WEBVTT - Budget Better Bonus Series | Step 2: Make Changes Now 0:00:00.040 --> 0:00:04.320 Budget Better Bonus Series Step two Make changes Now. 0:00:09.000 --> 0:00:12.200 Welcome to the Frugal Friends podcast, where you'll learn to 0:00:12.280 --> 0:00:19.360 save money, embrace simplicity, and liver your life. Here your 0:00:19.360 --> 0:00:20.560 hosts Jen and Jill. 0:00:24.800 --> 0:00:27.160 Welcome to the Frugal Friends podcast. My name is Jen, 0:00:27.360 --> 0:00:30.240 my name is Jill, and we are back with Part two, 0:00:30.720 --> 0:00:34.120 which is step two of our Budget Better Bonus series, 0:00:34.200 --> 0:00:38.360 and we are looking at current changes to make once 0:00:38.680 --> 0:00:41.880 you have looked at your past transactions. 0:00:42.800 --> 0:00:46.640 So if you tuned in yesterday, if you're following along 0:00:46.640 --> 0:00:50.240 with us kind of in real time, yesterday we talked 0:00:50.240 --> 0:00:52.680 about a ninety day transaction inventory, being able to look 0:00:52.680 --> 0:00:56.600 at the past. Today we're talking about a thirty day 0:00:56.640 --> 0:00:58.720 no spend challenge, so what things we can do in 0:00:58.760 --> 0:01:01.360 the present, And we're going to talk about making a 0:01:01.400 --> 0:01:04.760 spending plan so future. So we're doing the whole ghost 0:01:04.840 --> 0:01:08.840 of Christmas, past, present and future for you in between 0:01:08.880 --> 0:01:09.560 the holidays. 0:01:09.600 --> 0:01:10.360 And I was just fun. 0:01:10.600 --> 0:01:14.679 I wish I had watched the Christmas Story. Yeah, I 0:01:14.720 --> 0:01:18.640 wish i'd watched to prepare, but I didn't. I'm so sorry. 0:01:18.319 --> 0:01:20.160 You've never watched any of the rest. 0:01:20.319 --> 0:01:22.560 Have well, the Muppets version is the best, but are 0:01:22.680 --> 0:01:26.880 just like not up on it right now. Okay, so 0:01:26.959 --> 0:01:30.760 let's talk about changes to make now. The reason we 0:01:30.800 --> 0:01:34.360 start with the past is that we in our heads 0:01:34.440 --> 0:01:37.800 might have an idea of what changes we need to make, 0:01:37.880 --> 0:01:41.360 but more often than not, those ideas are not rooted 0:01:41.360 --> 0:01:46.959 in reality. They're rooted in fear or misconception or somebody 0:01:47.000 --> 0:01:50.520 else's ideology. So we look at our past, and we 0:01:50.560 --> 0:01:54.280 look at real numbers, but we also look at emotional 0:01:54.320 --> 0:02:00.560 weight too. Some sometimes numbers may be minimal, but the 0:02:00.680 --> 0:02:05.760 mental load of that action is really great. So we 0:02:05.800 --> 0:02:10.079 want to balance by making changes, figuring out what changes 0:02:10.120 --> 0:02:15.440 we want to make that benefit us most, both financially 0:02:15.639 --> 0:02:20.000 and mentally. And so the way that we do that 0:02:20.720 --> 0:02:24.720 in a really efficient way is a thirty day no 0:02:24.880 --> 0:02:29.519 spend challenge. And the reason we do that is because 0:02:30.040 --> 0:02:33.840 when you take thirty days, not a year, not two years, 0:02:34.760 --> 0:02:37.280 we want to learn how to spend, not how not 0:02:37.360 --> 0:02:41.200 to spend right, So we do thirty days to take 0:02:41.320 --> 0:02:47.000 time and pause before we make current spending decisions, and 0:02:47.440 --> 0:02:50.799 equipped with the knowledge we just got from our transaction inventory, 0:02:51.320 --> 0:02:55.400 we can better understand our propensity to make some of 0:02:55.440 --> 0:02:58.400 the decisions we would have made outside of the No 0:02:58.520 --> 0:03:02.359 Spend Challenge, but for thirty days, we