Because it all adds up!
How little is too little? I was thinking about that the other day in regards to coupons. Several years ago I left a $0.25 cent coupon on the kitchen counter of a patient’s home. At the time I was working as a nurse doing in-home care for (what were classified as) highly skilled pediatric patients. Being in a person’s home for sometimes 40 hours a week, you can’t help but to become a little bit like family, especially more so as the years go by. Such was the case with this patient and his family. While I would never meddle in their personal business, simply by being in their home, it was easy to pick up on certain things. Money was tight for them, as it is for a lot of families caring for a loved one at home. As a caregiver, you quickly learned what the insurance covered and what they family purchased out of their own pocket. This $0.25 coupon was for an item the family regularly purchased…and they purchased a lot of it.
So I left this coupon that I personally didn’t have any use for on their kitchen counter. To this day I will never forget the patient’s dad coming home from work and seeing that coupon on the counter. Shaking his head in seemingly disgust he said, “Wow. A quarter.” Pretty sure there was an eye roll there too. For just a split second I felt a tad embarrassed for having left this coupon. But since I had also gotten to know the family so well, my response was something to the effect of “Yep, it’s a quarter! And it’s one less you now have to spend! It all adds up!”
Even that many years ago, I knew how saving little amounts of money could add up. Unfortunately I wasn’t paying much any attention when it came to spending these same seemingly small amounts of money. Only a very small portion of our debt actually came from making large purchases. Some of it was the result of home improvements and no doubt there were auto repairs (emergencies, right?) but I feel it is safe to say that most of it came from not paying attention to the little amounts of money. Our debt was the result of years and years of a dollar here, a dollar there type of thing. On a side note to this coupon story, my former patient’s mother did eventually start using them a lot more regularly, which I’m sure saved them quite a bit of money.
This blog could have just as easily been called A Penny at a Time or A Nickel at a Time or A Quarter at a Time. You can see the pattern. I just liked the ring of A Dime at a Time, plus it was an available domain name in my price range…free with hosting! 😉 The point still being, no matter how small the amount, when you have a savings goal or in my case, a goal to get out of debt, it ALL adds up! Don’t look at any amount as being insignificant. Pennies add up to nickels, which then add up to dimes, and then to quarters…and it keeps going! Everything that you can throw at your goal, no matter how small, gets you just a little closer to reaching what you are striving for. So don’t be like my former patient’s father and look at it as only a quarter. And don’t ever feel embarrassed, not even for one split second! Look at it as being one step closer to where you want to be!
What got you to where you are now? Was it large purchases or all the seemingly small amounts of this and that? No matter where you are in your journey, by paying attention to the little things, you CAN reach your goals….A Dime at a Time!
Our debt was all little purchases too!!! It is absolutely amazing how fast a few dollars here and there can add up to big financial trouble. I’m SO glad you tackled this subject. Just like all of those dimes got us into debt, amassing dimes will get us out of debt. It really does all add up!
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Thanks Laurie. Wish I’d learned this lesson sooner myself! Having now seen how these small amounts put us into debt, fortunately we also now know that doing the reverse can also help us get out of debt! Keep chipping away at it!
A Dime at a Time is a rhyme–catchy. I am so aware of the smallest of purchases. Even when I do spend that small amount I am painfully aware and kicking myself. On the other hand, this woman who cannot find a job or just menial part-time work spends a dollar on a bottle of water because she liked the shape of the bottle. Then, she has to bum cigarettes. She lost the bottle the second day she had it. I don’t want to talk about how she spends money every time I see her. However, I told her she needs to learn a little money management skills, especially concerning spending small amounts because “its only a dollar.”
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If people would only learn! A dollar is STILL a dollar! Crazy what people will spend money on…I know because I’ve done it! Happily changing my ways!
A Dime at a Time rhymes 🙂 Your response to that patient’s dad was probably exactly what I would have said too. Our debt was big purchases – when we filed bankruptcy we only had $500 in personal credit card debt to include. The rest was DH’s business equipment loans and a business line of credit. If we had been smarter we would have incorporated his business when he started, rather than just being a sole proprietor and then wouldn’t have had to declare bankruptcy :/
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I think the fact that the name rhymes is a big part of why I liked it. Only $500…you obviously showed managed your personal finances well! As they say, hindsight is 20/20. At least after this experience you know what not to do in the future!
I have one of the giant water bottles that my daughters job was giving away ages ago. I put all my ones and in there at the end of the week and every bit of change at the end of the day. Change I find goes in there of course and there is even a 5.00 or two floating around in there. I checked it this weekend and I have 66.08 in there. Nope not taking it to the bank it went back into the jar and in December I will empty it and pay off a bill hopefully. I don’t have to many left so it should pay something. But all change and ones add up!
Yes it does! Such a great feeling paying off debt! Keep up the good work!
You are absolutely right. I just transferred $3 to our mortgage payment from a rebate I got. I have made a personal vow to myself that anytime I get reimbursed for something or whatever I will put it to debt or the mortgage. It isn’t much but adds up to a few hundred bucks per year, but every dollar saves me one hour of freedom.
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Love it! Those small amounts do add up and like you said, it does bring you closer to freedom! I am doing the same thing with rebates, unexpected money, etc. I don’t miss it and it does help knock down debt.
I used to get caught up in this trap, ‘ooh look it is only a dollar’
I kind of still do a little, though I’ve started carrying the items around the shops with me and browsing more to give myself some time to think if I really need it, or if it was an impulse because I thought it was a bargain.
Most of the time now it ends up back on the shelf before I leave the store.
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I’ve done the exact same thing! A bargain isn’t always a bargain if you don’t actually need the item. Then again, I’ll also find myself questioning how much enjoyment I’d get out of the item. 99% of the time, it ends right back on the shelf! Thanks for stopping by and also for your comment.