Shop free day 15 and 16. Have $30 left to get through the next 5 days. I have my coupon shopping trip to Albertson's all planned out and I should only spend around $10 OOP (out of pocket).
Last week, I was telling a friend about this challenge and she remarked how difficult it would be. She commented that people "need" to be able to indulge every once in a while on "wants". Initially, I agreed. But after much thought I have changed my mind. Maybe it's the vocabulary I'm hung up on. Afterall, it's false to say people"NEED" to indulge in anything. A more true statement would be, "people want to indulge". Correctly using the word "want" empowers individuals to say NO! I often hear people uttering the following phrases, myself included; "I need a vacation, I need a new pair of shoes, I need a haircut, I need a soda, etc. Really???? Do I really need any of those things? No I do NOT. But when I utter that word,"need", I find it robs me of the power to fight against my desires (wants). Certainly I can continue on in life without a vacation, new shoes, a haircut or a soda. A more accurate statement would be "I want.....(fill in the blank)". American society tries to convince us the opposite is true. We are accosted with various forms of marketing techniques whose sole purpose is to convince us we "need" some product to be complete or worse, that we "deserve" something just because we exist. I believe this mentality breeds a sense of entitlement. And then we are left wondering why we are strapped with a nation full of people who have overindulged (obesity, living in homes they can't afford, carrying credit debt, etc). I am grateful for the daily dollar challenge as it has really forced me to see my own "needs" more clearly. I'm still weak. Last week I earned some extra money but spent it because I "needed" a haircut. Then I spent more money because I "needed" to get the bad haircut fixed. Really??? I didn't "need" the first haircut. anyways i'm rambling now.....
5 days left. i have made some mistakes but for the most part i have done so much better these last 21 days than i usually do and my checking account balance is a direct reflection of that. YEAH!!!!
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