Try “Dry Buy” January

After the excesses of December, many people voluntarily partake in “dry January” and stop drinking alcohol to start the New Year on a sober, clearer and healthier note.  It’s not a bad idea especially if your New Year’s resolution is to sleep better and feel more energized. 

It’s also important to resolve to make your finances healthier in 2022. With all the indulgences in spending over December, you should try “dry buy” January. It’s an opportunity to give your debit and credit card a rest and challenge yourself to stop spending for one month. That’s 30/365 days which is totally doable.

It’s actually very easy to go “dry”. All it takes is willpower. Allow your automatic payments to come out of your account as usual such as rent, mortgage, car payments, insurances, loans and utilities. Then stash away your debit and credit cards for 31 days and watch your savings grow.

With some sort of restrictions imposed in most places in Canada, it’s a great chance to stop spending on going out (entertainment), ordering take out or eating out, shopping on-line and even cutting your monthly grocery bill. Guaranteed you already have some groceries at home you can eat. Maybe you just need to buy one or two items to fix something incredible.  Rise to the challenge. But why bother? The answer is because those December purchases will soon be due as well as your regular January living expenses. If you try “dry buy” January you can save money you would have otherwise spent and this can help you make those bill payments. It’s giving up something in the short term for a need rather than a want.   Even if you can’t stop spending for an entire month, at the very least, you can cut back on spending in January which may help you create a path to follow for next 11 months.    

Just like the notion of  “dry January”, you can start the year with the sobering idea that you are in control your finances and you have the ability to make them healthier. This should reduce your anxiety when it comes to money which will in turn improve your sleep, make you feel more energized and optimistic about what’s to come in 2022.