Tips like these helped us pay off $127K in debt. You can read our story in Slaying the Debt Dragon: How One Family Conquered Their Money Monster and Found an Inspired Happily Ever After.
Welcome to 31 Debt Free Missions! This year on Queen of Free, during each day in January, we will provide 31 concrete debt free missions or challenges for you to take on to #SlayDebt and take charge of your finances this year. Each mission will take you less than an hour (some will only require 15 minutes). Whereas, 31 Ways to Kick Debt in the Teeth (which I’m reworking this year and reposting in January, too) focused on some of the philosophical changes you need to make in order to be successful with money, 31 Debt Free Missions are action steps to put into place after you have your thinking straight. Even better, during the month of January, we’re revisiting each of these challenges in order to sharpen our money saving and debt slaying skills.
Are you ready? Your mission is as follows:
Day #17: Kill the Fees
Want to step inside a little money mystery with me? Come closer, I don’t want you to miss it. Lean in or else you won’t hear.
Err’body else wants your MONEY.
That ATM fee seems so small but adds up.
Banks aren’t your friends. They are businesses.
Stores don’t care about how much you save. They care about how much you spend.
Your utility companies pump heat, light, and water into your home on a regular basis but exist to make a profit.
Your cell phone and subscription based services are PRAYING you go overboard and go beyond your allotted minutes.
Fees can eat you alive.
So today, let’s make a commitment together to kill the fees. Because if I’m honest, I have one fee that gets me almost every. single. stinking. month (more on that later). Here are some strategies to keep your feet from falling when it comes to fees.
QUIT SEEING FEES AS INCONSEQUENTIAL
$2 here, $3 there. It just doesn’t seem like that big of a deal right? If you withdraw $20 from the ATM and are charged $3 to do so, you are paying 15% MORE for your money. Seriously. If someone said they were going to charge you 15% interest you would not think that was a great deal. Why are you paying 15% for your own money? Head to an ATM of your own bank. Go out of your way. And stop seeing any fee as inconsequential. Your debt can be paid off $0.19 at a time.
SET A REMINDER ON YOUR PHONE
True confession: I can never remember to pay the water bill on time. Seriously. I organize nine million details a week. I get children to school on time and fix dinner. I donate snacks for the PTO and make sure the yearbook gets ordered. We all make it to church on time. I can remember prices at the grocery store and my best friend from fifth grade’s phone number. But for the life of me I can’t remember to pay that dumb bill on time. It’s always 2-3 days late. This year, I’m committing to setting a reminder on my phone each month to stay on track.
SET A BOUNDARY
I have a very teeny tiny data plan for my smart phone that I just got less than a year ago. I primarily use the internet when I’m on WiFi and only turn on the mobile data when absolutely necessary. But even still, I want to be sure that I don’t go over my plan. So, I’ve set my phone to turn off the services so that it’s impossible. Whatever user based, minute based, subscription based service you might use, be sure to go NOW and set a boundary so that it’s impossible for you to overspend.
LOG ON EVERYDAY
You know that I’m a fan of beginning each day with a cup of budget. Everyday, while you’re eating breakfast, make it a goal to log on to your bank account and see exactly how much money is in there. Overdraft fees are a part of your past. In debt free land, there are no overdraft fees. Kick ’em in the teeth and say sayonara.
Kill the fees, friends. This mission is simple and doesn’t even require sacrifice.
Did you see the previous Debt Free Missions? Knock them all out this month!
- 31 Debt Free Missions: Take the Restaurant Challenge
- 31 Debt Free Missions: Run Your Credit Report
- 31 Debt Free Missions: Set Up a Tax Box
- 31 Debt Free Missions: 5 Memberships to Ditch
- 31 Debt Free Missions: Adjust Your Withholdings
- 31 Debt Free Missions: Quit Using Credit Cards
- 31 Debt Free Missions: Go to the Library
- 31 Debt Free Missions: Eliminate Cable
- 31 Debt Free Missions: Pantry Prep
- 31 Debt Free Missions: 3 Phone Calls to Pay Off Debt
- 31 Debt Free Missions: The Bank Field Trip
- 31 Debt Free Missions: Make Your Own Laundry Detergent
- 31 Debt Free Missions: Hit Unsubscribe
- 31 Debt Free Missions: Stop Money Leaks
- 31 Debt Free Missions: Maintain Your Car
- 31 Debt Free Missions: Save Money on Prescriptions
Do you have other fee killing money saving tips? Leave them in the comments!
My book is now available: Slaying the Debt Dragon: How One Family Conquered Their Money Monster and Found an Inspired Happily Ever After. You can also check out Inspiration to Pay Off Debt: 30 Days of Encouragement from the Queen of Free
This post contains an affiliate link. That means when you get a great deal or maybe even something for free, you also help our family pay off our mortgage early. And for that, we royally thank you!
