Don't put yourself in these situations

This guest post comes from J. Money at Budgets are Sexy.

Personal finances are like relationships. Things can go really well at times, and then two seconds later crash and burn out of nowhere.

And it almost always involves you putting yourself in a situation you know darn well you shouldn't have been in to begin with.

In committed relationships, this can happen a number of ways:

• Hanging out (alone) with someone of the opposite sex. Who's pretty.
• Hanging out (alone) with someone of the opposite sex. Who's pretty. And you're drunk.
• Hanging out with an ex.
• Getting too close to your office spouse.
• And about a billion other ways. 

The same can be said about money:

• Finding yourself at Target, Best Buy, Starbucks, etc., all the time.
• Finding yourself online at Amazon, eBay, etc.
• Always keeping a credit card on you (my fave!).
• Shopping while drunk.

You see the pattern. In each of these instances you are literally putting yourself into a place you don't belong. You may not always act inappropriately when there, but you sure do test the limits.

Were any of you around my first week of blogging? If so, you might remember me talking about giving up shopping for Lent -- something I had NEVER ever tried in a million years (or 27 for that matter). But you know what happened at the end of it, after the initial shock and withdrawal eased up? I was freed! Freed from the nasty habit of just walking into stores for the fun of it -- something I was so accustomed to doing all those years.

It wasn't until I consciously thought about where I was driving every day/weekend that it hit me how easy it is not to spend money. You simply don't go into stores. (What a concept!) And here we are three years later and I still rarely visit my old friends.

If you want to get a hold on your finances, really think about your daily routines and habits. Just because you formed them doesn't mean you can't break them and form new ones.

Keep your head up and do your best to avoid the temptation. You have to be aware of these things if you care enough for your wallet -- and your significant other.