32-year-old saves over $1,700 with cash-only challenge
From holiday gifts and travel to decadent meals, the end-of-year season may mean more spending for many, but one content creator is embracing saving during the holidays.
Chase Gohl resolved to spend only cash for one month and documented the 30-day challenge on TikTok.
"The idea is you can really stick to a more strict budget when you're only using cash and not giving yourself the free will to tap or swipe a card at any moment's notice, the idea being you can limit those impulse purchases and you start to feel the money leaving your hand, which makes more of a mental impact," Gohl told ABC News.
For November, Gohl aimed to chip away at his goal of pulling himself out of deep debt. The 32-year-old gave himself a cash budget of $500 for food, entertainment and gas, less than half of what he would normally spend in a month as a marketing professional in Denver, Colorado.
Gohl said the cash-only challenge wasn't easy, and because more businesses are going cashless, planning ahead was crucial.
"I would call ahead just to make sure that they took cash because I didn't want to look silly showing up [and] be like, 'Oh, I only got cash,'" said Gohl.
After 30 days, Gohl came in within his budget and ended up saving $1,700. He said he also paid off a significant portion of his debt.
For others looking to start their own cash-only challenge, Gohl recommended staying mindful of purchases.
"Even if you don't save any money one particular day, or maybe you spend a lot of money one particular day, just having that mindfulness, that's one small step towards your goal," he said.
Gohl said although he achieved his budgeting goal, he isn't planning on repeating the cash-only challenge, because it was difficult. However, he said he is planning on keeping up with frugal habits, like sticking to a monthly budget and using coupons whenever possible.
