That also forces a two week waiting period for new items to be added into the budget. I used to buy things that I needed or wanted right when they popped into my head, but then couldn’t keep track of how many extra things I was buying per pay period. The waiting period forces me to prioritize and made a conscious decision to spend.

I then review items that I have previously saved to see which ones still have a strong appeal. I have been able to cut my book purchases down significantly by following this approach.

I haven’t really identified a specific time delay such as 30 days. I find that my rational brain kicks in as soon as I distance myself from that initial buzz of excitement.

Needless to say we’re saving about $150 by not buying clothing or things we don’t need. All those little insignificance purchases really add up. All the savings are deposited into our Alaskan cruise fund (they’ll be enough for an upgrade to a balcony cabin)!

As for #8, I’d tried that a couple of years ago, with my credit card frozen solid in a big lump in the back of the freezer. At the first sign of car trouble, I had it under the hot water tap, and it was free in about 1 minute or so…

The only food we ended up buying as convenience items to eat right away were a diet coke, two poppyseed bagels, some smoked salmon shmear, and two on-draught micro-brews for my beer fanatic husband. I just couldn’t see a visit to NYC without some fresh bagels for me or good beer for him. We spent somewhere around $100 on gourmet items.

We visited the MoMa for the free Friday evening admission and paid for admission to the Frick. We decided not to eat dinner in the city and just head home relatively early. We were gone from 6:30 am to 10 pm.

It was a little odd spending so freely when I normally keep such strict discipline over my purchases. I told myself that I’d only buy stuff that I had no way of finding in the much more rural area we live in. The feeling of letting go and giving myself permission to spend after living very frugally was so different from the way I used to quieten the twinge of guilt about spending by just telling myself that I deserved these things, or that I would cut back in other areas, which of course I rarely did.

I feel great about the trip. It was a planned excursion with a moderate amount of indulgence. The weather was great. We had both a birthday and anniversary this week, and this was sort of a combination celebration for both. We’ll enjoy the stuff we bought for weeks to come. Yes, I wish stuff had been cheaper, or that we’d been able to comparison shop for better prices. But it really feels like we earned this fun, and that it was “okay.”

1. BUDGET. Do a zero-based budget where you spend every dollar of income on paper before the month begins. This is the absolutely most important key to a healthy financial plan, because guess what? Then you HAVE a financial plan! And you plan your impulses!

2. CASH. Use cash wherever possible for purchases. When the cash runs out, no more purchases. You already know what you were going to have money for because you did the budget first. If you want to blow some money on impulses, that’s great. Plan to blow some money. Do it on purpose, in advance, and curb the “spend more than you make” habits.

Thanks, Leo. Fantastic, as usual.