want to have 0:03:02.400 --> 0:03:07.360 an automatic no to any discretionary purchase so that we 0:03:07.400 --> 0:03:11.440 are given time to think about the triggers, think about 0:03:11.639 --> 0:03:17.720 the route behind it. So whether it's social activity, all 0:03:17.760 --> 0:03:21.480 those things we talked about yesterday, we have space to 0:03:21.520 --> 0:03:25.760 think about the root cause and we have space to 0:03:25.880 --> 0:03:30.160 get creative with how we meet the desire or the 0:03:30.200 --> 0:03:33.520 need that we're really trying to get at. We say 0:03:33.639 --> 0:03:38.600 that frugality it's not about wanting less, training yourself self 0:03:38.640 --> 0:03:43.600 disciplining yourself to want less, to desire less, but to 0:03:43.760 --> 0:03:47.800 just meet your needs differently in a way that doesn't 0:03:47.840 --> 0:03:50.920 cost you as much money or maybe it's your other resources, 0:03:50.920 --> 0:03:53.960 maybe doesn't cause you as much time or mental load 0:03:54.480 --> 0:03:57.920 or physical space. That's what we want to do, and 0:03:57.960 --> 0:04:02.480 we don't do that unless we for ourselves to take 0:04:02.600 --> 0:04:06.720 space for creativity. And that's what the No Spend Challenge 0:04:06.760 --> 0:04:10.600 really allows us to do. It gives us a reprieve 0:04:10.760 --> 0:04:14.840 from the decision fatigue that comes with making spending decisions 0:04:15.440 --> 0:04:21.840 and gives space to get creative, innovate, play around, and 0:04:21.920 --> 0:04:26.400 then go back and learn from those thirty days. 0:04:26.800 --> 0:04:30.440 This might sound a little bit radical or extreme, and 0:04:30.480 --> 0:04:34.839 you know us, we don't love extremes. We love the 0:04:34.960 --> 0:04:39.039 radical middle. But the radical middle is only found by 0:04:39.200 --> 0:04:45.520 understanding the extremes and picking and choosing from those extremes 0:04:45.560 --> 0:04:48.599 what is actually beneficial. There's a reason that we're drawn 0:04:49.000 --> 0:04:53.640 to either end of the spending spectrum, and so to understand, well, 0:04:53.680 --> 0:04:56.320 what is good about this end of the spectrum and 0:04:56.360 --> 0:04:59.159 what can I take with me that will lead to 0:04:59.200 --> 0:05:03.680 some degrees of longevity in spending better. So part of 0:05:03.720 --> 0:05:08.000 our understanding for this no spend challenge and the benefit 0:05:08.120 --> 0:05:11.719 of it comes from the research of doctor Ann Lemke 0:05:12.080 --> 0:05:15.240 in her book Dopamine Nation, which we do reference in 0:05:15.320 --> 0:05:18.360 our book by What You Love without Going Broke, And 0:05:18.760 --> 0:05:23.320 she does this work with people around addiction, all types 0:05:23.360 --> 0:05:29.039 of addiction, and has them do essentially a dopamine fast, 0:05:29.200 --> 0:05:34.680 so like removing themselves from engaging in whatever that activity is, 0:05:34.760 --> 0:05:39.000 whether it be shopping is one example, but kind of 0:05:39.080 --> 0:05:43.200 all ends of the spectrum with addiction, and recognizes that 0:05:43.480 --> 0:05:49.200 in stopping for thirty days that there's actually some really 0:05:49.240 --> 0:05:54.840 great even physical neurological benefits where there is rewiring of 0:05:54.880 --> 0:06:00.359 the neural pathways and a decreasing need for the levels 0:06:00.360 --> 0:06:03.880 of dopamine that the body and the brain were accustomed to. Now, 0:06:03.920 --> 0:06:07.360 dopamine's not wrong, there's nothing like. It's a beautiful thing 0:06:07.440 --> 0:06:11.159 that our body does and releases, and it is good 