 |
|||
PRACTICAL MONEY SAVING TIPS It's hard to think of ways to start saving our money. Below are ten practical money saving tips on how we can cut back on our spending. (By the way, ask your children if they can think of an idea that the family can implement. If you get them thinking along these lines now, they'll just naturally use practical money saving tips as they grow into adulthood).
Chances are, your neighbours are in more debt than you are. Trying to keep up with them and their trips, cottages, boats, new furniture and electronics can become an obsession. Don't judge your neighbours by what they have or what they do, it's usually just an illusion. You can be using your time more positively by focusing on your own finances and future goals instead.
If you truly use your membership and work out three to five times a week, then by all means, keep your membership. On the other hand, if you're like most of us, we start out with every good intention for the first month or two, then dwindle down to not even going. Unfortunately, our payments keep going, month after month. If this is the scenario with you, cancel your membership right away and start going for walks outside instead. It's free.
Look at the package you have with your provider. Do you really need all those channels and packages? Evaluate what you and your family watch and make adjustments accordingly. You might be surprised what you're paying for, and what you can easily do without. Also, look into bundling your TV, internet and phone services together from the same provider. It can save you a bunch.
If you go out for lunch everyday, even if it's to the local grocery store and not a restaurant, you're probably spending between six to ten dollars for lunch everyday, sometimes more. Of course, making your own lunch will cost money too, but a sandwich or a couple of boiled eggs with a piece of fruit and a handful of nuts won't come to more than a dollar or two. If you spend $50 a week on your bought lunches, that's $2600 a year. If you pack your lunch instead and spend $10 a week, you'll be spending $520 a year. Wow! Take that $2080 and put it in a mutual fund or a retirement savings plan instead.
Going out with the boys (or girls) a few times a week for a few beers or drinks, whether it be after work, after a golf game, or just to "get out", can be a huge expense. Playing the big shot and buying rounds for your friends is like throwing money down the toilet. Try cutting back on going out to maybe once every week or couple of weeks and stop buying rounds. Set a limit of what you're going to drink and stick to it.
You don't need to be told about all the health risks of smoking. The picture of rotting teeth and black lungs on the package should remind you, in case you forget. This is not only a health issue, but a financial one as well. If you just can't quit smoking, at least try cutting down to half of what you're smoking right now. Figure out what you spend a year on your smoking (you'll be amazed). How much will you be able to save if you cut down to half? or quit altogether? Think of all the credit card debt you can eliminate, or money you can put towards a family vacation...and of course how much better you'll feel.
A big part of our money goes to food, especially if we have a family. Quickly make out a list before you go grocery shopping. If you go without a list, you'll end up buying stuff you don't need! If you're really organized, go through a couple of cookbooks and figure out what recipes you're going to use for the week and just buy for those meals. You won't believe the savings. And don't go grocery shopping when you're hungry! Big mistake...
How many times do we buy something that's on sale just because it's a really good deal? Do we need it? Of course not, it's just a really good deal and hard to pass up. We buy on impulse. Try this: Don't buy the item. Wait for 24 hours, and then go back if it's something you really feel you need. Most of the time, you won't end up going back.
If you are devoted to a certain magazine and read it from cover to cover every time a new issue comes out, it would be a lot cheaper if you subscribe to it rather than pay the price the store charges you. Sometimes it's a huge savings, between 50-80 percent off. Ask to get it for your Christmas or birthday gift, then you're guaranteed to get what you want and it won't cost you anything. Great way to save money you would be spending anyways.
Sometimes we go shopping because we're bored, or we need to get out of the house, or it's a social thing where we meet a friend and spend an afternoon together. Next time you need to get out, either by yourself or with a friend, try doing something that isn't going to cost you money. For example, go to the park and feed the ducks, go to a free concert, go to the library and pick up a novel you've been wanting to read... you get the picture. This sounds pretty obvious, but think about it. If you don't go shopping, you won't end up spending any money. It doesn't get any simpler than that.
|
|
||
|
|
|||
|
| |||
