Money challenge – minimizing spending over 10 days

In my book, Becoming rich: one step at a time, I stress the importance of making the road to becoming wealthy an enjoyable one. Making short-term plans fun makes it easier to achieve them, and thereby increases the likelihood that we will reach our longer term objectives. Over the course of the next ten days, I shall be undertaking a money challenge as an enjoyable task to help me focus on saving money.

 

 

The 10 in 10 money challenge

The goal of my money challenge is to minimize my expenditure over the course of ten days, with the objective of illustrating how you can really cut down on discretionary spending without cutting down on “fun”. The rules of the challenge are simple.

• Over the next 10 days (13th August – 22nd August), I will spend no more than €10 in total on discretionary spending.

• Yesterday, I completed my normal grocery shop, which I estimate should last me for around 10 days. I did not buy anything in this shop that I would not usually. Anything I did not purchase in this shop will have to come out of my €10 budget.

• My fixed expenses (utilities, transport, etc), which are paid monthly, are fixed expenses and therefore shall not form part of my challenge.

• I will update this post daily to demonstrate what I have done each day and ways I have avoided discretionary spending.

• I would encourage you all to join me. Please comment each day on your own progress to let me know how you have been getting on.

So, without further ado, let’s get going…

 

Day 1 – Tuesday 13th August – Spend €0.00

A promising start to the challenge today.

Breakfast – bowl of cereal, coffee, juice – all purchased as part of the grocery shop, therefore no cost.

Lunch – I have my lunch provided at work, so no cost here.

Snacks – I was tempted to buy something from the vending machine this afternoon (a coffee and a chocolate bar perhaps). However, due to the money challenge, I avoided it. Herein lies the hidden beauty of this money challenge. Not only did it save me the €1, it also made me a lot healthier as I opted for a large glass of water instead! Money saving + health benefits. Can’t be bad….

Dinner & Entertainment – This evening, I plan to go for a cycle along the beach and have dinner on the balcony when I return, so no cost expected. If anything pops up, I’ll add it into tomorrow’s update.

Money Challenge Day 1 – €0.00 spent!

 

Day 2 – Wednesday 14th August – Spend €0.00

Another good day, very similar to yesterday.

Breakfast and lunch were the same. Finished work ready for a long bank holiday weekend here.

Whilst being at work, it is fairly easy not to spend too much money. I don’t take any loose change with me to help limit my spending. It is much less tempting to spend a Euro if you don’t have any coins bouncing around in your pocket!

For now, I haven’t really noticed any negativity from the challenge (not doing things I would like to, etc). Bank holidays tend to be a more tempting time to spend money, so the money challenge is about to get a bit tougher I would imagine.

Money Challenge Day 2 – €0.00 spent
Total – €0.00 total

 

Day 3 – Thursday 15th August – Spend €0.00

A tougher day for the bank holiday.

My fiancé and I currently have her parents staying with us for the week. We spent the day time sun bathing around the pool and not having lunch in the restaurant was quite a challenge! However, we managed to resist and came back to the house to make a lovely barbecue on the balcony without incurring any expenditure outside of the weekly grocery shop.

In the evening, we had dinner in the house, followed by a lovely walk along the beach at sunset. A free and overwhelmingly beautiful experience! However, this did face me with my biggest weakness – ice cream!! I love ice cream. So when we all stopped at the “maison de glace” it took everything I had to resist. This was made a hundred times easier by the fact that I had a back up plan. As part of the weekly shop, I had bought 16 ice creams for €1.12. Therefore, I was able to wait until we got back home and have a well deserved ice cream from the freezer. Instead of costing €3.00 at the maison de glace, it cost €0.07 from the weekly shop.

In a strange way, I actually got more enjoyment out of this saving (and the positive impact that it had on the challenge) than I would have done by having an ice cream there.

So, another day, another (lack of) dollar!

Money Challenge Day 3 – €0.00 spent
Total – €0.00 total

 

Day 4 – Friday 16th August – Spend €0.00

Nothing really that difficult in the money challenge today and starting to understand more where our small unnecessary costs come from each day which can be avoided.

We spent the day in the sun, with lunch and dinner at home on the balcony.

First thing in the morning, I went out for a 10 mile bike ride in the sun. Beautiful scenery, good exercise and ENTIRELY FREE!!