0:06:11.160 --> 0:06:13.760 to engage in some of these activities that give us 0:06:13.839 --> 0:06:18.400 that happy hormone. But sometimes especially for us when it 0:06:18.440 --> 0:06:22.680 comes to money and spending money, we have this release 0:06:22.960 --> 0:06:27.240 in our brains when we make an impulse purchase, usually 0:06:27.360 --> 0:06:30.440 just before we make the purchase, and so this is 0:06:30.720 --> 0:06:32.800 a thirty day no spend challenge is a way to 0:06:32.880 --> 0:06:37.479 kind of also interrupt not just those habits, but our 0:06:37.560 --> 0:06:41.000 engagement with the dopamine releases within our bodies and the 0:06:41.000 --> 0:06:44.520 ways that that's connected with some of our spending decisions 0:06:44.560 --> 0:06:49.359 and behaviors. Not to always and forever continue to deprive ourselves. 0:06:49.920 --> 0:06:55.400 Even the research in dopamination points to reincorporating some of 0:06:55.480 --> 0:07:00.880 these actions back into place, but in healthier ways with 0:07:01.240 --> 0:07:04.719 the addition of other coping mechanisms. So we visit this 0:07:04.800 --> 0:07:06.719 extreme of a no spend challenge to be able to 0:07:06.760 --> 0:07:11.280 understand ourselves better, reset those dopamine receptors, create new and 0:07:11.360 --> 0:07:16.360 different neural pathways, and understand what else can we be 0:07:16.440 --> 0:07:21.440 engaging in going forward, What creative ways of solving our problems, 0:07:21.840 --> 0:07:24.920 meeting our needs, getting out our values can we be 0:07:25.040 --> 0:07:29.320 doing and maybe even more accurately to the need. There 0:07:29.320 --> 0:07:32.400 are times that we might just spend because it's all 0:07:32.440 --> 0:07:34.200 we know to do, it's what we've been trained and 0:07:34.240 --> 0:07:37.559 socialized to do. But when we have an opportunity to 0:07:37.640 --> 0:07:40.720 opt out, like I view a no spend challenge as 0:07:40.800 --> 0:07:44.480 kind of opting out of consumerism, opting out of consumption, 0:07:44.920 --> 0:07:48.240 not for forever, but to be able to learn ourselves, 0:07:48.680 --> 0:07:52.040 learn the world around us, learn what we actually enjoy 0:07:52.120 --> 0:07:55.440 spending money on. That's what this provides, an opportunity to do, 0:07:55.480 --> 0:07:59.040 an opportunity for learning that. Then we can more easily 0:07:59.080 --> 0:08:00.720 find our radicals from there. 0:08:01.720 --> 0:08:05.000 All right, so let's talk about what to expect on 0:08:05.040 --> 0:08:09.480 a no spend challenge. I'll say, first off, when you 0:08:09.520 --> 0:08:14.280 are going on a path and you decide to change directions, 0:08:14.560 --> 0:08:17.440 whether like whether you're walking or you're in a car, 0:08:18.400 --> 0:08:24.800 you will experience friction as you stop and physically change 0:08:24.960 --> 0:08:29.520 your direction. You the further you are changing your direction, 0:08:30.040 --> 0:08:34.040 the more friction you experience. And that's so that you 0:08:34.080 --> 0:08:39.400 don't fly off the path. Friction is healthy, and friction 0:08:39.559 --> 0:08:43.720 is what you will be experiencing during a no spend challenge. 0:08:43.760 --> 0:08:47.280 The entire month is a challenge. That's what we call 0:08:47.320 --> 0:08:49.280 it a challenge. If it's not challenging for you, you're not 0:08:49.480 --> 0:08:53.840 learning anything. So mistakes will be made, things will be 0:08:53.880 --> 0:08:57.679 done out of habit that you didn't want to do. 0:08:58.720 --> 0:09:02.680 These are not failures. This does not mean you stop 0:09:03.040 --> 0:09:06.120 and then just try again next month. These are part 0:09:06.200 --> 0:09:10.040 of the process, part of the challenge, part of the learning. 