If you do what you always did, you'll get what you always got!

This is my favorite quote - hands down!

"If you do what you always did, you'll get what you always got!"

At various times in my life I think back to this quote and how I love it. I wanted to share it with you guys because it's perfectly appropriate for those of us in debt. It's actually a great quote for anyone who needs change in their life. Look at it closely:

If you do what you always did...

Fill in the blank. It could be anything really - shopping, smoking, drinking, eating, gambling, etc.

you'll get what you always got.

You're going to get the same results! Over and over again. Bad habits are a vicious cycle. Take it from me, I know. Isn't it true that doing something over and over and expecting a different result is the definition of insanity?!? You've got to stop the bad behavior to initiate change. That's why some finance people tell you NOT to consolidate your debt because you won't learn to stop the bad behavior that got you in debt in the first place. I believe that's true. My opinion is that only with old fashioned hard work will you be able to live a changed life.

So, the next time you find yourself about to do the thing that you are looking to change, take a moment and remember this quote. You may still decide to do it, but taking that moment to consciously make the decision is important, instead of doing it on autopilot. Over time you may find yourself thinking about it a little longer and maybe one day you will make a different decision (the right one) and break the cycle. Only then will you get to enjoy a different outcome, a better one.

Lessons Learned : Change is good, change is growth, change is what is going to get you to where you want to be.

Taxes... one down, one big one to go!

So today we paid our state taxes off! $1,794. Done. The check is sent in and this bad memory is behind us! I felt good writing the check out and dropping the envelope in the mail. Now we're focused on paying off the IRS. I can only imagine how good that one is gonna feel! It's going to take a little longer to get that one in since it's $5,272. I plan to send in what we can before the 18th and then our stretchhhh goal is to pay the remainder with my last check this month on the 29th. However, that may be challenging with our upcoming move (and the costs associated with that) so luckily we have some time since our grace period takes us until the beginning of June.

I'm hoping this good feeling continues and we stay motivated to follow our budget and continue to pay things off! Now that we have an end date (December 2012) there is some light at the end of the tunnel.


Lesson Learned : Don't mess around with your tax withholdings, it's not worth it! You'll probably end up owing later...

Is everything "free" worth taking?

I tend to say "yes" to a lot of things I'm offered, especially when they are free! But, as I'm starting to learn... maybe not everything free is worth taking?!? Gasp, I know! This past weekend, for example, we were offered free tickets to see Shirley MacLaine put on a show. I automatically said "yes!" thinking it would be a fun night out. I'm not even really too sure about what she does in a live show, I just thought it would be a fun, free night out for the hubby and I. I remember watching her over and over in Terms of Endearment when I was a kid. I loved that movie! I figured, whatever she did had to be worth seeing. My husband, on the other hand, had NO INTEREST AT ALL.

We were also given free tickets to a local gem faire and a home and garden show for this past weekend too! Of course, I took all of the free tickets thinking how lucky we were to have received so many free things for one fun-filled weekend. Not really thinking how we aren't really into gems or kinda get depressed when we go to home and garden shows since it reminds us of what we can't really afford right now.

My husband had a very valid point, why spend the gas money to go to something we weren't really interested in, just to be tempted to spend money that we don't really have, on items that we don't really need? Um, yeah, that kinda sums it all up.

So, in the end, although we scored free tickets, we didn't end up using any of them! I felt a bit guilty since I'm sure there are people who would have taken the tickets and found great pleasure in attending the events. It just wasn't us for whatever reason.

Question : Do you find yourself accepting free items (tickets or otherwise) just because it's free and not necessarily because you'll actually use it?

Lesson Learned : Think before accepting something that's free. It may not be my cup of tea and that's okay.

Confession...

I just updated my debt numbers in my "Status Updates" section on the right side of my blog. This is the first update since I started the blog in September. I was kinda postponing this since 1) I was super busy in October with the wedding and stuff and 2) I was embarrassed. Truth be told, we charged more than we should have for our wedding, so not only did our balances actually increase, but we also put items on another credit card. Phew, glad to be honest and get that off my chest. Ouch though! I knew things would cost a bit but was surprised by how expensive some items were and unfortunately I didn't appropriately budget enough to cover all of the incidentals that arose. Lesson learned. Enough said.

So, our new total debt balance comes to... $60,926.30. With the wedding behind us, a new budget in place and a ton of motivation, I truly believe that this will be the highest our debt will ever reach! I look forward to more positive status updates in the future :)

Open Your Mail

This past weekend I spent several hours going through old "junk" mail, catalogs, and miscellaneous paperwork, in an effort to get the house cleaned before our trip so we can come home to a half way decent place. While going through the paperwork, I found some good news. We tend to get lots of offers for Vegas - free places to stay, free concerts, free food, etc. Most of the offers just get tossed in a pile, never to be looked at or used. However, since we're having our wedding there on 10/10/10, I should have looked through the pile before booking our room.

