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Most of the talk on financial blogs is pretty negative these days. Most people are discussing the economic slowdown, the stagnating housing market, the rising number of bankruptcies, and increased risk of having a serious recession.

In times like this it is probably wise to cut things back a bit, just in case things get worse before they get better. One way to approach this kind of situation is to go on a financial diet. It is almost inevitable that we extend ourselves financially during good times and then have to rein in some of our spending habits when things slow down. This is probably a good time to lose some of that extra weight.

Like quitting smoking or dieting, it's a psychological battle when it comes to keeping your finances under control. You will need to prepare a plan stating exactly how much you are going to spend, and how much you will save, by giving up certain things. Then, it is critical that you design techniques that will help you stick to the plan.

Just as with regular dieting, there are rules you should follow when doing some finacial dieting. One of the most important is to avoid binge spending. Develop a daily and weekly budget. Try to include everything that is important and eliminate everything that isn't. Then don't let yourself get sucked into impulsive buying. That may be fine when your finances are healthy. But when you're trying to nurse them back to health resisting this kind of tempation can make the difference between success and failure.

At the same time, we're all human and we make mistakes. If you do slip up and buy something you don't really need don't berate yourself. Just go back to your economic plan and be wiser next time.

On the other hand it is probably good to reward yourself with small indulgences from time to time, just to take the drudgery out of the "diet". In fact it might be a good idea to budget for these little indulgences. Just try to stay within the budget and you'll be rewarding yourself while staying with the plan.

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