Increase Savings (and/or Decrease Spending)

Short of coming into unexpected money we all live on a fixed income. Without identifying extra money, how does one increase savings? The answer is found in the question's opening phrase - "identifying extra money." Let's use "Joe" as an example. Joe works in YourTown, 5-days a week. Each day he stops at the 7-11 for a coffee and a pack of cigarettes. Fridays he will stop on the way home and have a pint with his co-workers...just 1 pint. He spends, on average, $4 a day for lunch. One might say Joe is rather average in his work-a-day pattern of behavior and not overly indulgent. But let's take a look at these daily expenses Joe has: $2 coffee, $5 cigarettes, $4 lunch, and once a week $3 for a pint. This is $11/day, $14 on Fridays. In a week Joe spends $58 - 5 coffees, 5 packs of cigarettes, 5 lunches, 1 pint. In a month, Joe spends $232; in a year that's $2,552 ($232 X 11 as Joe has 2-wks vacation a year and 2-wks off with holidays and personal days...although he still likely spends another $100 on cigarettes on those weeks and this does not count what he spends on cigarettes on weekends all year round). So, we could argue that Joe has $2,552 with which to Invest if he wanted, but this is not terribly realistic as he does have to eat lunch each day, etc. However, if Joe packed his lunch 3-days a week and spend $1 on the ingredients for those lunches, that is a $9 savings and if he made his coffee at work contributing $.50 a day to the kitchen fund, that is a $7.50/wk savings. If he cut his smoking in half, that would be a $12.50/wk savings...if he quit altogether, $25/wk - Joe really enjoys his pint with friends on Fridays so that remains unchanged. That comes to $29/wk savings or $41.50/wk if he quit smoking altogether. $29/wk = $116/mo or roughly $1,276/yr. By making weekly investments in his 401-K of $29 for 48 weeks of the year at 4% compounded daily, Joe would have $18,383.83 in 10 years of which $3,477.83 would be the interest earned...all from packing his lunch 3X/wk, making his coffee at work, and cutting his smoking in half - if he quit smoking altogether, he'd have $26,244.51 of which $4964.91 would be the interest...and this does not count savings from not smoking weekends and during vacations and holidays! True, Joe may or may not consistently earn 4% or be able to have it compounded daily but the point remains, little changes that are practiced religiously can result in significant benefits over time. Think what these numbers would be if Joe did this for 20-years or 30? To calculate what you might realize in savings over an extended period if you made some changes in your spending habits and invested the savings, visit https://financialmentor.com/calculator/compound-interest-calculator What do you think? Dr. Robert

Count Your Way to Change

There is research evidence that the simple act of counting can help one accomplish his or her change objective (contact me if you are interested in additional reading on this subject). Whether you are interested in "decreasing" a particular behavior or "increasing" one, if you count the number of times you engage in the behavior you are likely to move towards your goal. For example, let's say you wish to ADD exercise to your daily routine. First, identify a particular physical activity that will be "your exercise," say, walking. Next, identify a target goal of a number of steps you would like to take each day, say 7,500. Get a pedometer to count your steps - numerous choices online, many for under $10 but the easiest way to count steps is if you have a smartphone, use the "health app" or, if you have one already, use your "FitBit." With the goal of "X" steps/day, you will find yourself making an effort to increase the number of steps you take to get the reward that comes when looking at your phone, FitBit, or pedometer and seeing how far you have walked and how close to your goal you are...not to mention how many miles you have walked. A variation on counting steps is to pick a period of time to represent a "unit exercise," say 10-min." Count the "number of units of exercise" you accumulate in a day doing your favorite type of exercise...kayaking, tennis, jazzercize, swimming, "whatever." If your goal is to "lose weight," count calories...or if you can, "count points" as recommended in some diet programs (this necessitates becoming familiar with what foods represent how many points, but there are charts online what can help with this). Again, if you have a smartphone you can download an app that can help you track calories consumed. My favorite is MyFitnessPal. These apps not only provide a convenient way to track calories consumed, but they can also tell you how many calories are in a portion of just about any food, including items on a specific restaurant's menu! Related examples of how counting can help with behavior change: * Want to reduce your tendency to cuss - count (and keep score on a piece of paper) each time you cuss * Want to increase your frequency of handwashing - count the number of times you wash your hand for 20-seconds * want to slow down your eating - chew your food at least "X" times and count before swallowing * want to decrease interrupting others when speaking with them - do a slow count to 3 when the other person pauses before speaking BONUS TIP: want to stop hollering at your kids, spouse, or "whomever," count the number of times you holler AND count the number of times you say something positive instead... Counting is a simple and easy way to "stack the deck" in your favor when it comes to realizing change in a patter of behavior. If you have specific change questions, comments, or suggestions, please feel free to share.

Dr. Robert

Change is a process, not an event

Have you ever thought about changing personal behavior, perhaps ending an undesirable habit? Considered losing weight, ending tobacco use, exercising more, or becoming more positive in your thinking? If so, did following through on making this change ever become difficult, perhaps seemingly impossible? And if so, was the end result to resort to "old habits"? This group is designed as a place where posing questions about and sharing information related to changing personal behaviors and promoting positive thinking can easily be accomplished. Some things that might be appropriate for discussion on this group include questions like: * How can I stop doing "X" or start doing "Y"? * Has anyone successfully dealt with procrastination? * Has anyone read any articles or books on time management you would recommend? The group may include behavior change tips like: * It is easier to lose a pound a week for 25 weeks than it is to lose 25 pounds. * Instead of avoiding something negative do something positive in its place. * To exercise more check the health app on your phone or wear a pedometer to track steps - shoot for 5,000...perhaps 10,000 steps a day. The group may include links to online resources, articles, or videos like: * To calculate blood alcohol after "X" drinks in "Y" time - https://www.responsibility.org/drink-responsibly/bac-calculator/ * Strategies for evoking change talk - https://tinyurl.com/yy62y7jh * The importance of listening in a conversation - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-4EDhdAHrOg In short, this group is intended to be a public space where information, ideas, and questions related to accomplishing behavior change, and pursuing positive thinking is possible. It is not intended to be a counseling center where therapy is conducted or counseling services are provided. It is simply a public space for the exchange of ideas related to personal behavior change and positive thinking. I trust you will find this group interesting and personally motivating. Decide to have a good day, Robert