In the evening, we played tennis at the free courts around the corner, so more entertainment at absolutely no expense. Perfect. This challenge is teaching me how much you can do for free where there are almost identical alternatives that people do which cost much more (free tennis vs €10 a match squash or free cycling vs €8 per visit at the gym)

Money Challenge Day 4 – €0.00 spent
Total – €0.00 total

 

Day 5 – Saturday 17th August – Spend €0.00

Today, I was planning the first moment of weakness in the money challenge. We had a day trip to the small port town of Cassis planned. This is about 40 minutes away on the bus and a return ticket costs €5 (its outside the city and so not on my normal monthly bus/metro pass). I was tempted to cycle it, but in 30°C heat, and with a climb which featured in this year’s Tour de France, I decided against it.

So, off we went to the bus stop, and when the bus arrived it was full!! Disaster. Or was it?

Instead, we got a bus to the local calanques, which are a nature park near Marseille and which are free to enter. Even better, they were close enough to get the city bus, which is included in my monthly pass! Jackpot!

After the 20 minute bus ride, and an hour’s hike down to the calanques, we swam in the sea, jumped off rocks, eat our picnic and have an altogether lovely time! And, once again, it cost nothing! Winner.

We returned in the evening for dinner and board games on the balcony as the sunset.

Now 5 days in, and the counter still hasn’t left €0.00! I’m feeling good about this challenge and today highlighted once again that free alternatives are often just as good, if not better, than expensive alternatives.

However, tomorrow may be tricky as we have a “big night out” planned at the beach where we are going for a meal and staying around the beach area after. This might need some very clever planning!! 🙂

Money Challenge Day 5 – €0.00 spent
Total – €0.00 total

 

Day 6 – Sunday 18th August – Spend €10.00

Right, I’m all spent up. 4 days to go and no more spending allowed.

The spending came from a planned night out at the beach with my fiancé and her parents. Luckily I was able to keep the spending in check through a huge stroke of fortune! When walking to the beach, desperately trying to work out how I could keep my spending less than €10 for a meal on the beach, we found €2 on the pavement! JACKPOT!

Therefore, I allowed myself this as free spending as there was a place on the beach that did a two course meal (main & dessert) for €12. Fate, I’m sure you would agree.

So, with a net €10 spent, I’ve maxed out my budget.

What has this taught me? Well, firstly that eating out is pretty expensive and, for me, often not worthwhile. We went to the best value restaurant in the area and it was certainly a nice experience. However, a more frugal alternative would have been to go to the same beach with a picnic, enjoying the same views and eating good food for less expense.

At the end of the challenge, I’m going to add an article relating to the real benefit and purpose of frugality, so stay tuned for that.

Corollary – I must mention that my fiancé’s parents actually paid for the meal for having them stay with us, for which we are very grateful. However, I didn’t think it was fair to add a money saving tip as “let other people pay for your food”. This may be encroaching upon frugal jerk!!

Money Challenge Day 6 – €10.00 spent
Total – €10.00 total

 

Day 7 – Monday 19th August – Spend €0.00

On holiday again today. Lie-in, late breakfast on the balcony, an hour’s walk to the old port, a wander around, a read of the book in the sun, and another hour home. This not spending money malarkey is a doddle!!

Late lunch and a relaxing afternoon in the house. Dinner at home and 90 minutes of torture watching the Mags get taught a lesson. We are bottom of the league, say, we are bottom of the league!.

Money Challenge Day 7 – €0.00 spent
Total – €10.00 total

 

Day 8 – Tuesday 20th August – Spend €0.00

A different type of torture today! A recurring back injury, which I have been plagued with again over the last week or so has REALLY kicked in today.

A silver lining – a day lying on the bed and floor is an easy way not to spend!

Money Challenge Day 8 – €0.00 spent
Total – €10.00 total

 

Day 9 – Wednesday 21st August – Spend €0.00

And repeat. Pain even worse today and so a quick trip to the osteopath was required. I’ve been told that I shouldn’t be seated for more than 10 minutes and should rest and stay lying down when I can. So today has been spent in bed and lying down on the sofa again, trying to recuperate.

I assume paracetamol don’t count as “discretionary spend”. If they do, we luckily had some in the cupboard anyway!

Money Challenge Day 9 – €0.00 spent
Total – €10.00 total

 

Day 10 – Thursday 22nd August – Spend €0.00

And repeat again. A day lying down => no spending.

A slightly disappointing end to the challenge as it hasn’t allowed me to demonstrate that cutting back on spending doesn’t need to impact the amount of fun or happiness in your life.

I have learned a lot from this small challenge though, the main lesson being that living frugally can remind us of the wonderful things in this world. The best things in life truly do come for free.

I will write an article shortly on this topic, so watch out for that.

So, until the next challenge…

Money Challenge Day 10 – €0.00 spent
Total – €10.00 total

CHALLENGE PASSED!!