The $1,000 Challenge: How One Family Slashed Its Budget Without Moving Under a Bridge or Living on Gov ernment Cheese

Are You Brave Enough for the $1,000 Challenge? 
Middle-class incomes are stretched more than ever. Feeling the strain himself, personal finance columnist Brian O’Connor decided to put his own family’s spending to the test. He began a ten-week experiment to see if his family could cut its monthly living expenses by $1,000—without sacrificing anything truly important. From groceries and transportation to entertainment and insurance, O’Connor ruthlessly tackled his family’s Top 10 spending categories with an eye on rooting out big savings.

As he shares his family’s cost-cutting adventures, O’Connor offers helpful strategies for getting your own finances back on track. Whether he’s sharing secrets to shrinking your grocery tab or helping you scour bills for unnecessary fees, O’Connor tackles the frustrations and fears of controlling your own financial fate.

Brian J. O’Connor is a syndicated columnist for the Detroit News. For the “Grand Experiment” series he was honored with a 2010 Best in Business award from the Society of American Business Editors and Writers and the Christopher J. Welles Memorial Prize awarded by the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. He lives outside of Detroit.
 
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