Dealing with Limits in the Economyby Mary Ann Romans | More from this Blogger 09 Feb 2009 07:51 AM
Dealing with limits can be difficult, especially if the concept is new to you. But it is important to take stock of your resources as soon as possible, so you know exactly where you stand. if you don't do that, you may continue to live within the limits you used to have and not the ones that really apply to your life today. Think of it all as various containers or cabinets in your life. Take the example of your garage. No matter how much stuff you might want to stuff in it, in the end it is a limited space. You either need to get rid of some stuff in order to fit new stuff, or find another place to store it. The same can be said of every expense that you might be dealing with. If you have to live on a certain amount per month (your container of stuff), then you have to make it work somehow. A larger food budget means a smaller entertainment budget, for example. If you can't give up your annual vacation no matter what, you may decide to exchange that for not buying anything new for a year or downsizing into a smaller place to live. The important thing here is to look at your limits as power, not deprivation. You have the control of how you will use your resources and the limits you will impose in each area. So you can determine what areas are most important to you and give them a larger space or amount. By establishing your limits yourself and early on, you reduce the chance that these limits will be forced upon you. I hope that makes sense! Mary Ann Romans writes about everything related to saving money in the Frugal Blog, creating a home in the Home Blog, caring for little ones in the Baby Blog and now relationships in the Marriage Blog. You can read more of her articles by clicking here or subscribe to the blog using the subscription box on the right. Favorite Deal Websites: Related Articles: Frugal Living: Have a Half Day 6 Ways to Reduce Our Use of Paper Products Learn more about Mary Ann Romans  Mary Ann Romans is a freelance writer, wife and mother of three children. She lives in Pennsylvania with her husband, the kids and a 16-pound cat. Relevantfrugal tags User Comments Memartha (306) 09 Feb 2009 04:32 PMTaking charge in hard times is empowering! :-)  Dale Harcombe (10399) 09 Feb 2009 07:10 PMIt actually has the added bonus of helping build a marriage too. http://marriage.families.com/blog/recession-effects-on-marriage-your-choice  Mary Ann Romans (26886) 10 Feb 2009 06:45 AMI agree Memartha! So many people worry about the lack of control they feel in this economy, but it could bring out the best in you. Community Tags budget, depression, economy, frugal living, marriage, money, recession, recession and marriage Discuss this article
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