When I first tried to book an offer online with a special discount code they provide, I was only able to get a room at the cheapest place in this family of casinos and they only comped us for 2 of the 3 nights we plan to be there. I was kinda bummed, but blaimed myself for not moving quicker once we knew what the date was going to be. I tried to make the most of it and told myself that I was going to love the big bed with the mirror over it and the huge "luv tub" in the room! However, I've stayed there before and felt kinda dirty afterward, so in the back of my mind I was hoping something else may come through.

Then, last week (pre-cleaning spree!) I found a hard coupon for 4 nights free. I figured I'd give them a call to see what we could do. The lady on the phone was an absolute doll and said she wouldn't let me stay at this place for my wedding night - if at all possible! She looked at all the other hotels and they were either booked, or charging something to stay. Since I really didn't want to pay anything for our lodging, she said the best she could do would be to comp all 3 nights (in the same hotel) and upgrade our room. Yay! I was happy with that.

On Sunday, I took the time to actually open all of my old mail and found 2 other great offers. One was for a free $50 gift card, when you check in, if you book your free stay under that code. The other was for a free room and our choice of free show tickets to see Cher, Barry Manilow, Rita Rudner or Donny and Marie! This one sounded intriging since I'd been wondering what free events we could do while in Vegas to keep us out of trouble. We've seen Rita before and she's a good laugh. Donny and Marie are a bit before our time. Although Barry is timeless, we both felt that Cher is one of those icons that you can't miss if you have the opportunity. Kinda like Michael Jackson was, or Madonna. We both agreed that we should try to get the free Cher tickets.

So, with my fingers crossed, I called today and spoke with this very kind woman who also wanted me to get out of my current hotel to something a bit nicer. She hooked me up with a suite at a better hotel (not the best, but definitely a step up) and 2 tickets to Cher! Originally we asked to see the Saturday night show, but it was sold out, so we took the Sunday night tickets instead. This will actually work out great, because our wedding is at 5pm and the show starts at 7:30. We'll have the limo drop us off right at the concert and we'll be able to enjoy the show all dressed to the nines. It's not that often you get to make (free) memories like these, so we're excited!

Lesson Learned : Open your damn mail! There could be good stuff in there. Had I not finally opened the mail and called about this great offer, we would've been in an older hotel that made me feel dirty and not looking forward to a wonderful night watching a legend perform!

My Gas Mishap!

I stopped for gas last night at a place that I don't normally go to. I used my credit card to pay. When I happened to call today to see what the balance was on the account, it was higher than I expected. I questioned the charges and found out that a charge for $75 worth of gas was put through last night, instead of the $12.50 that I actually spent on gas! Luckily, I still had my receipt as evidence. Although it was torn up, I was able to tape it back together. (I am a pack rat by nature, so just this past weekend - after spending 4 hours tossing unnecessary paperwork that I have kept - I decided to really work on getting rid of any unnecessary papers in the future... good thing I hadn't tossed this one yet!)

So, first off, finding a telephone number for a gas station is harder than finding Waldo in one of those books. After a few misses, I finally got the right number. It took 3 calls to finally be able to speak with the manager directly. He was clueless as to what the reason may be. He said that they don't normally put holds that high for gas on credit cards. He planned to call his corporate office and see what's up, meanwhile, I planned to call the credit card company back.

In my return call to the credit card company they said that there is nothing they can do for 72 hours, until it actually "posts" to my account. So, now I wait to see if it will go through for the correct amount or what... we shall see!?!

Lesson Learned : Pay for your gas with cash! It's much less of a hassle when mistakes happen.

It figures...

So, no joke - moments after I publish my first post and I start feeling proud of myself that I am making some progress and on the way to financial freedom... a co-worker enters my office and sweetly asks me to check out a catalog of gift items for a fundraiser at her child's school. Aghhhhh! Of course, I smiled and enthusiastically said, "Yes, I'd love to!" What I was thinking in my head was more like: "No effin' way! Did you know that I am about $60K in debt?!?" or "I don't even have kids, what gives you the idea that I'd want to fund your kid's school?" or "Are you kidding, you make way more than me! There's no way I can afford anything in there." But no, instead I took a look through the "catalog of crap" (as I fondly refer to them as) and prayed that the selection would be more than just a bunch of cheap chocolates and lousy holiday wrapping paper. I was pleasantly surprised to see that they now offer magazines! Not that I need a subscription to any, but my fiance loves to peruse Entertainment Weekly while in the bathroom (I know... TMI!). So, I spent $20 and I ordered a subscription for him. Hopefully it will start around the holiday and I can chalk that up to a gift for him.

As I begin this journey and come across situations like that (as I'm sure there will be more), I'm going to try to find a gem of wisdom to learn from. I figure this path won't be easy and I'll have to be prepared to handle these situations as they arise.

Lesson Learned : Although it may not be comfortable, come up with a nice way to decline when asked to donate money or purchase items that are not needed. (Preferably without having to share my financial situation.) Make it my "go to" phrase when those situations arise. Learn how to kindly, but comfortably say "No".

Question : What is your "go to" phrase when asked to spend money that you really shouldn't?