Cutting Corners

Well tonight was one of those glamorous nights of near-bakery ownership that everyone hopes to someday experience: Finance Night.

Oh, so sexy!  I know, don't freak out, there's plenty of my finances to go around for everyone.  But it had to be done, much like your bi-yearly trip to the dentist, and sometimes you just have to grin and bear it. :-(

So tonight's financial journey was about my own personal finances: more importantly, me looking at all the spending in my life and finding ways to cut back.  It's unfair for me to ask others to help me build my bakery through financial contributions if I am not willing to make similar sacrifices.  So I sat down with my best friend in the world, mint.com.

If you've been around me at all since I graduated college, you've probably heard me go on and on about the wonders of mint.com.  I swear by the site, and always advise people to give it a try.  It's a free site that helps you manage your finances, set and keep a budget, set financial goals, pay down debt, and save for retirement.  I discovered the site in 2009, right out of college, and it has honestly helped me through my post-college days of two jobs, no money, and lots of bills to pay.  I wouldn't've survived my first few post-college years without it.

Tonight, mint.com helped to show me areas of my life that I can cut my spending on to help save money for my bakery.  Anything frivolous  over the top, or not needed, time to let it go.  Out went my subscription to Weight Watchers (I was still paying for that), and some dumb online journal I had signed up for (when left alone with my debit card...).  Out went my Netflix subscription, which hurt a little, because I actually do use that, and budgets were rolled back for food, shopping, entertainment, and gas.  I'm not trying to become Amish here, but if I can save money, I will.

I kept my cable for now, mainly because it's not something you can simply cancel online.  It's a tough decision, though, to cancel my cable.  I like to have the tv on in the background a lot, because I live alone and it saves me from talking to myself.  At the same time, I don't watch a ton of television live--most primetime shows I catch on Hulu over the weekends, and other than Discovery I.D. (my guilty pleasure) there's not a lot on TV I HAVE to watch.  At the same time, though, it's nice to be able to watch the Steelers game, or hockey when they're actually playing, or to settle down for a nap and a TBS movie on a Sunday afternoon.  It's expensive though, so I'll have to think about it.

Being a good steward of my money means not spending it on things I do not need.  I probably only cut about $75 a month back in my budget tonight, no record setting pushbacks by any means.  More will come later, perhaps, with cable and maybe car insurance.  But for now, that $75 can be put to better use, helping me to set up my bakery that much sooner.  So maybe I'll eat a little more Ramen again, like I did back in college...sometimes, sacrifices need to be made to achieve one's goals.

So, here I go, venturing out into the world tomorrow on a very strict budget.  Sounds like so much fun, haha!  I just have to keep remembering, I'm doing this for a reason!!

G'night all!
Lis