – like I said, my family is one of those that is suffering – but my primary responsibility is my family and our survival, not stimulation of the economy at large. Even with that said, we find ample opportunities to help others, just as you did.
Thanks so much for being thoughtful, and encouraging.
I will always be a faithful reader!
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I just read that interview with Amy of Tightwad Gazette fame. She confirmed what I already believed, if all of us lived within our means we would be better off as a country. That doesn’t mean never buying anything ever again, but spending responsibly.
I have seen similar challenges for going green… not buying anything new for a year and so on. It seems like a great exercise in finantial discipline and I really want to give it a try.
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I always glean great information from you and your blog. The No Spend Challenge was an interesting series and one that we are contemplating as a family.
We are currently in a good place fiscally because we’ve made tough decisions in the past. Reading that it took five years for you all to recover from a time of unemployment is a reality!
Your sphere of influence may not be as large as others; however, your blog does reach many more homes than you know. I’m always sharing things like “Amy Clark says…..” or “I just read on MomAdvice…..”.
Thanks for being so honest and for “keeping it real”. AND for the great idea about going to the mall to play and not purchase! Way to go sista!
Peace
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Thank you for your challenge, and for blogging about it daily for us to see! I am inspired and I really want to do this. My husband is the kind that thinks a reward needs to come at the end of the “challenge”. He said it’s not really a challenge without a reward. When I told him what you were able to do with the money you saved at the end, he then realized that was the reward! I think we might be moving closer to trying this for at least a couple of weeks. It has inspired me that I don’t need to look at the Garanimals every time I go to Wal Mart now. Our son doesn’t need a new cute shirt every trip to Wal Mart. He doesn’t need a new sippy cup every time either. Those were my two biggest problems. We also don’t need stuff from the Dollar Spot at Target every trip either! So, I have stopped those and we already see improvement there. We also see improvement on our “eating lunch out at work”. I pack lunches, but if we so choose to eat out with friends, we have to use our “allowance” of $20. a week. We get it in cash and once it’s gone, it’s gone. We cannot use the debit card for any out to eat spending. Those two things have helped alot and I hope to make even more progress in this system of saving money, spending less, and using those coupons! Oh, and shopping at Aldi, because I love me some Aldi!!!
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I would absolutely not apologize for your efforts! I think you did great! Having the No Spend Challenge in place gave me a good excuse to say no to my boys, which is always difficult for me.
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Amy, I just want to say THANKS for doing this. I don’t think it was irresponsible at all. To the contrary, I think it was inspirational and encouraging, just like your blog is every day. You’re a real mom with real challenges and you face each of them with such a great attitude. Your outlook has such a positive influence on me, and I appreciate it so much.
I didn’t join you on the no spend challenge because we have a new baby coming in May and I am in preparation mode. However, the challenge has really encouraged me to question *every* spending decision and more often than not I’m saying no. You have done a great job of showing that happiness and fulfillment doesn’t have to cost money….as well as showing us great ways to enjoy what we already have!! THANK YOU!
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I have stopped myself from binge shopping two or three times since you ended your “No Spend Challenge.” Because you did this, it has caused me to stop in my tracks and ask myself what is really important, and what do I REALLY need or not need.
I think consumerism is the god of our century, and I thank you for being one of the ones to stand up and say enough is enough.
Imagine if everyone would just take one month out of their entire lives to do what you did and give all the money they did not spend to someone who really had a great need. Imagine what difference we could make in the world…
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Amy I greatly appreciated your No Spend Challenge mainly because it made me take a moment and think about my spending habits every time I was out shopping. No I did not actually do the challenge, but I did relize my family wastes a ton of money on things that are really not worth it. The biggest thing is going out to eat. With another soccer season starting and two kids with differnt schedules it is hard to resist hitting a fast food place on the way home. But I realize if I plan for those days with simple meals I don’t feel the need to go out to eat. Since finding your blog I have started planning meals, cooking at home and have become aware that I can control my spending. I hope to get my family out of debt soon. I agree with some of the posts here that we need to all become debt free and start living within our means. I think that will help our economy the most in the long run. Thanks again for all your hard work!
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Thanks for sharing what you learned. I didn’t do the challenge but I was more conscious of where and when I spend each month, and it was enlightening.
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When you started "no spend challenge" last month, I was curious. But being new to couponing and having so much fun scoring great deals (& seeing amazed faces of cashiers), I was just not ready.
Being inspired so much by you and those who joined you, however, I decided to do the (modified) challenge (I will buy fresh (& maybe frozen) vegetables only) this month.
I am surprised by the criticism that frugal spending negatively affects economy. I am pretty sure that for our grandparents or great grandparents, no-spend challenge was a norm, rather than a "challenge." They would be scandalized as well if they were criticized for their behaviors 100 years ago. Also, wasn't excessive lending and borrowing one of the major factors we are in this mess?
Thank you again for your insightful and honest post. I am looking forward to having fun doing "no spend challenge" as much as you did.
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I am glad you stood up for yourself Amy! I can’t believe people accused you of any part of the economy-that is crazy!!! My thoughts- this country needed a wake up call on spending! It angers me when society tells us we need to spend more to get out of this economical mess! That makes no sense to me. Please know you have my support and many others for all your work on helping us and sharing ways to live wisely and financially frugal.
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Found the challenge too late – but I’m going to start it on my own. Love It! Thanks for the great idea!
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This is a great idea! We actually did this last October. Was it easy? Not really. It took a lot of effort to not spend. But, it really showed us how much we could save at the end of the month. That feels good! I think we may have to implement this a few times a year!
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