Cliff Darcy sets about to test his budgeting willpower for a whole month every year. This challenge has been likened to a financial detox as he trims and scrapes the excess fat that has crept into his budget over a period of months.

I like this challenge because it's not impossible and it empowers people to make money their slave not their master. We all surrender, like the proverbial frog in the slowly warming water, to our insatiable, spontaneous desires that are fuelled by the hunger for more. But where does all this end? Usually by living beyond your means.

It's kind of like a financial fast. Depriving yourself of the wanton purchase as you seek to minimalise and control your spending habits. Have others tried this before or would you be willing to give it a go?