Washington, DC — Saving money is one of the most difficult feats to perform in college, especially when attending a school located in the middle of a busy city, where there are places to waste money at every corner. At the beginning of every month, I tell myself: “No more fast food, no more ordering Ubers, and ABSOLUTELY no more impromptu shopping sprees.”
Unfortunately, I have failed to follow these guidelines every single time.
At the beginning of October, my dad gave me $200, for any emergencies I had or if I wanted to go out to eat once or twice. By Oct. 5, I was shocked to read that my account balance was $0.10. After four late-night runs to McDonald’s, two Ubers back and forth from a few off-campus parties, and a few hefty shopping sprees at local thrift stores, I was broke and I wasn’t even halfway through the month yet.
Check out the lessons learned from the budgeting fails.
- Step Number One: Keep track of the money you spend.
- Step Number Two: This next step may sound obvious, but here it is anyway: Try not to spend money on unnecessary things.
- Step Number Three: Borrow. Sometimes you don’t have to pay for certain things. They may be available to you free of charge.
- Step Number Four: Always leave spending money for leisure activities at the end of the month.
This guest post is in partnership with True Star Media.