0:09:10.520 --> 0:09:15.200 So embrace the friction, lean into it, and view it 0:09:15.280 --> 0:09:22.320 as healthy. View these difficult difficulties as healthy learning experiences. 0:09:22.400 --> 0:09:27.240 So right off the bat, know that. And in doctor 0:09:27.559 --> 0:09:32.599 Lemke's studies, she found her patients the first two weeks 0:09:32.640 --> 0:09:37.600 of their fasting, they were miserable. The brain's reward pleasure 0:09:37.760 --> 0:09:42.679 pathways were starting to reprogram, but weren't there yet. So 0:09:43.320 --> 0:09:47.400 in her patients sustaining specifically from like physical things like 0:09:47.520 --> 0:09:52.200 cannabis or sugar, their physical withdraw symptoms peaked in the 0:09:52.320 --> 0:09:56.040 second week, So you could be experiencing some of that too, 0:09:56.640 --> 0:10:01.320 if a lot of your overspending is on food related things. 0:10:01.800 --> 0:10:07.280 But after four weeks, the pathways she found were almost 0:10:07.320 --> 0:10:13.680 totally rewired, and most patients reported positive experiences. So even 0:10:13.880 --> 0:10:20.360 during those tough times, know that research shows that good 0:10:20.480 --> 0:10:25.480 experiences are on the way even when we're looking. The 0:10:25.520 --> 0:10:29.280 brain can do fantastic things in four weeks, even like 0:10:29.679 --> 0:10:32.960 the brain's gray matter when it shrinks from alcohol abuse, 0:10:33.400 --> 0:10:38.079 can begin reversing within just two weeks of abstinence. And 0:10:38.320 --> 0:10:41.160 we say in the book seventy seven percent of athletes 0:10:41.200 --> 0:10:46.360 with mild traumatic brain injuries recover within four weeks. So 0:10:46.480 --> 0:10:52.640 there is a lot happening in this challenge, so be 0:10:52.840 --> 0:10:56.959 prepared for it to be difficult, but keep going. 0:10:57.600 --> 0:11:00.840 So in addition to not doing it perfectly and absolutely 0:11:00.880 --> 0:11:05.360 coming upon barriers, you're also you also can expect that 0:11:05.960 --> 0:11:09.000 you're going to be able to exercise some of your creativity. 0:11:09.080 --> 0:11:12.520 So with a no spend challenge, you are deciding what 0:11:12.600 --> 0:11:15.520 you are and aren't spending on. You've made the list 0:11:15.760 --> 0:11:19.640 of what we're saying no to. We definitely recommend as 0:11:19.760 --> 0:11:25.000 many discretionary categories as possible. Right obviously we're still saying 0:11:25.080 --> 0:11:27.640 yes to keeping a roof over our heads and being 0:11:27.640 --> 0:11:30.560 able to buy gas to get to work, but we 0:11:30.640 --> 0:11:33.400 get to decide all these other categories. Whether it's we're 0:11:33.440 --> 0:11:37.560 not spending on food out, or we're also pairing it 0:11:37.600 --> 0:11:40.120 with a pantry challenge and we're only eating the things 0:11:40.160 --> 0:11:43.800 that we already have in our cupboards and in our freezers, 0:11:45.280 --> 0:11:47.720 or we're not spending on activities out, you name it, 0:11:47.800 --> 0:11:49.600 or maybe all of it is going to happen for 0:11:49.679 --> 0:11:51.920 you if you really want to just like throw it 0:11:51.960 --> 0:11:56.240 all at the wall and learn about yourself. It will 0:11:56.320 --> 0:12:00.199 also force you to engage in some unique problem solving 0:12:00.840 --> 0:12:03.960 and creativity. And we recommend that you don't say no 0:12:04.080 --> 0:12:07.880 to fun. This is just saying no to a lot 0:12:07.920 --> 0:12:11.040 of categories