Come here Money Monster!

Raise your hand if better money management was one of your New Years Resolutions.  How are you doing with that a month in?  

Like so many today, that was one of my biggest resolutions.  I made it to save more, pay off debt, and consume less (remember the Story of Stuff?).  Much to my husband's dismay, I have never been good at managing money.  I was never really taught how.  But this year I am succeeding!  

Part of it is my newfound dedication to benefiting the planet through consumption of less new stuff, heck, less stuff in general.  But another big part of it is the fact that found this handy online tool called Mint.  Have you seen this?  It's a free online budgeting service that links your money directly to an online budget that you create. 

This has been incredible for me because I am a visual person, and this allows me to see in pie and bar graphs (I know, I never would have dreamt I would be excited about graphs) what money has been spent, where, and how much I have left for the month.  

This is a great motivator to spend less.  Nothing is better than seeing the money spent line behind the days of the month line.  It's a great motivator to consume less.   And as if that wasn't enough, it's great for the planet because it is a paper-free way to help you keep your resolutions and become a smarter consumer, or non-consumer.

Have you done something like this?  Does it help you?  Any other helpful tips on embracing the money monster?

Oh, and if you are in need of some great stuff that is earth-friendly on the cheap, check out Ecosteals.  A new website launching tomorrow that sells one green product at a time at a 40%-80% discount until it's gone (holy discount Batman!).  Visit the website and sign-up for email notifications.   Even if you don't need it, it's cool to window shop and see how many Mama E lovin' options there really are.

I am off to the handmade art market today.  I am so excited and will post on it soon.  Y'all have a great Saturday!