I always love the start of a new year. There’s just something about starting fresh. New goals. New opportunities. New focus.
Yesterday I shared how I felt I had dropped the ball a bit in my effort to pay down debt. This year, I want to refocus on paying off our debt and remaining credit-card free. I’m ready to go gazelle, as Dave Ramsey would say. It’s time to put the student loan behind us.
With that said, I have two priorities over the next year.
- Increase Income
- Decrease Expenses
I know that’s pretty elementary, but sometimes you just have to get back to basics. By the end of January, I will put percentages on these goals, but first I want to track my income and expenses for 30 days. My budget fell apart in September, when I had problems with our escrow refund check bouncing, and I never got it back on track.
This month, I’m going to track my expenses for 31 days, in preparation for a new budget. I’ve downloaded YNAB 3 and input our accounts already, so I’m ready to track, budget, and pay off that debt.
As far as Being Frugal.net goes, I’m going to focus this year on the same topic: getting out of debt. I truly believe that most people can improve their finances with some effort. It’s not always easy, and sometimes there are hard choices to make. I’ll be making some of those hard choices myself over the next year, and I’m sure I’ll be writing about it.
I’m not a financial expert. I’m just a regular woman, trying to get out of debt, so I can go on to meet other financial goals. My family’s income falls into the “average joe” category. We’re a one income family, with a little blog income on the side. We’re not living in poverty, but we’re not monetarily wealthy either. My hope is that Being Frugal.net is an encouragement and an inspiration for other average people trying to improve their financial lives.
Happy New Year, everyone! May we all end 2010 in a better place than where we started!
Photo by vmiramontes.
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Happy New Year to you too! Your blog is definitely an encouragement to me to stay on track.
You have a lot more control over your expenses than you do your income. But if you can accomplish both, hurray!!! I am with you.
Good luck!
To help keep a daily focus I signed up for http://www.SaveEveryWay.com
Happy New Year, Lynnae!
I love that you kept yours simple. I did too!
I also am following Dave and started a blog to track my myself for this year. I am trying to keep it simple also. I look forward to getting and giving support to this group of people who look forward to living like no one else so we can live like no one else
Your blog is definitely an encouragement. Happy New Years! Was wondering if there any shows in the works for Frugal Coast2Coast too? I really enjoy those.
There are no definite plans for more Frugal Coast2Coast shows at the moment, but we haven’t completely let the idea go, either. Finding the time to do the shows has been a huge issue. We’ll let you know if we work it out.
Thanks for your input! And I’m glad you enjoy the show!
You have consistently been a source of encouragement to me, and I look forward to sharing your journey out of debt (via your blog and my family’s own efforts to reduce/eliminate debt). I am working on paying a student loan as well, and progress seems slow, but it will come. We also have set a goal to have a healthy emergency fund. Thank you for all that you do to help so many, including me and my famiily. I am truly looking forward to this year with strong hope and faith.
And thank you for your encouragement to ME! May we both end 2010 with healthy emergency funds!
Luv your honesty! Good goal setting, and good luck on them!
I STRONGLY recommend a nice garden this year!!!!!
Saves soooo much! And some edible permanent landscaping also.
And out of that, MAKE some of your gifts. Homemade Jams and Jellies were a part of my Christmas gift giving, along with homecanned specialties!
Put the kids each in charge of their own special section – give them ownership, and watch them, and the garden, grow! :)
You’ll be happy to know that gardening is part of the homeschool curriculum this year! :) We’re going to do it together. I’m hoping to go back to square foot gardening, as that’s what’s worked best for me in the past. I’m shooting for two 4×4 gardens this year.
Cool on the garden plans! Yes! Enjoy – and remember to go vertical also – and maybe try some of those hanging tomato upside down baskets this year…. Hopefully I’ll get my patio (under the covered overhand) poured – on the south side of the house – and will be doing more hanging gardens…. Have the kids check out the Hanging Gardens of Babylon :)
PS – The kohlrabi and carrots and swiss chard all came thru that terrible freezing spell just fine – so STILL enjoying some fresh veggies here! YUM!
I’m more or less on the same track as you. Except that I think we have more or less hit our stride with debt reduction. We’re paying about $1500-1800 a month — or about 48-57 percent of our monthly income.
Still, I am working on keeping down expenses. It’s a struggle at times. I’ve been having a hard time with the depression lately, which stalls out my impetus to cook. We bought Tim some burgers so that he doesn’t keep going for fast food on the days I haven’t cooked. But I need to get back in the swing of things.
I’ve been doing more mystery shops lately — either easy or fun or, preferably, both. This provides us with some frugal entertainment (in that we do get reimbursed and then the money goes toward debt) and a little extra income… eventually. So I hope to keep doing that. But, with kids, I imagine that’s not as easy an option. I just have to rest up the day before to be sure I have the energy to perform a shop.
At any rate, we are on schedule to pay off the credit cards by some point in June, which is about when my contract work will probably end. So it’s very convenient, and it keeps us on target, more or less.
I’m just not starting my blogging to financial freedom, and yours has always been inspiring. Becoming debt free really is so elementary, but it’s tough to keep focus and keep going. Good luck to you in 2010!
I’ve been following along on my reader but haven’t commented up til now. Your site has definitely been an encouragement to me and I wanted to say, you can do it! So many of us are getting back up on the horse, so to speak, this time of year, setting the same goals and renewing our determination to achieve them. You can do it, and hopefully I can too!
You are all the best readers a blogger could have! I just want you to know you all encourage me a lot!
I, too, have just started a new blog, and while it’s not concentrated on personal finance, that is certainly one of the areas I will be working on in my life, and thus posting about. I have read your posts for a bit now and I, too, have enjoyed following your efforts in debit reduction. I look forward to reading much more in 2010!
Happy New Year Lynnae!
Thanks for the encouragement. We too have been working on reducing expenses. I’d love to pay down debt in 2010 but right now we just need to focus on staying current with everything. We’re a two income household living on only one income. Not by choice! :)
Good tips! I agree with making more and spending less money. That’s the secret of a true businessman.
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