Minus Month Challenge #4

posted in: Blog, Minus Month, Save Money | 0

Hello, and welcome to the fourth “Minus Month Challenge” here at NMI!

Here I take one of my many indulgences and strip it from my budget for an entire month.

The goal isn’t specifically to save a bunch of money, but rather, to save a little while also learning the importance of delaying gratification for the future good of myself.

A minus month can also come with some pleasant side effects such as weight loss, more energy, better mood, a fatter wallet and spontaneous bursts of joy (OK, not really).

Last minus month – technically two months ago – I tried giving up lattes for a month, and I did OK.

This month, I decided I’d try giving up something different: alcohol.

Don’t worry, I promise, I don’t have a problem.

 

Karen talking to Grace from “Will & Grace”

 

I actually don’t drink that much – I may get a bottle of wine a couple weekends out of the month, and if we have a get together with our friends, we’ll definitely drink some margaritas, cocktails, etc.

It’s more just that alcohol is so expensive.

Getting a decent bottle of wine can cost anywhere between $8 to $12 (I know that’s considered cheap, but for me, it ain’t), and spirits are even more.

I thought it may be nice to give both my wallet and mind a break.

But again, don’t worry.

I mean, it’s not like I’m like this:

 

 

 

THE MINUS MONTH CALENDAR

I’ll be indicating a successful minus day with the hashtag #DB, which stands for ‘didn’t break’, and a fail day with the hashtag #B, which stands for ‘break’.

 

WEEK 1

Day 1 – #DB

Day 2 – #DB

Day 3 – #DB

Day 4 – #DB

Day 5 – #DB

Day 6 – #DB

Day 7 – #DB

 

WEEK 2

Day 8 – #DB

Day 9 – #DB

Day 10 – #DB

Day 11 – #DB

Day 12 – #DB

Day 13 – #DB

Day 14 – #DB

 

WEEK 3

Day 15 – #DB

Day 16 – #DB

Day 17 – #DB

Day 18 – #DB

Day 19 – #DB

Day 20 – #DB

Day 21 – #DB

 

WEEK 4 +

Day 22 – #DB

Day 23 – #DB

Day 24 – #DB

Day 25 – #DB

Day 26 – #DB

Day 27 – #DB

Day 28 – #DB

Day 29 – #DB

Day 30 – #DB

Day 31 – #DB

 

 

 

FINAL THOUGHTS

Woohoo!  I did it!  I didn’t buy or drink any alcohol all month!

I’m pretty proud of myself.

While I’ve never been a huge drinker, as I get older, I find myself partaking in it more than I used to when I was younger.

It’s nice to know it’s something I can cut from my budget and not miss!

 

Another update:  Two months later and I’ve still completely kept from buying alcohol!  I don’t miss it at all.  My budget, my body, and my health says, “thank you”!

 

WANNA JOIN ME?

Got something you wanna do without for a month?  Got a bad habit you wanna break?

Join me as I track my progress with the fourth minus month challenge!

 

          – NMI

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