The Savings Meter Explained

Image courtesy of stockxpert.com

You may have noticed the little tally we have going at the top right of the blog. It's called the Savings Meter - and it represents the whole reason for writing this blog in the first place.

The Savings Meter will track our progress as we try different ways to cut the fat from our daily spending. It shows actual savings...and what I like to call "opportunity savings." Here's what I mean:

• Say we use a coupon to buy 2 movie tickets for a discounted price of $6.50 each (regular $9.25) - we add $5.50 in actual savings to the jar.
  
  
• Now, say we meet friends for dinner at a new restaurant. We're typically wine drinkers at a dinner like that. But, if Matt and I forgo the wine and stick with water, I'll add 20 bucks to the pot. (We had the opportunity to spend $20, but we didn't.)

See, it's all very scientific...and every penny counts. At the end of the year we'll donate a percentage of the total Savings Meter amount to a charity (TBD) that helps needy families in the Detroit area.

If you're trying to save money, too...why don't you play along with us? Come on, it'll be fun!

3-2-1 START YOUR METERS!

Let's All Make 2009 a Positive Cash Flow Year

During the ceremonial sharing of resolutions at the New Year's party we attended last night, our friend Andy resolved for 2009 to be a "positive cash flow" year. And we all had a good chuckle when his wife Krissie jokingly responded that her resolution was to spend as much money as possible.

All kidding aside - saving money is something we all want to do better this year. Even though our circle of friends and family are quite fortunate by comparison, we still feel the belt-tightening effects of declining 401Ks, upside-down mortgages and the looming threat of layoffs. Or, in my case, voluntary unemployment.

That's right...I couldn't have picked a better time to ditch the 9-5 and chase the dream of being a freelance copywriter. So, as Matt and I brace ourselves for the financial hit we're about to take, we'll use this blog to chronicle what we're doing to makeover our spending habits and share our best dollar-stretching tips. We hope you'll let us know what works for you, too.

With any luck (and a bit of self-discipline), we'll all be celebrating positive cash flow at this time next year.

Our very best wishes for a New Year rich in love, laughter and savings!