1. Do you currently live within your financial means (meaning you are consistently spending at or below your monthly income?) What factors contribute to your answer?
I'm barely living within my financial means. We've been paying off debt and repairing our credit reports for awhile now, and even though hubby and I's combined income is double that of most of our friends, we're still pinching pennies to get by on most occasions. We've only got a few more months to go though, and our debt will be paid (minus the car payment but that doesn't count)! I think all the time we've spent pinching pennies will be very worth it!
2. What luxuries, if any, do you allow yourself? Could you give them up and still feel fulfilled?
I give myself some small luxuries, but I'm not a very material person. I budget a small amount every month for my bath & body fetish. Most girls have a shoe fetish. I have a handmade soap and lotion fetish. I also budget for computer parts on occasion because hubby and I can't live without our computers!
3. Imagine that for 12 months, you were forced to live on an income that is half of what you currently make right now. What steps would you have to take to insure all of your basic needs were met?
At this point, I'd honestly have to stop paying the credit card bills. That's the only way we could make it. Once our debt is paid off in a few months I could live with less than half of the income we have now. It's amazing to take a look at how much we spend paying off things every month.
Bonus Question:
Do you have any financial tips or strategies that you would be willing to share?
Whatever you do don't ever put something on the credit card because you think you'll have the cash for it before the bill comes in. There will always be something that will prevent you from paying it.
Definitely create a budget and stick to it. By budgeting you'll end up saving a lot more than you can imagine.
Always put at least 5% (preferably 10%) of your earnings into savings every week. You'll be surprised that you don't even miss it.
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