Welcome back to Scandalous Beauty! by Erin Baynham

Hi, I'm Erin. Today, I decided to take the leap and re-create the blog I really wanted to make. I've been in the beauty blogging space since 2005, and to be frank, I was OVER IT. I had this habit of trying to fit myself into a space that I should have left a long time ago. 

In the time since I shut down my original blog, I created two podcasts, Scandalous Beauty and Upgrade Your Influence.

The main reason I'm restarting this blog is because I've settled comfortably into a lifestyle of cleaning whenever I want, putting no effort into my looks and overall, just being annoyed with my life. NO MORE.

This blog will accomplish several things, but mostly, it's my personal motivating platform to have my style and my home be my happy place. Since I'm not new to the blogging game and I'd love to see other mamas (and non-mamas) exercise their creative talents, I'll be sharing my processes along the way,  including utilizing classes that I've purchased, things that I've learned, etc. 

Five Ways I'm Kicking Debt's Ass This Year by Erin Baynham

HEY GUYS!

It's been about three months since I've blogged here, and I'm not going to lie, I've missed it a lot. So much has happened, and I'll give you the scoop on that another time.

So let me tell you the story of my rude awakening with how broke I am. I started a new job a few months ago, and I was (and still am) over the moon about it. I received a significant raise, and I feel like a valued employee. But what I didn't consider was the gap in payments I would receive. I'm not proud about it, but I've lived paycheck to paycheck for years. I know it isn't smart, but I never changed my circumstances to make my financial life more comfortable. So for the first time in a long time, I was scraping the bottom of the barrel. I was broke! Not to mention, I ended up maxing out a couple of credit cards just to make ends meet. My ENTIRE situation could have been avoided had I planned better.

So after a few weeks of crying and going into hysteria (😩 ) trying to fix everything and to stay afloat, I am implementing these five things and am already seeing a big difference:

1. Mega mindset shift

I have never had a money conscious mindset. I have a que sera, sera lifestyle. No more. I always consider finances, and I have taken all credit cards out of my purse. I pay everything with my debit card. I always consider my budget (see #3). I even have these silent alarm reminders pop up on my phone to remind me to stay on the right path.

2. Incorporating the snowball method

So this is Dave Ramsey's way of paying off bills, and it is pure gold. You put all your debts in order from lowest to highest. You pay the minimums on all of your debts except your bill with the lowest balance. You do everything you can to pay off that lower bill, and you feel like a queen that has conquered a huge victory. You then attack the next bill by paying the minimum, PLUS the minimum from your first bill, and anything else you can afford to put on it. See where I'm going with this?

3. Every Dollar app

Holy crap. I always used Mint.com, which at times, made me feel overwhelmed and defeated. But the Every Dollar app shows where every single dollar you bring in goes. I never realized how much I was spending on silly tools and extra groceries. It's been a total game changer.

4. Sell, baby, sell

I had so much random stuff in my house that I wasn't using, so I sold it. In one weekend, I made $220. Now, I'm scouring my home looking for things to sell all the time.

5. Cook like crazy

Don't judge me. I may be eating a chili dog that I bought at a food truck by my job. But I typically cook as much as I can now. I've been an Aldi fan for awhile, but I do as much of my grocery shopping there as I can there because everything is insanely cheap. My monthly grocery spending is nearly cut in half!

I'll keep you posted. I'd like to pay off half of my credit cards this year. I bet I can do it.

I'll keep you posted. I'd like to pay off half of my credit cards this year. I bet I can do it. See you soon!