of spending for a short period of time. 0:12:11.360 --> 0:12:14.120 But what we can do is look at where are 0:12:14.120 --> 0:12:17.880 there free activities happening? In What ways can I be 0:12:18.000 --> 0:12:21.440 the initiator of some of these fun events? What are 0:12:21.480 --> 0:12:25.319 the things that I'm finding are really difficult pain points 0:12:25.360 --> 0:12:27.360 for me? Like I was about to pull out my 0:12:27.400 --> 0:12:29.640 credit card and I didn't like what I felt It 0:12:29.640 --> 0:12:33.120 came across some of that friction. What can I do instead? 0:12:33.200 --> 0:12:35.520 Because it does need to be replaced with something. This 0:12:35.600 --> 0:12:40.520 is not just about deprivation, it's about recreating some patterns 0:12:40.559 --> 0:12:44.960 of behavior finding alternatives, learning more about what we like, 0:12:45.080 --> 0:12:47.680 what lights us up. So even in some of the 0:12:47.800 --> 0:12:51.280 planning process, I would recommend having a list of maybe 0:12:51.320 --> 0:12:54.600 things you want to try, hobbies, you want to re 0:12:54.760 --> 0:12:58.240 engage in, things that you think you might want to 0:12:58.280 --> 0:13:01.240 do when you come upon some of this friction and 0:13:02.120 --> 0:13:06.120 maybe be prepared expect to be surprised by yourself. That 0:13:06.240 --> 0:13:09.199 you may find that there are things that are easier 0:13:09.240 --> 0:13:11.240 in this process than when you thought what you thought, 0:13:11.760 --> 0:13:14.800 and possibly parts that are more difficult in areas that 0:13:14.840 --> 0:13:17.560 you didn't think. Either way, you're going to learn about yourself. 0:13:17.679 --> 0:13:20.679 So that's a huge expectation that you can have. 0:13:21.360 --> 0:13:24.080 All right, So how do we prepare for a no 0:13:24.240 --> 0:13:28.559 spend challenge? There's three steps to a no spend challenge, preparing, abstaining, 0:13:28.600 --> 0:13:31.400 and learning. So the first is to prepare, and that 0:13:31.520 --> 0:13:35.520 ninety day transaction inventory is part of that. You set 0:13:35.559 --> 0:13:37.760 yourself up for failure if you don't know what to 0:13:37.880 --> 0:13:42.160 expect to be difficult when you start this no spend challenge. 0:13:42.200 --> 0:13:45.800 But after your ninety day transaction inventory, you have a 0:13:45.840 --> 0:13:48.360 good idea of what's going to be difficult in the 0:13:48.440 --> 0:13:51.839 upcoming month, and you can prepare for that. So whether 0:13:51.920 --> 0:13:55.559 that's needing to change a route to where you how 0:13:55.600 --> 0:13:59.839 you get somewhere to avoid passing a place that you 0:14:00.960 --> 0:14:05.400 spend at habitually, or it's making your coffee at home 0:14:05.440 --> 0:14:07.760 before you leave to go somewhere where you're you know, 0:14:07.880 --> 0:14:12.920 buying coffee habitually, or you have a habit of doing 0:14:12.960 --> 0:14:15.680 an activity where you always end up spending money, like 0:14:15.720 --> 0:14:20.120 maybe going to Target when it's hot outside, like figuring 0:14:20.160 --> 0:14:23.200 out where else I can go that can also get 0:14:23.200 --> 0:14:26.240 me out of the heat. So this is how we prepare. First, 0:14:26.280 --> 0:14:29.120 we're making that list of activities, and that's one of 0:14:29.160 --> 0:14:32.960 the resources when you order when you get buy what 0:14:33.000 --> 0:14:35.760 you love without going broke. Our resource page also has 0:14:35.880 --> 0:14:38.320 a list of like fifty two activities that you can 0:14:38.360 --> 0:14:41.280 do instead of spending money to help you with that. 