Just in case you missed it: How to Stop a Financial Tailspin Part 1, How to Stop a Financial Tailspin Part 2 We've been going over how to stop a financial tailspin. Where something goes wrong and then something else goes wrong and pretty soon you want to curl up under your bed and hide from the world until all the bad stuff goes away. Step 1 was to breathe, Step 2 was to write down your income and expenses, and now we're going to talk about step 3…
Reduce Expenses and Increase Income
If you reduce expenses you'll be able to eek through this problem and you will just have to do it again the next time something goes wrong. If you increase your income temporarily, you'll be fine but worn out and eventually you won't be able to keep up with the number of hours you are putting in. But a little bit of both can put you in a good place for your financial future.
When you reduce expenses, make sure you have a ten or twenty set aside for one fun eating out on the dollar menu night per month. Let your family know what day that will be so they can look forward to it. You can even mark it on the calendar. Making a big deal about one special day can help the family and kids from complaining too much from all the other times during the month you may be taking away.
I have a friend who thinks she is very frugal. She only buys things on sale at Jewel. (I hear some of you groaning already.) Jewel is one of the most expensive grocery stores in the Midwest! If you have some aversion to going to the discount store to buy your groceries, you need to get over it because those groceries and name brands are keeping you from living the way you deserve.
Find ways to increase your income, like gigs on Craigslist or putting up a flyer at the supermarket to watch kids for a while to get some fast, extra cash in the house and toward your financial problem.
Photo by _China_
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