My elbow bled and I fixed my spending

Yesterday, while spelunking in my tupperware cabinet for a pitcher to make iced tea, I cut my elbow on the latch that makes the door babyproof. Let me tell you, it freaking hurt! A lot. And, in true Jana fashion, I cut myself on the part of my elbow that I can’t see except when using a mirror. Do you know how hard it is to stop the bleeding when you don’t even know where the blood is coming from?

At first I wasn’t concerned with the blood (mainly because I didn’t know I was bleeding). I was only concerned with how much it hurt. My elbow was throbbing, I was screaming at the latch for being a fucking asshole, I was yelling at husband for putting the pitcher all the way in the back of the tupperware cabinet (he wasn’t home to hear my tirade, however), and I was berating myself for being so dumb for cutting my elbow on a latch! That’s been there since we bought the house! But mainly, I just wanted it to stop throbbing. That’s when I decided it was probably a good idea to go look at the wound.

I knew I had cut my elbow, so I started inspecting it like a detective inspects evidence at a murder scene. But I couldn’t find the cut. I knew it was there; I had the pain to prove it. Since I couldn’t see it without looking like a dog chasing her tail, I went to the bathroom to use the mirror. And sure as I’m short, there was a bleeding gash on the one part of my elbow that I can’t see myself. I grabbed some tissues to prevent any more blood from seeping out of my arm and cleaned the cut. But it still hurt a lot. Because of the location of the cut, I had to just deal with the pain. Putting on a band-aid was impossible without some Cirque du Soleil contortionist shit so I just tried to stop bleeding and went about my day.

Then, like the flux capacitor came to Doc after he hit his head on the toilet, it hit me. The cut on my arm was just like my spending.

Earlier this month, I embarked on a no spend challenge. I did it for a few reasons. One, I needed to regain some control over my life and I thought that with my money was a good place to start. Two, I like challenges. And three, I knew I was bleeding money out of my budget and my bank account balance was screaming in pain; I just couldn’t find where the wound was coming from. I had to find a mirror to hold up to the injury in order to find the best way to solve the problem. However, unlike the cut on my elbow, I could actually reach this injury and put a band-aid on it.

I’m fairly certain that I’m not the only one who bleeds money without knowing the source. And without knowing the source, it’s hard to fix the problem. So what steps can people like me take to locate the source of the leaks in their budget? Here are a few suggestions:

1. Go through your bank or credit card statements. Doing this allows you to see where you’re spending the most money. Then compare that to your budget (you do have a budget, right?). If the spending in a particular category like pets or restaurants or clothes greatly exceeds the budget limit you’ve set on paper, then that’s a leak right there. This is also a great way to get a feel for how much money you’re actually spending in each area each month, which may in turn lead you to adjust your budget accordingly.
2. Put a fixed amount of cash in your wallet. And test to see how long it stays there. When you do make a purchase, save the receipt (if the purchase is from a vending machine, write down how much you spent on a piece of paper and treat it like a receipt). Once the cash is gone, take inventory of the receipts. Ask yourself: Were the purchases on necessary things? Could you have found a way to keep that cash longer? What places led you to spend the most? How long did the cash stay in your wallet? What temptations did you give into? Answering these questions should give you perspective on your spending triggers and your spur of the moment purchases.
3. Look at what you have. Go through your closet. Do you have 86 pairs of jeans or 104 t-shirts? Examine your make-up. How many bottles of nail polish or palettes of eye shadow do you have? Books, DVDs/Blu-Ray, children’s toys…thoroughly catalog everything. When you look at the amount of crap you have, that should give some insight into where you’re money is going (this is how I learned I have a huge weakness for apps and nail polish). Once you know this, you can do what I did and try a no spend challenge or just commit to use what you have for a fixed amount of time before you buy anything new. Doing this gives you a whole new appreciation for what you have (trust me on this one).

I have done all of these. By doing so, I’ve been able to formulate a specific budget that right now needs to be adjusted (badly), I’ve learned where my spending weaknesses originate, and I’ve developed a plan to stop the bleeding. I’m not perfect. Occasionally, the wound reopens. And sometimes, I need a tourniquet rather than a band-aid to dam the flow but I know the source of the injury. That’s a huge first step. In fact, it’s probably the most important step. When you know what’s broken, you can determine the best method to fix it.

And as for my elbow? It did stop hurting. But I’m still pissed at the latch.