It's hard to be positive with an empty Bank Account.

Right?!

It's so easy to think everything is fine and dandy when your wallet has a good chunk of change tucked neatly in it's pockets. The saying that "money can't buy happiness" is totally true and I agree with it completely, but a little teensy weensy bit of cash can definitely ease stress.

I am no stranger to an empty wallet.

When the recession hit in 2007ish, my family was completely affected. My dad lost his job and it all seemed to get harder and harder. My senior year of high school, I began working at Dutch Bros to try and take some of the weight off of my parents shoulders. It was hard, working 35 hrs a week plus finishing up my senior year and trying to add all of my social activities in there too. It was the beginning of my long stretch working like a crazy person.

Since the family was in a financial rut, I (thankfully) qualified for more financial aid and began my studies at Oregon State University (GO BEAVS!). While going to school, I worked one or two jobs, participated in lots of social activities, kept an internship and somehow maintained decent grades. By doing this I wanted to A) pay the bills so my parents didn't have to sheepishly tell me they couldn't really help me -Side note... I know my parents wanted to help me and they really struggled with the fact that they couldn't at the time; I don't want my nonchalance to make it seem like they didn't care! - , and B) Make connections so that I would have a better network post-graduation.

Well, through the sleepless nights and hard work, my networking paid off and I was able to snag a job, or two ... or three. I was working up to 70 hrs a week of minimum wage and barely cruising by. There were multiple times that I would just eat a piece of toast with cream cheese because I couldn't afford to go grocery shopping. With how damn hard I worked, it wasn't getting any easier. But let me tell you, I learned how to stretch a dollar.

But apparently I didn't learn it super well, because now that I have a consistent (and slightly greater) income, I'm still forcing myself to stretch those dollars.

So here's my plan!
This blog is going to be a little bit different. I'm going to challenge myself and I want to challenge you too! I'm going to set us up with three money spending rules for the next month and then to infinity and beyond! If you want in on the challenge, comment in the comment section below. You can still remain anonymous if you'd like, just write something like "I'm in!"

Here are the rules:

1a) Make a budget.
You might think a budget is dumb or annoying, but having a general idea where your money is going every week/month/year is a good eye opener for some people. For example, I did not realize how much money I used to spend on Coffee. Redunkulous. I have a budget that I've already made, but now here's the catch.
1b) STICK TO YOUR BUDGET.
'Nuff Said.

2) Save 15% of your check on every pay period.
For me this will be the hardest challenge but also something that is completely necessary. I had a panic moment today realizing that I'll be moving in a few short months and I have not saved enough for a deposit. EEK! This is probably going to mean that I can't do as many fun activities that I have planned for the next month, but it's something that desperately needs to happen.

3) Track your spending.
I, Sarah, solemnly swear that I am up to no good... I mean... I solemnly swear that I will track my receipts/spending. I've gotten frustrated with this task in the past because it clogs up my wallet with receipts, but you know what?! It's worth it. It requires accountability for my spending which is what I feel I need. Check the receipts with your bank's online banking and enter it into your budget every night so that you know what you're actually spending vs what your projected budget guesses.

That should be easy, right?!

I work my tail off to make sure that I can pay my bills. So far, I haven't resorted to opening up a credit card, getting into any debt (other than those damn student loans), or anything else too dramatic, like selling a kidney or prostituting my bod. This is a personal challenge of becoming more financially positive.  It's hard. This challenge will test my self control, but it's what need to happen.

Let's do this together. Are you in or are you out?