I might be broke right now...

...but at least all my bills are paid. (^_^)
And I don't owe the bank (or anyone) money.

As of today, I have less than $20 in my bank account... and this amount is about to go lower because of a couple of things I need to purchase.

I can't even compute how much money I've spent in overdraft fees in the past. I used to really not care about being charged $30-40 in overdraft fee per transaction. All I was thinking about was survival. The bank could charge me now; I'd pay them later.

When I had about $10 left in my account, I'd go to the store, purchase something, do "cash back" and take out $100 (the max you could take out at the register). I would do this twice and leave the store with $200 in my pocket --- and about $250 deficit in my account (includes the fees). The next money entry was so far down the road (a couple of weeks is far when you're dead broke) that all I cared about was having enough cash in my pockets to make it through.

And that method worked.
Except that the bank made a lot of dough from me and well, I got tired of it.
It was time to be responsible!

So a few years ago, I decided that no matter what I wouldn't spend more money than I actually had. I'd be more conscious of my spending and would mostly purchase things that I needed. Perhaps it helped that I had majored in a business-related field. The fact that I'm a detail-oriented person has definitely had a great impact as well. I like to know where money goes and why. When I check my bank account, I have a rough idea of how much is in it. If the amount is off, I review my debits and credits to see what I've missed (or if someone has been using my card... it's never happened, but that stuff happens, so be careful!)

Now, there is stingy and there is conscious.

A stingy person holds on to money like she's going to run out of it any day now. The stingy person has a hard time pleasing herself. She's so caught up in having money in her pockets (or bank account) that she doesn't spoil herself. The stingy lady focuses on her needs and ignores her wants. She just doesn't like to spend her money. She'll spend yours before she spends hers (and she'll spend yours like she's on some shopping spree).

The conscious spender is exactly that: aware of where her money goes, aware of her spending and aware of the things that truly matter in life (and they're not monetary). The conscious spender will treat herself to a pedicure from time to time and will purchase those jeans she's fallen in love with. However, she won't buy the whole store and will stay price conscious. Without ignoring her wants, the conscious spender endeavors not to put those wants above her needs.

I'd like to think that I'm a conscious spender.