In February, our focus was FINANCES. Getting control of our spending has a spillover effect into many other areas of our lives as it demands discipline and self control.
The challenge of the month was to start contributing to an emergency fund. An emergency fund acts a buffer between unexpected life events and your savings goals. Following Dave Ramsey’s method, set aside $1,000 initially and then bump up your emergency fund to 3 to 6 months of expenses. This will cover you in the event of a more serious life event like loss of employment or temporary disability.
Our assignment was to track each and every dollar spent, by hand!
Tracking expenses, by hand, allows you to see exactly where each and every dollar goes. I found it to be a more eye-opening experience than to track using an app alone. Each time I pulled out my pen to record another expense I said to myself, “Again, Zemi?! Did you really need this?” I learned my purchase patterns and am one step closer to addressing root problems.
Use the Expense Tracker printable to track your expenses by hand, month to month.
“Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another…”