6 Things I'm Done Spending My Money On

Look, I'll say it: I'm not great at financial stuff. I'm just... not. I don't know where to begin, I'm paying off a bunch of credit card debt, & I have a soft spot for shopping on bad days. I'm trying to get better about it because the idea of being a full-fledged adult with so ncushion is terrifying, but it continues to be a struggle for me.

In an effort to save some dollah bills in the year to come, here are a few items I've decided to stop paying for. Most of these were easy decisions, & I don't think I'll miss having these things in my life. In fact, writing them down like this, I'm excited to kick them to the curb & pocket the money I'd usually be spending on them to save for something else - like, you know, the future. Or a trip to Thailand.

I told you I'm not good at this, OK?

1. Spotify Premium 

   I haaaate listening to music with commercials, so paying $10 a month for Spotify Premium seemed like an easy solution to avoiding one of my biggest pet peeves. But that was when I lived in D.C. & took public transportation everywhere - & it was also before I discovered podcasts. These days, I listen to the radio or The Shepod when I drive, & I find myself listening to Spotify very rarely. When I do, I can suck up the stray commercial or two if it means saving $120 a year.
    

2. Weekday booze 

   This is a good one to cut down on both for my wallet and my waistline. Mike & I do all kinds of fun things around Cleveland, but going out often means going all out, ordering an appetizer & a craft beer along with our meals. I'm committing to not buying alcohol at restaurants anymore, & if I do, it will be just one (like when I'm at a happy hour or trivia night). I'm not sure how much this will save me, but surely it's a good call, right?
    

3. Books 

   My librarian mom & bibliophile boyfriend are probably gasping in horror right now, but fret not, dear ones! I'm just not buying anymore books - because it is so easy to get them for free & on the cheap elsewhere. I've started taking advantage of Amazon's Kindle First program, which gives me one free new book a month, & I have four library cards, which makes it easy to check out tangible books & borrow Kindle books through OverDrive, which curbs my occasional late-night, "I want to read thus-&-such book right now" syndrome. Not sure how much it'll save me, but I have a feeling I'm about to do more reading! (That reminds me: Are we friends on GoodReads?)
    

4. POPSUGAR MustHave Box 

   You already know about this because I wrote a no-holds-barred rant last month about my waning love for this company. December was my first month in two years without a MustHave Box, & while I thought I'd miss it, I really didn't - & I missed it even less when Stephanie sent me angry tweets & photos about how crappy this month's box was. A quick scroll through the company's social media accounts tells me we're not the only ones unhappy with their customer service, & while I miss the way the boxes used to be, I'm happy to have another $40 in my pocket each month.
    

5. A top-tier health insurance plan 

   For the last whole-knows-how-many years, I've been paying for my organization's Tier III health insurance plan, which is the "best" & therefore the most expensive. The reason for this? I am a hypochondriac with significant back problems & some low-grade mental health needs. But also, I'm lazy, & figuring out the differences between everything seems time-consuming & difficult. I'd rather just pay more for the convenience of, well, the convenience. But this year, our insurance options changed, & the middle-tier option sounds just fine. I'm switching down & will save more than $200 a month!
    

6. Feedly Pro 

   My reasons for cutting this service are similar to my reasons for cutting Spotify premium: I thought I'd "need" it more than I do. I let my account for Feedly Pro, an RSS reader, lapse this month, & though they're still running a holiday special that would allow me to renew for $45 instead of $65, I just don't find myself using the added features enough to justify the cost for another year. The free version is treating me just fine so far.

What about you? How do you save money & what else should I cut?!