I Only Spend Money One Day Per Week

Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya on Unsplash

Here’s how I do it without losing my mind.

Right out of college, I landed a fancy job working downtown in a brand-new city. It was a lot of fun at first — until I noticed a several hundred-dollar uptick in my spending for several consecutive months! And the worst part about the extra spending was the fact it wasn’t even coming from anything fun like makeup or shoes.

Instead, it all came from unplanned convenience purchases made over the course of my workday. To put an end to that troubling habit, I resorted to somewhat extreme measures. I decided to limit myself to spending money just one day per week. And with the exception of emergencies, any unplanned purchases would have to wait.

I only planned to keep this rule in place for a few months at first— just until I got my spending back under control. But after 60 days, I was shocked by the results and vowed to keep going. I no longer struggled to make it a week without buying anything, and I’d saved a whopping $700 in just under two months.

Here’s how I stick to one spending day per week — without losing my mind.

At the beginning of the month, I write down all of my known expenses.

With my paper calendar in hand, I make a note of any upcoming medical appointments, routine bills, friends’ birthdays, and…