A Detox for Your Bank Account

What is a financial detox? Do you need one, maybe?

Think of it the same as a detox with our nutrition consumption (or lack thereof). When we get off track and are feeling like we have lost our sense of control...it's time to check back in with ourselves and 'detox' from what isn't positively benefitting us.

When shit gets out of hand in my bank account, I usually have to take a deep breath, face reality and start paying more attention to my spending rather than saving my credit card to my phone’s auto-fill and hitting checkout.

If you’re in the same boat and feel that you need to get a better handle on your wallet, take a peek at some strategies and sometimes harsh realities that I use:

Journal: I use my planner to physically write down my daily spending. Shh, I know there are likely great apps for that, but I prefer my pen and paper. At the end of each day I log how much I spent... right down to the penny. I also record my income in the same format, as I have a fairly unpredictable income. It helps me to comprehend what is coming in that week in addition to what is rapidly shooting out of my bank account. This also helps prevent me from getting anxious when I have a weekend of flashing my credit card at the left, right and centre in a matter of 25 minutes and I have no idea what I just spent.

Spending freeze: If I need to get in check with my spending again, I usually just take a  week or even a month (but probably not) where I discipline myself to only buy necessities and pay my bills. Definitely plan ahead for these breaks by checking your calendar. You don’t want to be the one missing out on a girls night out!

Time of year:  My spending habits change through the seasons and I find it more challenging to save at certain times of the year. Summer is a big spending time of year for me...limes get pretty expensive for my Coronas.  And I think we can all agree that DECEMBER trumps all for most of us. I make sure I save in advance for this time of year, and try to stock up on my more expensive items outside of these time frames (ie. winter tires, overpriced skin care products, cases of wine, gifts etc. am I missing anything?).

Living/House Account: This is by far my easiest way to get a grip on my spending. I pay my bills first. I have a set amount  that is dedicated to my living expenses each month (mortgage, utilities, car insurance, gas, groceries etc). I try to have this amount set aside in my ‘house account’ one month in advance, or worst case have it in the account before the month even begins. This way, I know exactly what I am working with when it comes to what is left over for saving and spending.

I use RBC for all of my banking, which allows me to open multiple 'e-savings' accounts. These are free of charge and can transfer money to and from your RBC bank accounts as you please. But you get charged pretty high premiums if you pay a bill directly from one of these accounts. I just transfer it to my chequing account and then have the bill paid from there.

In my most recent detox, here are some items I was able to cutback on: 

• Alcohol (consumption and the purchase of)

• Skin care- I decided to try a new skin care company that I have had my eye on. It is a FRACTION of what I am currently spending on my skin care routine.

• Sell some items from my closet that are in great shape but no longer serve a purpose to me or bring me happiness.

• Decreased my spending at Lululemon (I need more than a detox...maybe rehab)

• Try to buy a few easy quick meals that we can just pull out of the freezer. They aren’t very healthy but this helps us decrease our sudden urges to need to order pizza or run and grab Wendy’s.

• Sign off from my ‘Treat Yo self’ phase. You know when you just get on a run? Ah why not buy this, I earned it. And maybe this too. And that. And this and this and this (infinity).

• Unsubscribe from the tempting emails. Such evil, yet clever advertising temptations from retailers. Seriously, the less temptation the better.

• Set a financial goal. Or start saving for a ‘big’ purchase. Write it down if you need to. This helps me keep my eye on the prize and SAVE. It definitely helps me think twice when I am about to make a random purchase.

My biggest discipline definitely comes when I set an actual number on a saving goal. I set a goal to reach and I need to discipline my spend UNTIL I have reached that goal. You would be amazed at what you can do with a little motivation. I think Kate should follow this tip rather than continue to rack up her Visa bill. She is a little too good at ‘shopping local’.

I will leave you with this. Acknowledge your weaknesses. In other words, be honest with yourself about where most of your money is going: cases of beer? Nights out? Uber eats? Weekly mani/pedi? A gym membership you haven’t used in a few months?

What can you eliminate?

Signing off for now. Amy out.