goals

Welcome to 2018 – the year everyone’s hoping won’t be so much of a dumpster fire like last year. Politics aside, now that I’ve paid off the big credit card, I get to have a little more fun with my goals this year. To recap, my 2017 financial goals were: Pay off the credit card! DONE DONE DONE Build an emergency fund again NOT EVEN KIND OF Go 12-for-12 on sticking to my budget I GOT 50% ON THIS ONE So funny story, it’s hard to rebuild an emergency fund when you keep having emergencies. Losing my job. rather unexpectedly, moving, and my driver’s side window suddenly notRead More →

financial check-up

***This is a Guest Post. <3 from the Dames*** People often start the new year begins with a ton of financial resolutions…but old habits are tough to break, especially when it comes to finances. So, it’s a wise idea to review your finances periodically and check-up on whether you are on track to meet those goals or not. While the middle of the year might be over (so long summer weather!), this is actually the ideal time to check if you’re on the right financial track. Think of it as the adult version of going back to school. If you’re in trouble, there’s still timeRead More →

happiness

Hi friends, Just wanted to let y’all know that Dames in Debt was recently featured on The Pursuit of Happiness! We were part of their 2017 Happiness Day Interview Series! You can read our post here, just look for the Q&A headline. <3 from the Dames For more information on the 2017 Happiness Day Interview Series: My name is Wes, creator of thePursuitofHappiness.me.  I won’t bore you with the full details of the inspiration for the site.  To share a little bit though; growing up in America, I had always been taught about this nation’s founding documents and I heard all the time about the Declaration of Independence andRead More →

slow cooking

As I mentioned in my 2017 financial goals post, I am planning to stay within budget for the whole year, which includes my notorious food budget. To help myself out on this fairly ambitious goal of mine, I’m going back to an old, money-saving favorite of mine: the slow cooker. As a mini-goal, I plan to make at least one slow cooking meal per week…for the whole year. -that’ll be 52 recipes for those of you playing at home. Before we get to the recipes, I wanted to share my machine of choice. In case anyone is in the market for a nice, decent, money-saving simpleton, thisRead More →

money happy

***This is a Guest Post. <3 from the Dames*** Four steps to starting the new year with a positive outlook on your finances If you’re starting the new year in debt or with a little less than you like after Christmas, then you may feel that your prospects for financial happiness are gloomy. However, you can be totally money happy in 2017 by trying out a few of the suggestions below. Being money happy doesn’t mean being mega rich, but more about being happy with your situation and using the money that you do have to live a comfortable, happy life. So read on toRead More →

100 days challenge

Remember those resolutions you formed around January 1st? How’re you doing on them? I, for one, have failed hard at multiple of mine, and that’s what today’s post is all about. Today (September 22nd) marks 100 days until 2017! Crazy, right? This means you’ve still got 100 days to get yourself back on track with saving money, not spending money, eating better, and working out…or for me, all of the above. Here’s how it works: Consistency transforms behaviors into habits. Adopting good daily habits can only happen if you consistently engage in those habits every day. For the next 100 days, focus on engaging in oneRead More →

Canadian Budget Binder

Hi friends, Just wanted to let y’all know that Dames in Debt was recently featured on Canadian Budget Binder! We were part of the 2016 Making A Difference series! You can read our post here, just look for the Making a Difference headline. Thanks so much for helping us take our personal finance journey way further than we ever thought possible! And check out Canadian Budget Binder while you’re at it! <3 from the DamesRead More →

I like to think that I’ve always been good at handling my money. I’ve been tracking my spending and using a budget since undergrad. I opened a Roth IRA while still in law school, and I’ve been trying to save whatever possible for an emergency fund. Despite doing all these things though, I never really made progress on any of my financial goals: I was spending more than I earned, my credit card debt increased, and I had approx. $25.44 in my emergency fund. This year, I set my goals for my financial life like I usually do, but then, I decided to do somethingRead More →

goals

SO, it’s March, the third month of the year, and we’re all well into maintaining our New Year’s Resolutions, right? Hahaha, yeah, me too. While my healthy eating goals are on hiatus (it is Girl Scout cookie season), my financial goals are doing pretty well. Here’s why: First, what are my financial goals for 2016? Pay down my credit card (goal is to have it paid off by July 2017) Build an emergency fund (goal is to have $2500 saved up by the end of the year) Save for retirement (no real goal here for the moment…just contribute something each month to my Roth IRA) Second, whatRead More →