Today, we’re continuing our “Clear the Clutter” series. This is the second-to-last entry in the series. One more to go! Thanks for hanging in there with me.

So far, we’ve talked about cleaning dirt, clearing desk drawers and piles of paper, and getting rid of books you’re not going to read. We’ve also focused on cleaning up computer files, email, and digital subscriptions you don’t use.

None of these steps will probably save you money. Today’s challenge is different because you’re going to look at paid services and subscriptions you no longer use.

As someone who runs a membership group (The Daily Writer Club), I love recurring income. It’s a fantastic business model because people continue to pay you month after month, or year after year if it’s an annual subscription.

As a consumer, I love it because it spreads out automated expenses into smaller chunks. But it’s also very easy to stay subscribed to services or tools you don’t actually use, especially if you don’t pay attention to your monthly expenses.

Here’s your assignment: go back through your last two months of bank or credit card charges. If you have a business checking account or credit card, do it for both personal and business.

Make a list of any recurring subscriptions or services you don’t use, then either cancel them or see if you can get a cheaper version if you still want to keep it. This goes for magazine subscriptions, streaming services, professional memberships, digital tools and apps… you name it.

Look at everything you’re spending money on. Pretend that you’re going into a meeting where you have to justify all those expenses to your boss. If you can’t justify the expense, it probably needs to go.

In doing this exercise myself, I canceled four items:

1. An $8/month subscription to a writing membership.
2. A $50/month subscription to a writing resource.
3. A $15/month subscription to a streaming service.
4. A $99/year subscription to a mind mapping app.

I just saved $80/month (almost $1,000/year) just by canceling things I wasn’t using anyway!

Keep in mind that you don’t always have to cancel something entirely. You can often get a discount if you try to cancel, or if you simply contact support or customer service and ask for a discount.

Likewise, you can often downgrade a subscription to a lower tier if you still want to keep it but don’t need the version you’re currently using.

What does all this have to do with writing? Writing isn’t just about the words and content. If you want to have a writing business, you need to think like a business owner. You can easily give yourself a raise if you cancel services and subscriptions you aren’t using.

Today’s Challenge: Go through your past two months’ worth of bank or credit card statements and make a list of subscriptions or services you’re not using. Then cancel or downgrade them.