• Use a small lined-notebook, if you do not have one you can buy one for less than 50₵ at a local pharmacy.
  
  
• Whether the current month has 28, 30, or 31 days, keep a record of every penny you spend each day. Include even the smallest amounts:
  
  
• Fees charged at the ATM machine. Postage stamps used on bills and other correspondence. All shopping: groceries, gasoline, gifts: purchases for loved ones, friends, colleagues, employees, employers, your children’s friends, school-teachers. Include every cent you spend on yourself: clothes, shoes, purses, beauty salon, nail-care, makeup, etc.
  
  
• Eating out (write down tips), school lunches, snacks and drinks, don’t forget items from vending machines, including bottled water.
  
  
• If you don’t pay your credit-card bill in full each month, then, in addition to the amount you pay monthly on the card (minimum amount—or more), make sure to include the monthly amount of interest charged on each credit card you own. 

• At the end of each week go through your notebook! Next to each expense write an N for items that you absolutely needed, or a W for items you wanted, but did not necessarily need.
  
  
• At the end of each week, total the amount of money you spent on the items listed under W.
  
  
• At the end of the month, add together the 4 weekly totals you have listed under W; this will give you a Grand Total of money spent unnecessarily during the course of the month.
  
  
• At the end of the month, take the Grand Total and multiply that amount by 12, this will give you the sum of money that you have spent unnecessarily over the year, money which could be invested yearly for your future.

Spending unnecessarily comes easy to women:

1) for centuries women have nurtured others instead of themselves

2) millions of women purchase items for themselves but experience “buyer’s remorse,” and even though they mean to return the “stuff”, choose not to find time to complete the task.

Let’s say that over the course of one year you spend $14.43 weekly on items for you, family, friends, etc., none of which was necessarily needed.

Let’s say, also,that you believe that $14.43 a week is too small an amount of money to contribute toward an investment ... Not so!

If you saved $14.43 each week ($750 a year) for 30 years at 6% interest you would have $59,537; the Compound Interest alone would be $37,037.

Check out the chart below! On the left, under N; evaluate the items that were needed, which cost $750.00

Look also on the right-hand side of the chart under W, at the additional $750.00 that was spent … unnecessarily.