0:14:41.760 --> 0:14:44.760 But then also there are things obviously that you're going 0:14:44.800 --> 0:14:47.960 to spend on that you're not impulse spending that may 0:14:48.080 --> 0:14:51.960 but may lead to impulse spending, like gas. Nobody's impulse 0:14:51.960 --> 0:14:54.800 spending on gas, But sometimes being at the gas station 0:14:55.480 --> 0:14:59.480 leads us to going inside to get something. So can 0:14:59.520 --> 0:15:01.920 I go to it different gas station or can I 0:15:02.160 --> 0:15:05.600 just be prepared with that information. Grocery shopping, I always 0:15:05.600 --> 0:15:08.040 grocery shop on a no spend challenge. Some people don't. 0:15:08.440 --> 0:15:10.800 But if there are ways that I can stay out 0:15:10.800 --> 0:15:13.840 of the grocery store, do I just need to check 0:15:13.920 --> 0:15:16.320 to see if there's anything I need to stock up 0:15:16.360 --> 0:15:19.960 on before the month starts. To make it less likely 0:15:20.160 --> 0:15:23.240 I have an unplanned trip to the grocery store. 0:15:23.360 --> 0:15:27.520 I make so much less impulse food grocery decisions when 0:15:27.840 --> 0:15:33.120 I order my groceries online, Like, you're not walking the aisle. 0:15:33.240 --> 0:15:35.400 So that's even a strategy, even if it's not something 0:15:35.440 --> 0:15:38.680 you do regularly, it's a strategy you could try during 0:15:38.720 --> 0:15:39.280 this time. 0:15:39.520 --> 0:15:42.840 Yeah, okay, and then next we abstain, So we practice, 0:15:43.240 --> 0:15:46.920 and we are fasting from the dopamine inducing habit, not 0:15:47.000 --> 0:15:50.520 from dopamine itself. So that's what we're doing when we 0:15:50.600 --> 0:15:55.520 abstain for one month. And we would recommend also adding 0:15:55.560 --> 0:15:59.960 in maybe some gratitude journaling or just journaling in general. 0:16:00.160 --> 0:16:02.800 We don't want you to add more to your plate. 0:16:02.840 --> 0:16:07.800 We think a subtractive method is most helpful. That's literally 0:16:07.840 --> 0:16:11.400 what a no spend challenge is. It's a subtractive solution 0:16:11.560 --> 0:16:17.160 to our problems versus an additive, but gratitude journaling can 0:16:17.440 --> 0:16:20.720 help with some of this internal motivation to want to 0:16:20.840 --> 0:16:24.120 keep going when we can sit and be thankful for 0:16:24.240 --> 0:16:29.160 what's in the present despite not having all the additives 0:16:29.160 --> 0:16:35.200 that we would have normally. And then last is reflecting 0:16:35.440 --> 0:16:38.720 or learning. So once we get done with the thirty days, 0:16:39.200 --> 0:16:43.760 we are then looking back again before we go forward, 0:16:44.320 --> 0:16:48.080 and we are thinking about, Okay, what things do I 0:16:48.120 --> 0:16:51.520 want to take with me from this month and what 0:16:51.600 --> 0:16:54.800 things do I want to leave behind? And this is 0:16:54.880 --> 0:17:00.000 where we're going to start making some long term sustainable 0:17:00.080 --> 0:17:03.320 bolt changes and really finding our radical middle. 0:17:04.760 --> 0:17:07.080 You know what is the radical middle for me? And 0:17:07.119 --> 0:17:10.560 I feel like last long term sustainability. 0:17:10.720 --> 0:17:13.639 The Lightening Round. 0:17:14.240 --> 0:17:16.719 I know we're throwing you for a loop here with 0:17:16.760 --> 0:17:20.520 this one. Uh, with these little shorter bonus episodes, we 0:17:20.520 --> 0:17:21.800 don't have a bill of the Week, but we do 0:17:21.880 --> 0:17:25.240 have a Lightning Round because we can't forget our pups. 0:17:25.920 --> 0:17:28.960 So for today's Lightning Round, we are asking each other 0:17:29.560 --> 0:17:33.439 what was the most difficult part of your last no 0:17:33.600 --> 0:17:35.600 spend challenge? 