That’s a wrap, folks!

It’s now officially March, and you know what that means? My no-spend month is officially over!

I can’t say that I’m glad that it’s over, or that I’m sad that it’s over. My feelings about the month are, apparently, neither here nor there. But I do feel like the month (and also writing about said month here) made me reevaluate my relationship with money and make some changes for the better.

But before we get into all of that, here’s a rundown of the past week:

February 21st

On President’s Day, I didn’t spend any money — even though I was off work. I spent some time in the mountains with my mom, and luckily she paid for my lunch. It was a good, albeit cold and snow-covered, day.

February 22nd

This was the start of an absolutely frigid week here in Colorado, so that helped me resist the urge to spend. I didn’t go anywhere and I didn’t spend any money on Tuesday.

February 23rd

The same goes for Wednesday — no money spent, and no need to really leave the house with all the cold and blowing snow.

February 24th

Thursday made me realize that I need to have some strategies in place for when the day goes awry. I was doing very well with limiting my spending most of the day — that is until a migraine hit after work. I can’t do much when I have a migraine — it literally affects my ability to see what’s right in front of me — so I ordered food. If I had some really easy-to-make meals in the freezer, though, it wouldn’t have been any trickier to place one in the microwave than place a Doordash order. Lesson learned.

February 25th

On Friday, I had two tasks on my to-do list — get groceries and get a haircut. I accomplished both, but that, unfortunately, meant I spent more money after breaking my streak on Thursday.

February 26th

On Saturday I didn’t spend anything, though I started doing some online perusing in preparation for payday on the 28th (not a good call — I know, I know!)

February 27th

I purchased some more groceries on Sunday — there are certain products that are just better at certain stores, you know what I mean? Other than that, though, my Sunday was free of any other spending.

So, what have I learned?

The whole point of my no-spend February was to teach myself that I can abstain from spending. Online shopping doesn’t need to be my go-to when I’m bored or have a bad day, and, more often than not, what’s in my closet or my pantry will do.

In this regard, I think the month was a success. Did I completely stop purchasing unnecessary items cold turkey? No. But did I start to pay more attention to my spending habits and, consequently, start to reign those habits in? Definitely yes.

It’s March, and I’m already noticing how much more cognizant I am of my spending. I’ve even started a new budgeting system today where I can track my income and expenses for the month in the hopes of making improvements. I’m taking my budget from the scribbled pages of a notebook to an actual spreadsheet, everyone. Be impressed — I’m pretty impressed with myself, if I’m honest.

My no-spend month wasn’t a success strictly on paper because I did, in fact, spend during the month. But it was a success in other ways — it changed my mindset, reset my bank account, and has made me actually excited to challenge my spending habits more long-term. And that is all a win in my book. A big, big win.

Previously published on Medium