This data is entered into the Daily Weigh-In Form, which I introduced last posting. Here's the form again:Let's focus on the concept of necessity.In the fourth column, you assign each purchase a Necessity Score: 0 if the purchase is totally unnecessary, 1/3 if it's not very necessary, 2/3 if it's pretty necessary, and 1 if it's entirely necessary.There is
Cheap Oakley, of course, a certain subjectivity to assigning necessity scores; the decision will depend to some extent on your psychological awareness, even on your existing debt level and your present and future expenses. But here's a rough guide. If you fell and broke your leg during the week, the check to the orthopedist would be entirely necessary; you'd give that a Necessity Score of 1.
Try doing your family's back to school preparations in advance this year and enjoy the rest of summer break, stress-free!
School Supplies - Most school's update their school supplies lists on their websites well in advance of school starting. I print lists for each child and then comparison shop online for the best prices. If you don't have time to comparison shop (or don't feel like it), Walmart generally has very competitive prices and they are well-stocked on everything.
Clothing - I start by cleaning out the kids' closets and drawers. While I'm cleaning I take inventory of what still fits and make of list of what they need. I then enter that list of shorts, pants, shirts, socks, underwear and shoes into a simple spreadsheet. I print this and keep it in my purse as a convenient checklist while we shop.
Summer break may not officially be over for another month, but I'm getting a leg up on our family's back-to-school preparations. Years past have taught me something, plan for it early and get it done!
So, what exactly do my back to school preparations involve? Well, they mainly lie in three areas: Clothing, School Supplies and Scheduling.
Scheduling - Back to school is the time of year that our family calendar "blows up". With all of the drop-offs, pick-ups, practices, car pools and bus routes to keep track of for three kids, it's no wonder! Getting as much of this information as possible in advance of the start of the school year helps me to prepare for how my husband and I will split up the drives, contact other parents to arrange for car pools and determine what time each child's bedtime and wake-up needs to be. The earlier I get it all in the schedule, the sooner I can identify conflicts and resolve them.
We may think our wants equal our needs. In other words, that we just have to have a certain pair of shoes or gadget to be happy, successful, etc. While this can seem simple when we're talking about basic needs like shelter and food, it can get murky when we're looking at other items. Here's an easy way to really get conscious about determining the difference between a need and want.Weighing In is a technique for cutting through the financial fog that envelops so many overshoppers. Weighing In involves the disciplined recording of purchases-and something more. You also categorize each purchase, choosing from a master list that groups expenses into logical bins: Home, Food
Cheapest Oakley, Clothing
discount asics cumulus, Entertainment, Education, and so on. And you assign each purchase a Necessity Score, based on your dispassionate evaluation of how much you need it. (Need, not want.)
The advantages to doing it early are many - stores are well stocked with supplies, we can easily find the sizes we need for clothing and uniforms, we aren't stressed out by to-do's in the weeks leading up to school starting, the family calendar is made well in advance so we can work out any conflicts before they occur, and most importantly mom is happy that it's all taken care of.