0:17:35.880 --> 0:17:40.960 So for me, I had I was posting about it 0:17:41.040 --> 0:17:44.000 last year. I did no spend January. I posted every 0:17:44.080 --> 0:17:47.720 day a little tip or a little you know, whatever 0:17:47.760 --> 0:17:53.080 I was feeling or learning, and that was for our listeners, 0:17:53.280 --> 0:17:56.399 like we were all doing it together and I was 0:17:56.400 --> 0:17:59.119 doing it for them. But I found that people in 0:17:59.160 --> 0:18:03.560 my life were seeing them, and when I wanted to 0:18:03.600 --> 0:18:08.919 spend money and not tell anyone, they wouldn't let me 0:18:09.000 --> 0:18:12.040 because they were with me and seeing me with the 0:18:12.080 --> 0:18:14.040 money and they knew I was on the No Spend Challenge. 0:18:14.080 --> 0:18:19.119 So I would highly recommend talking about it on social 0:18:19.200 --> 0:18:21.919 media because it's going to help. But a lot of 0:18:21.960 --> 0:18:26.320 our impromptu spending comes from people outside of us, and 0:18:26.359 --> 0:18:28.520 if they don't know you're doing the No Spend Challenge, 0:18:28.560 --> 0:18:31.400 they don't know to help you. They don't know they 0:18:31.480 --> 0:18:37.440 can help you or hurt you. And so the most 0:18:37.440 --> 0:18:42.960 difficult part was not being able to not follow through 0:18:43.200 --> 0:18:48.520 because I had accountability. So creating accountability on social media 0:18:48.720 --> 0:18:50.040 is highly valuable. 0:18:50.240 --> 0:18:54.040 Yeah, for me. The most difficult part is when there's 0:18:54.119 --> 0:18:57.680 invitations to things that are going to cost money. And so, yeah, 0:18:57.720 --> 0:19:01.160 sometimes you can offer an alternative to people, well, I'm 0:19:01.200 --> 0:19:04.560 doing this challenge instead of that, would you want to 0:19:04.760 --> 0:19:06.840 go to this free event with me? Come over? But 0:19:06.960 --> 0:19:10.720 sometimes there were just events that they're going to this concert. 0:19:10.840 --> 0:19:13.520 They just invited me to go with them, and I'm 0:19:13.600 --> 0:19:18.000 opting out of that just for this very very short season. 0:19:18.040 --> 0:19:20.679 But that's one of the more difficult parts of it 0:19:20.720 --> 0:19:23.960 for me, is there is truly something going on that 0:19:24.040 --> 0:19:27.240 I could participate in, but I'm choosing not to kind 0:19:27.280 --> 0:19:30.240 of for the sake of this other learning that I'm 0:19:30.240 --> 0:19:30.919 engaging in. 0:19:31.280 --> 0:19:33.760 We can rationalize that things that come up during the 0:19:33.800 --> 0:19:36.639 no spend challenge are you know, once in a lifetime 0:19:36.760 --> 0:19:40.720 or never happen, YadA YadA. And this happens with events 0:19:41.040 --> 0:19:44.400 and with sales, like if there's a sale on something, 0:19:45.119 --> 0:19:47.280 people will want to take advantage of it because they 0:19:47.280 --> 0:19:48.960 don't know when it will happen again. And this is 0:19:49.000 --> 0:19:52.479 another way that the transaction inventory can help you because 0:19:52.520 --> 0:19:55.879 then you can go back and look, Okay, has this 0:19:55.960 --> 0:20:00.280 person invited me to something that I've spent money on? Yes, 0:20:00.480 --> 0:20:03.919 several times, so it is totally reasonable for me to 0:20:04.720 --> 0:20:08.439 ask them to do something that doesn't spend doesn't cost money, 0:20:08.520 --> 0:20:12.040 or have I done this in the last three months? Yes, Okay, 0:20:12.520 --> 0:20:15.159 it will come up again. Maybe it doesn't come up 0:20:15.200 --> 0:20:17.760 every month, but do I need to do it every month? 