Financial Fasting

“The best of all medicines is fasting and resting” – Benjamin Franklin

I am on a fast. I do it from time to time and find it very beneficial. I think the main benefit for me is a reset. Fasting is like walking through a vast dessert knowing you will reach a fantastic destination on the other side. And the first meal after a fast…so delicious!

You can also fast or take a rest from consumption. A financial fast can give you a great reset on habitual swiping every place you go, where your money flies out from your account and you have no idea where it went.

With all our conveniences it is easy to spend more than we intend. Financial fasts can help with that. They also help you appreciate what you have and ways to make things work for a little while longer as opposed to just going out and purchasing something else.

Financial fasts are also called ‘no spend days’ (or weeks, months or years). If you do not want that type of extreme challenge, I suggest trying a ‘no spend’ day every week. This is a nice and gentle way to ease you into a financial fast without feeling scarcity.

It can also facilitate creativity in your lifestyle – if you are not going to a restaurant or mall that day – what will you do? Go to a park, have a movie night, games night, or have coffee home with friends, the list is really endless. One day a week where you are not allowed to spend will facilitate this big change in mindset.

If you want more of a challenge, or you have a specific savings goal, I would suggest a no spend week or even a month. These are great to do after holidays. You can make up your own rules, but I will suggest some:

• Most of us cannot practically stop spending all together, so make a list of what is excluded from the financial fast, such as: mortgage, utilities, taxes, loan payments, and gas.
• Unless you live on a farm, you will need to spend on food, but decide how much you want to spend and what is excluded (like take out & restaurants).
• Decide on a timeline, and a reward for yourself (maybe it is the goal you are working towards).
• You can also track the money you save during your financial fast, which can be really satisfying.

I do not recommend doing this too much, as fasting to much can starve the body, financial fasting too much can needlessly erode quality of life and put you in scarcity consciousness. But doing it periodically will add to your financial health and abundance in so many ways. I have more details on optimizing budgeting in my book.

Just like a traditional fast, a financial fast can also provide great benefits but with the safety-net of not having to experience an actual financial crisis. Like both types of fasts, the mental experience of humbling gratitude and reassuring self-fortitude of emerging from the metaphorical desert are great reasons; but you also get the physical benefits as well; and who doesn’t want more money?

Do you do financial fasts?

Disclaimer: This article if for educational purposes only and is not personal financial advice.