Playing Catch-up with Cold Turkey Finances
Last month I wrote about the trouble I have with staying at home because there are so many great places to eat and drink right outside my door. One reader named Julia left an insightful comment that made me look at what I’m really doing with my money. Here’s what Julia from Adventures in Debt had to say:
I think whether you live in the city or in a rural area isn’t really the issue, it’s whether or not you’re going to be tempted to spend money that’s the problem. If you don’t care about your budget, then you can always find places to spend money. It all depends on what matters to you.
In other words: she’s talking about priorities. I know that my social life has always been a priority, but so has debt reduction and saving. Julia’s comment made me realize that I’m treating entertainment as the greater priority. And unfortunately, I have the numbers to prove it.
Zac and I did some number crunching on our respective expense trackers, and we were astonished by how much booze and entertainment were robbing from our monthly budgets as of late. I won’t mention that monthly total, but it was clearly pushing us beyond our means. There was just one thing to do: go cold turkey — at least for the short term.
For the month September, neither Zac nor I will purchase alcohol. That means we can’t buy alcohol at a bar or from a store to enjoy at home or at a dinner party. We can only drink what we already have at home, and we can’t come up with quid pro quo setups, such as telling friends “we’ll buy dinner if you guys take care of the drinks.” That’s basically paying for alcohol.
We’re still allowed to go out to eat on occasion — just no drinks.
For us, drinking is not a necessity. We know that we can still have friends and fun without alcohol, so why keep spending on it if money is tight right now? Wouldn’t it make sense then to quit the habit of buying alcohol cold turkey so that we can have more money?
I know that quitting cold turkey isn’t for everyone. Zac and I started this no-money-for-booze plan nearly a week ago, and for us it has gone remarkably well, both financially and socially.
Come October, we’ll see exactly how much more money we’ll have. The goal is for us to get back on track financially and start saving money for the holiday season which will surely eat up our bank accounts more than booze and entertainment does. Depending on how much richer we are, we may make some permanent changes with our alcohol spending.
Dear readers, I’m curious about how many of you think going cold turkey is a good way to save money. So let’s have a vote!
[Original source of turkey photo: Vickispix.]
My friends hate me. I have a system called the “Ban”. When I’m under a Ban, I won’t go out to clubs. I may drink at home, but I’ve gotten on the wagon a few times under this system also, like you described. One of the curious things I noticed is that telling people that I won’t go out or drink makes them try to pressure me even more. It’s almost as though my friends want me to give that up. My roommate openly tells me “Yeah, I know I’m going to see you out tonight” after I say no. He wants me to fail! I’ve gone months at a time doing this, and I think it really does help the “entertainment” finances. I also found I felt healthier (whether that was true or not). Plus, it gives me the privilege of receiving a much warmer “Hey, I haven’t seen you in ages” reception when I finally do make my cameo appearances. 🙂
I am not a drinker, but I am a caffeine addict. I’ve tried cold turkey multiple times…and always end up back on the stuff. I can switch to less expensive alternatives when necessary, though.
I generally find it is easier to go cold turkey on a specific area of spending than to “cut back”. Having just spent a chuck of money on an unexpected trip cross country, I will be putting a hold on all eating out.
Of course the best way to not drink when out is to be the sober driver – that way you can’t drink and your friends will accept it and also be grateful for the money they save on taxi fares.
The other thing is I used to belong to a wine club which I loved – they would send a dozen bottles of wine each 3 months – but what I found is we actually drank more in total as when we ran out we would go and buy more for home. Now we only buy on an irregular basis and drink a lot less wine at home – which isn’t a bad thing from saving money and from a health perspective.
I usually limit myself to one or two drinks when out and at home as well….but that may be because of WHAT I like to drink (scotch, ports, armagnac, and unusual liqours). Dividing out the cost of a bottle at home usually comes out to as much as you pay in a bar for cheaper grades by the glass.
Though I have found that as far as pretty good “plonk” (to quote Horace Rumpole)..wine to everyone else}:~D there are some VERY good imports from unexpected places that can be had for under $10 a bottle..I got a beautiful sweet red from the Dominican Republic at the Bravo store for $8.99.
~ Roland
Good luck…I’v found cold turkey does not work. Instead, I end up resenting my savings, even though I know it’s the best thing for me to do. I’ve always allocated a certain amount to going out – a realistic amount. If I go beyond that, I dip into my clothes budget for the month. The reality is, if you are single or coupled and don’t have kids, eating home every night gets dull quickly. If didnt eat out as much as I did, I would not stay in touch with most of my friends. But, the choice I make is $10-$15.
I think it takes some chutzpah to give up something you obviously enjoy for the good of your finances. Your end results may astound you and keep you on the road to better bugeting. While you are right that the cold turkey plan may not work well for everyone – for some people, the cold turkey solution is really the only way to get by during times of financial difficulties.
Good luck!