0:20:17.960 --> 0:20:21.520 Is maybe twice a year, Okay, So you can start 0:20:21.520 --> 0:20:25.800 to ask yourself these questions because you're looking at real data, 0:20:25.880 --> 0:20:28.280 and especially when you're looking back at your shopping and 0:20:28.320 --> 0:20:30.959 your food purchases and you're like, Okay, how many times 0:20:30.960 --> 0:20:34.639 have I bought something just because it was on sale? So, yeah, 0:20:34.760 --> 0:20:36.920 that's sale's going to come up again. It's not a 0:20:36.960 --> 0:20:39.760 once in a lifetime. You can skip it while you're 0:20:39.800 --> 0:20:42.560 on the no spend challenge nine times out of ten, 0:20:43.200 --> 0:20:46.400 but you can also look back and if there truly 0:20:46.560 --> 0:20:49.000 is something that's once in a lifetime that you've been 0:20:49.040 --> 0:20:53.320 waiting for, or a sale that normally sales can be 0:20:53.400 --> 0:20:57.520 planned for. So if you know, like, oh, the annual 0:20:57.600 --> 0:20:59.400 sale is coming up this month, but I also want 0:20:59.400 --> 0:21:01.320 to do a no spen challenge, I'm just going to 0:21:01.400 --> 0:21:06.000 take this out of it and spend on this this 0:21:06.040 --> 0:21:10.240 one time because I know I'm planning for this particular sale. 0:21:10.520 --> 0:21:13.240 But I would say nine point nine times out of 0:21:13.280 --> 0:21:16.400 ten that doesn't happen. Yeah, it's the other way around. 0:21:16.880 --> 0:21:19.720 Now, we know we're giving you a lot of action 0:21:19.920 --> 0:21:23.160 steps in this budget Better Bonus series, but don't feel 0:21:23.160 --> 0:21:25.399 like you have to implement on them all at once. 0:21:25.560 --> 0:21:29.119 These are episodes that you can come back to to 0:21:29.280 --> 0:21:31.800 help guide you in this process. Again, the book is 0:21:31.840 --> 0:21:34.199 a really good guide for it. The resources page that 0:21:34.240 --> 0:21:36.560 comes along with the book is a really good guide. 0:21:36.920 --> 0:21:39.000 But we are still going to recommend that you begin 0:21:39.040 --> 0:21:42.600 with that ninety day transaction inventory and then plan a 0:21:42.680 --> 0:21:45.199 point in the future where you're going to do a 0:21:45.240 --> 0:21:47.200 no spend challenge. We are actually going to be talking 0:21:47.280 --> 0:21:51.440 about no spend challenges in the February Friend letter, so 0:21:51.520 --> 0:21:53.280 that could be a really good time to plan. If 0:21:53.280 --> 0:21:55.640 you're not getting the friend that are already Frugal friendspodcast 0:21:55.680 --> 0:21:59.200 dot com join us in that we'll be posting more 0:21:59.320 --> 0:22:03.880 about and of walking you through this no spend challenge. 0:22:04.000 --> 0:22:08.000 You can even go back into our Instagram archives a 0:22:08.000 --> 0:22:10.439 bit to see Jen's journey last year with a no 0:22:10.520 --> 0:22:13.159 spend challenge. So you decide when you want to do it, 0:22:13.200 --> 0:22:15.640 but know that it doesn't have to happen all at once. 0:22:15.680 --> 0:22:18.040 We're just giving you the tools and resources and we 0:22:18.080 --> 0:22:21.440 will be back again with our third and final installment 0:22:21.640 --> 0:22:24.359 of our Budget Better Bonus series, which will be step 0:22:24.400 --> 0:22:27.680 three how to plan for the future making a better 0:22:27.720 --> 0:22:29.320 spending plan. See you then 0:22:31.440 --> 0:22:33.879 Google Friends is produced by Eric Siriani.