What if No One's Watching?

There's an interesting bit in yesterday's NY Times, "Debtors Search for Discipline via Blogs." It chronicles a few blogs folks have started in order to be (anonymously) accountable to someone for their spending choices while trying to get out of debt. I am fascinated by and personally interested in this idea. Like "dieting," it seems that learning to spend responsibly is one of those things that may be better accomplished in a group setting (which is how things like Weight Watchers are so successful). However, most people just do not feel comfortable chatting up their friends about how much they are making and spending. Therein lies the beauty of the blog--anonymity, to whatever degree, and feeling like you are burdening your audience only if they are interested enough to keep reading.

I'm going to be adding a few of these debt-reducing bloggers to my side-bar and keep up with them for a while. Maybe it's even something I should consider doing myself.