Beans and rice, rice and beans? Nope. Not for my household. It was peanut butter and bread. Why am I discussing this you ask? That line item on my budget every month (hopefully yours too!) GROCERIES. EEK. GROCERIES.
It is a scary one. So, you try to reduce everything to the bare bones, and then the grocery line item comes up. How low can you go? (I can hear the limbo song now). How much can you cut out of the budget and just what can you do without? Well, glad you asked, so we did not drink generic soda, so it was either cut it out or buy generic-but- even the generic soda was a treat! It was not that bad, not as bad as I remembered as a child. In fact, I quit drinking soda very often due to the price and the fact that it really isn't the best thing to drink. Generic groceries have come a long way!! No joke. I remember the all white packaged items with black print on one aisle in the grocery store! Setting a menu for every week is also helpful so that you may only purchase the items needed for those meals. Let me say that this is part of the discipline that does not seem pleasant at the time (Hebrews12:11) and it takes discipline to win the battle with money.
So, at this stage you should be brown bagging it every day at work...no matter what anyone else thinks!! You know you are doing this thing right when your friends laugh at you when you bring out this lunch! Do not give your check back to the facility you work for by going to their cafeteria. The facility will make it very easy for you to SWIPE your badge for your purchases and therefore reduce your paycheck with a quick SWIPE. No thanks I am here for the money. I work for money not bad cafeteria food. Otherwise, I would not be here so much...or ever. While I am on the word SWIPE this thought process should also include your debit card and the word SWIPE.
I also buy the sale items from grocery stores with specials-I am known for only buying the sale items and/or clearance items and leaving. I check out my own stuff because the checkers do not care about your clearance priced items and will charge you full price so quickly you will not catch it. It's my money, it's not potato chips, I will manage it. Then, I go to the larger store and have the FREE pickup already ordered and set up so that I can swing by and let them throw the items I chose online with the APP into my car and then done! Online I know exactly how much I have spent and for what items. Sometimes I take items off if I go over budget.
Another option is your envelope system with cash in it! WHAT'S IN MY WALLET? CASH! I am quoting Dave Ramsey but I love it. I was trained by his team as a Master Trained Financial Coach so I can't help it. Label that envelope "groceries" or "food", some people include a few dollars eating out in that envelope but I separated mine. This method keeps it real. You will find that eating what you have on hand and sometimes baked potatoes are the meal-is not the worst thing in the world.
Until you step forward and try something different-guess what?
You will never find out what works best for you.
THEREFORE, this is your assignment for the week...start working your angle on this one thing.. There's more to do...GET GOING!
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