The Red Balloon & How I Intended to Save
My intentions always start out great. I have learned to budget and I know all about creating a list before I go shopping. I ONLY get the things I need or, in the case of grocery shopping, I can stockpile for cheap. But this past weekend was special. Walmart had its "red balloon" sale. I honestly forgot about the sale as I had already intended to go to Walmart to return some items, use my coupons and purchase inexpensive, generic medicine. But the red balloons got the best of me and I overspent. Thankfully, because of cash enveloping, I did have other envelopes to pull from and although they are now emptier, I am still on track to meet my priority monthly expenses.
The reality is, most of us find it hard to resist the sales, deals, coupons and any other tactics put in place to get us to spend our hard earned income. We find it hard to always have to stay within our budgets and to always stick to our list and to always...well you get the point. Budgeting is not easy and reminding yourself of why you are saving can sometimes lose its stronghold when you see shiny red balloons that represent a "great savings" on many of the items you can honestly say you need. But that is no excuse for making the poor choice of overspending and NOT being able to meet the priority needs of your budget. When you are in the midst of a "great deal" and are trying to determine if it is worth the splurge, take a moment before rushing off to the register and follow these tips:
- Stay within a reasonable "splurge" limit. If it is not in your fun money envelope or you cannot pull the cash from another category that is low on your list of priority needs and wants, put the merchandise back under the red balloon. There will always be a next time.
- Remind yourself of what greater expenses your splurging may affect. Will you be able to pay the electric, cable or phone bill if you make this purchase? Will you be able to put gas into the car next week? Also, don't evaluate this in the moment based on what you think you have in the bank. More than likely, you will forget a bill or some other expense that needs to be covered and then there will be an overdraft in your future, costing you more than what you saved in the sale.
- If you decide you must have it and want to use credit to pay for your merchandise, think again. If the item is on sale, and you take time to pay it off on the credit card, you have now added interest
and potentially saved nothing on the item you just brought because it was on sale! Phew! Why not wait for it to go on sale again and save money to buy it or something similar at the next red, blue or yellow balloon sale.
The reality is that we have to live by a budget. It helps us to stay organized and on track. It helps us to meet our wants and needs for the present and for the future. But every now and again, you will want to go off course. If you do, at least know what your consequences will be so that you can offset any future issues that could ultimately create financial problems for you. Take the time to go through this process. You will be less likely to overspend on purchases knowing what its effect will be on your budget. And, since preparedness is your best strategy, why not make an envelope that says "red balloon sale" and then you can be ready for the next round of sales any store may offer you.
If you wish to learn more about budgeting and Cash Enveloping, follow this link - Cash Enveloping - and you will be a able to download our course for free. You can follow up with as well for one on one assistance at 1-800-553-8621 or email us at flr@flrministry.com.