Look at your bank statement from last month. Find out how much you are spending on food each month.
Part 1-
In order to measure your savings on food, you need to find out how much you are currently spending. Find your most current bank statement. With a highlighter pen, highlight every expense that involves food. This will include vending machines, fast food restaurants, convenience stores i.e. 7-11, etc., grocery stores, food warehouses i.e. Costco, Sam’s Club, Walmart, fine dining establishments, etc.
Add up the expenses and come up with a total. Now you have a tangible number to beat! If you are currently spending $859/month for food, work to reduce that number by even $25, $50, $100 next month. Start with baby steps. It will take time to change behavior patterns while you are developing new habits. Allow yourself time to make adjustments – ones that you can keep for the rest of your life.
Part 2-
If you are willing to do a little extra work, go back two, three or four months with your bank statements and do the same exercise that you did with your most current bank statement. See if the numbers are consistent. If it fluctuates a lot, average all the numbers together.
Example: If June’s Food Bill Totaled: $750, July’s Food Bill Total: $874, August’s Food Bill Total: $690
Total food bill for 3 months: $2314
$2314 divided by 3 months = $771.33
$771.33 is the number to beat each month!
Money Saving Tip: You now have a NUMBER to measure your success by. Whether it’s good, bad or downright ugly, EVERYONE has to start somewhere if they expect to be successful. Plan to lower that number each month - EVEN if it’s only by a small amount. Be consistent, stay focused and work to keep lowering that number a little further each month. Make sure you can keep a record of how much you spend each month. Your bank statement should keep track of ALL your food spending. Don’t pay cash for food unless you can keep track of your expenses.
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