Fighting old tendencies

Over the past month we have really started to fine tune our savings plan and have created sub-savings accounts to help us focus. We have automatic transfers set up for immediate, weekly expenses and medium range budget items such as clothing, auto maintenance, and other items that we need to budget for. There are even a few long-term savings for our “dreams,” that we are working to make a reality.

The great thing about having these separate and specific accounts is that we can easily track where the money goes and know that we are within our budget. Previously we had just put money into checking and savings. Inevitably checking would run dry and savings was always there to refill the cup and leave us at empty by payday.

The newfound accountability and transparency are great, but they also identify patterns and habits around spending. This past two-week stretch has seen me slipping into some old habits. Namely, having wants that I prioritize over needs. Last week I went camping and spent my entire fun money account to cover things I wanted to have, but certainly did not need. This week I went golfing and bought a present for a friend’s 40th birthday. This event was planned, but I did not save for it appropriately and ended up dipping into the weekly spending account which covers groceries and gas.

I have found myself getting into old thought patterns so quickly. “I’ll just borrow from another account and pay it back from my spending account next payday,” was the voice in my head justifying the overspending. Fortunately, through open dialogue and a clear view of our finances, we have set ourselves up to better control situations like this. When there was just one pot to take money from, it was easy to hide transactions. Now, I am taking time to reflect on what led me to overspend, take action to correct it and move to change the behavior before things get out of control.

It is certainly a long road to financial well-being but having the tools to fight old tendencies and build new habits is so empowering.