This obviously takes the previous exercise up a notch. Again, excluding your major expenses (like rent and utilities and such), take out a sum of money at the beginning of the week and use that cash whenever you need to pay for something. For example, if I take out $100 on a Sunday, then my goal is to use that amount of money for every single purchase that’s not already planned or absolutely necessary. My Monday morning pick-me-up of a cold brew coffee and a cranberry scone? $7. Flowers for a friend as a thank-you present for helping me out last month with a photo shoot? $10. Lunch with coworkers? $12. Gas? $50. Aaaaand there goes the $100, just like that.
You might be a little shocked at how quickly your cash can disappear within a given week—but experts say people are more likely to overspend, or spend more freely, using a credit card versus cash, so maybe it’s not that surprising at all. The benefit of using only cash in a week is that you start to limit your discretionary spending or at least notice how your habits add up, cost-wise, in order to potentially make different decisions. My husband and I are comfortable in a financial sense, but I certainly don’t need or want to blow $100 in a week like it’s NBD. Which means I can drink coffee at home before work, skip the scone, and bring my lunch in order to prioritize spending that is more important to me.
TRY THIS
Based on your budget, think through where you can easily switch to cash only. For example, you probably can’t pay your rent with cash, but things like clothing, groceries, snacks, and meals out are fair game. Set aside a certain amount of cash for these areas, and then for the next week, avoid using a debit or credit card for any related purchases.