4 ways to save more money.
Trying to save money? Read this.
I wrote this article a long time ago, and it’s been sitting in my notes ever since. I had a good friend recently text me asking how I’ve gotten so good at saving money. I told him I would write an article about it for him. Shoutout to Austy Bru Bru.
I’m nowhere near perfect but I’ve become much better at saving money in the past year. I believe the 4 things listed below could also drastically improve your money-saving skills. Understand this post is about saving money meaning you should have some sort of income or savings. This is mostly based on a larger scale. Little things like cancel cable, go to Netflix or use these type of coupons won’t be listed below.
Buy only what you need — Saving is better than spending.
1 — Manage how much you eat out. (fast food, restaurants)
This is the one I struggle with the most. It’s difficult not eating out every other day but It’s certainly worth it. You need to set a limit to eating out no more than once or twice per week. Of course, this can only be done comfortably with enough food at home. Spend around 70 to 100 dollars next time you go the grocery store. The amount of food you get with that should easily last 2 to 3 weeks. Plan recipe’s and don’t make the excuse that you “Don’t know how to cook”. Cooking is merely following a list of tasks and using proper measurements and utensils. There’s no way in the world you don’t know how to follow a task list. If you’re not that great at cooking the only way to get better is by doing it more often, and also starting with more simple recipe’s. There are millions of ridiculously easy to make meals you can start with. Spaghetti, for instance, you boil water, put noodles in, drain water, sauce, Parmesan cheese. Boom there’s dinner for two nights. Eating at home is much healthier to. As soon as you get a grasp on cooking you’ll not only enjoy the money you’re saving but the meals you are cooking as well. Remember your average fast food meal costs around 5 to 10 dollars. You’re supposed to eat 3 times per day, and with fast food that could run you almost 30 dollars a day. We’re not even getting into restaurant prices which can be around 15 dollars each visit. If you can limit how much you eat out, you are setting yourself up to saving almost 100 dollars every week.
2- Don’t go to bars, clubs, or parties every night.
I used to struggle with this greatly. I wanted to hang out with some friends and I barely had any money to spend. Luckily I’ve grown out of the partying phase quite some time ago. I do vastly enjoy meeting with friends of mine and having a beer whilst enjoying their company. I think it can get out of hand for the people who feel the need to go out or chill with their friends every single night. I think spending time alone is one of the most valuable things you can do. Time is soo valuable. Going out every night won’t get you much in this world, although it might get you an empty wallet. I have quite a few friends who enjoy drinking a lot. Most of them being very hard workers on the external. I think having a 2 dollar beer after a long day is perfectly okay. Another thing is after going out you’re probably going to end up buying food and maybe even ubering home. Buy a cheap beer, watch a movie and cook some dinner at your house. 5 dollars spent is much more manageable than 25 to 30 dollars. Save going out for the weekends. I can assure you the money will do the talking.
3 — Put your paycheck into the bank account and take out a set amount for essentials.
This one is more for those who are receiving an income but alas those with savings could do something similar. What you need to do is take the money you make per week and automatically discount the essentials. For example, let’s say you make 300 dollars every week. We can assume at least $30 of that is going towards gas and $40 towards food. After you deposit your paycheck withdraw only 70 dollars for gas & food.
Obviously, there are other expenses than just food & gas. Monthly expenses like a car payment, phone bill, credit card, rent, etc. Depending on how much those bills are, you should be able to calculate how much you need to save per week. Make sure you have enough money to afford all those without even needing to touch your savings. If you get paid every two weeks then adjust. I can assure you following this method will certainly make your numbers start going up. You need to make sure you have enough money to afford the things you must have before the things you want.
4 — Buy only what you need and not what you want.
Without a doubt, I think this is easily the most important tip on this list. This tip really goes along with everything already listed in this article. It took me a long time not to splurge after receiving my paycheck or having a bit of money. I’ve developed this method of shopping whereas when about I’m to buy something I will ask myself this — “do I really need this?” or “do I just want this?”. A way to determine if you absolutely need something would be to analyze if without buying it, will it affect your health or hygiene. Obviously, something like toilet paper or shampoo should not even be questioned. It would absolutely go on the list of items you need. I’m serious when I say I’ve trained my mind to double take everything before I buy it. I do my absolute best to only buy things that I believe are essential to living. Additionally, items that will improve productivity or organization skills. A notebook for making a task list or a book you’re wanting to read. Those items are what I like to call an investment in yourself, and those are always worth the money. This is a skill I developed over a long time. I believe it stems from not having much money to spend period. I have a little bit of pocket change now, and I still follow the same principles I did when I had less than 300 dollars in my bank account.
Real life example:
I went to the vans store in the mall and wanted to possibly get some new shoes. Went in and started looking at the different pairs, I was actually shocked how expensive they were. 60 dollars for a pair of shoes? my goodness. I kept looking for at least one pair in the 40 dollar range and then remembered where I was.. While this was happening the employee on sight taking a considerable amount of time with another customer. There seemed to be only one employee working at the time. I ended up looking down at my shoes and telling myself this — these shoes work, they keep my feet dry and they don’t allow my feet to get messed up. I then walked out of the store with no new shoes. I definitely wanted new shoes but did I need them? Nope. I still had 60 dollars in my wallet when I left the mall, 60 dollars looks better to me anyway.
No matter how many commas you have in your savings amount, live like you don’t even have one. I think these are some of the best ways to start having a bigger bank account and spend less money. Almost every tip on this list comes down to two principles — Buy what you need & saving is better than spending. If you can understand and implement those two statements, this article didn’t even need to be read. I’m not perfect at all, I think the tip I struggle with most is number one. I have a knack for buying fast food and snacks every now and then. Those darn sweets are so damn tempting.
A wise man once said:
“Let’s say your shirt is $24 and you get paid $8 an hour. You are wearing three hours of your life.”
TLDR: The quote written above. (Too long didn’t read)
Originally posted on nocertainty.net
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