Author Malcolm Gladwell spoke at a conference I attended several years ago. He wrote a book called Outliers in which he examined what makes the “best and brightest” people successful.
When it comes to tracking November’s horse expenses, the word “outlier” certainly comes to mind — but not in the positive sense Gladwell studied.
After being way under budget last month, the tables officially turned. This month, I spent nearly double my goal amount.
[Commence deep breathing.]
I’m providing a quick summary below for Savvy Horseman readers who want to continue following my budgeting journey.
You can read my full November 2019 horse expense report here.
If you haven’t seen my earlier Savvy Horsewoman article about this process, How Much Does it Cost to Own a Horse?, hop over there for additional context.
How I Did This Month
My goal is to always keep monthly horse expenses under $1,000 after adjustments (e.g. trades). For the most part, I’ve done well hitting that target in 2019 — eight out of eleven months have come in under budget so far.
In November, though, my horse expense was $2,539.42 BEFORE adjustments.
The chart below shows monthly expenses from January – November 2019. These numbers represent the total dollar VALUE of my equestrian expenses.
It does not factor in any trades for products or services. In other words, if I didn’t trade for anything, this is how much money I’d be paying each month.
The next chart adjusts monthly expenses to account for the situations when I’m able to trade for products and services.
These adjusted numbers are what I actually PAID OUT to support my horse habit each month.
In October, my horse expense was $1,944.42 AFTER adjustments.
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The chart below shows my monthly expenses (value) by spending category. See if you can spot which category was responsible for blowing through my budget in November.
See the average horse cost by state to get a sense of typical expenses in your area.
See all the details in my full November 2019 horse expense report.
See all of my 2019 horse expense reports.
After 25+ years in the saddle, I bought my first horse at 33. I love practicing dressage, eventing, stadium jumping, reining, trail riding, and cow work with my Quarter Horse in Montana, USA.
I started HorseRookie.com, an educational website, to help equestrians of all levels (especially rookies) answer common questions, make informed decisions, and have more fun with their horses.
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