I'd be the old dog in this scenario. I'm one of those old dogs that eats at the exact same time everyday. Lays around for a specific amount of time and then wanders outdoors to poo at the exact same time everyday. You don't change my food. You don't expect me to go for a walk if it's not on the schedule. I'm not going to be nice to new people because I don't know them. I'd probably growl a bit if a vehicle drove by my home that I didn't recognize the sound of. I imagine I'd know a neighborhood squirrel (through the living room window) quite well and I'm sure I'd be aware of the time of day he always climbs the oak tree next door. Ok, so the new tricks would be learning how to live a financially responsible life after decades of the exact opposite but you get the idea.
Confessions: 1. I've used overdraft transfers a few times in the past several weeks. I'd love LOVE love to blame falling back into this nasty habit on my husband. Each time I've resorted to the transfer has been because he spent a ridiculous amount of money right before we got paid BUT if I were on top of things this wouldn't be happening. So, no blame applicable. 2. We've reverted back to eating out ALOT, virtually every night. It's due to pure laziness (and gluttony). It's horrible and there's no excuse for it.
I thought I had this old dog pretty well trained into the new way of doing things. Nope. It takes alot of work to stay on track, stay on task, and change a lifestyle. Hopefully now that I've confessed my short comings on this lovely (heavy) blog I'll try harder to stay on task.
Things I desperately need to work on in the short run:
Sticking to the awesome new budget.
Blogging regularly (it's crazy how much it helps to just sit down and spill about it every day)
Balancing the checkbook (tonites chore while my husband is out hanging with the guys)
NO OVERDRAFT grrrrr
Lessen the meals out on the town. Yes old dog, you must eat at home!
okay.
Today's lovely: An evening alone at home. Sometimes solitude is so wonderful.
Everyone falls off the wagon every now and again. Get back on and start again! You can do it!
ReplyDeleteWow, I haven't commented in a while! Can't believe I never even said congrats on the baby on the way! Congrats! I was just reading about your relapse to old bad habits and it reminded me of something my therapist said about me recently - I tend to be a perfectionist and really focus on the end goals of everything, rather than the journey or the small steps that I have to take to reach that goal. He was saying that when we let go of this image of perfection (such as being debt free), and find other reasons for letting go of bad habits, then we may actually reach our goals sooner. In my case, it tends to manifest itself with exercice, among other things. I used to be a competitive athlete and have remained fit into my adult life but since having my daughter two years ago, I've really stopped exercising consistenly. And part of the reason is that I keep thinking about the end "perfect" goal - being super fit like I used to be, a goal that may not be realistic.
ReplyDeleteAnother thing I was thinking - and please forgive me if I'm completely off base - is that without your husband being on board in terms of your debt reduction/elimination, some of your goals are not realistic and holding on to them may be really harmful in the long run.
Hope this has been helpful. I only want the best for you.
Andy, I TOTALLY struggle with the "perfectionist" end goal syndrome. I regularly lose myself in the process while focusing so hard on the end goal. It's pretty hard to get to the goal without the small steps.
ReplyDeleteAs for the issue with my husband not quite being on board the "get out debt" lifestyle I've been trying my hardest to not include my complaining too much in the blog. I love him and I can't make him be any sort of way just like he can't make me want to spend more money. But it's really hard without him fully working with me. I can only do what I can do. Again, I think I try and shoot a little too high just so I can make it a bit higher than I would have otherwise.