52-Week Savings Challenge No. 52: Go On a Fiscal Fast

It’s finally week 52 of the 52-week savings challenge. Last week, GOBankingRates recommended you save $51 by becoming a mystery shopper.

The final installment of the 52-week saving challenge is here, and if you’ve made it this far, you’ve learned to scrimp, save, cut corners and go without — all as part of a year-long quest to boost your savings and reevaluate how you spend money.

But there is one more challenge you have to pass, and it’s the most extreme of all to date: the fiscal fast.

Invented by author, financial expert and “Ultimate Cheapskate” Jeff Yeager, the fiscal fast is exactly what the name implies — a period of self-deprivation of all things monetary. The challenge is to go a full week without spending any money at all — not a single penny. Don’t cheat by stocking up in advance on things you want, although you may stock up on things you need, like medicine, produce or formula for the baby.

During this period of want, you’ll redefine your relationship with your hard-earned money, you’ll discover how little it takes to get by really and you’ll be confronted with how much excess you’ve been squandering.

As a side bonus, you’ll rediscover how to entertain your family for free and you’ll use up all kinds of stuff around the house that’s been collecting dust — yes, even that fruitcake in the back of the pantry.

It won’t be easy and you’ll be certain to struggle, but when you start to waver or falter, take comfort in the fact that you are not alone. The GOBankingRate staff took the fiscal fast challenge a couple years back, and they came out the other end financially stronger and thriftier.

The fiscal fast is the perfect keystone to the 52-week savings challenge. You’ve already spent almost a whole year cutting back on spending, now cut it out altogether with this spending detox.

Week 51 << 52-Week Savings Challenge

This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: 52-Week Savings Challenge No. 52: Go On a Fiscal Fast

This article by Andrew Lisa first appeared on GoBankingRates.com and was distributed by the Personal Finance Syndication Network.