Everybody wants to save money to build real wealth as soon as possible. The instinctual reaction is to simply cut down those simple pleasures in your life, like passing on coffee in the morning or trimming your own hair. But let me tell you firsthand, you don’t need to live an unhappy lifestyle to save money.
8 Amazing Ways to Save Money
Here are better and smarter ways to save money each month.
Set a Goal
One thing that you should do when saving money is to establish a goal. Think of what you want or need to save for- it could be for marriage, vacation, or retirement. Once you selected something to save for, figure out the total amount of money you need and the time it will take for you to reach it.
Examples of short-term goal that span between one to three years are an emergency fund for living expenses, vacation, and down payment for a vehicle. Examples of long-term goals are your kid’s education, retirement, and down payment on a house.
If you’re aiming to save for your kid’s education or retirement, consider opening an investment account. While this type of investment involves risks, it also offers augmented returns in the long-run.
Use the Art of Negotiation
Nothing can help you save much money than negotiating your bill down. As an entrepreneur, the art of negotiation can help you save thousands of dollars to improve your business. On a daily basis, learning how to haggle can help you save hundreds of dollars in a long period of time.
For example, you can call your car insurance or cell phone provider and ask for a better deal. You’ll be amazed how a short conversation can help you reduce your next monthly bill significantly. Read books or online sources about negotiation to save money now.
Purchase in Bulk
Another one of the ways to save money is to buy in bulk. Manufacturers usually offer discounts if you buy more than one product from them. However, this can be a hit or miss. Buying a large number of wrong items can lead to waste.
The best way to maximize this benefit is to choose the right items. Buy items that you use frequently and has a long shelf life. Avoid stocking up on perishable items that are near their expiration date.
Also, don’t be easily tempted with bargain deals. Let’s say a sale lures you to purchase three pairs of jeans for $60 than at $22 a pair. Obviously, a $20 pair of jeans is more affordable than a $22 pair. But you’ve spent $38 more of your money.
Do you really need to use three pairs of jeans? If yes, then it’s definitely a good deal. If not, then it’s best to buy only one pair of jeans.
Automate Your Finances
One reason why we fail to save money is we don’t know how much we’re saving, to begin with. Making finances is already boring and sometimes we think that we have more money than we actually do.
The solution? Automate your finances.
Automating your finances allows you to spare yourself from the stress that usually involves in money management. As possible, take care of the bills and expenses on the same day that you receive your paycheck. Apportion your money for the expenses and top up your savings account. What’s left is the money you can spend on anything without any guilt.
To make sure that you pay your bills and loans on time, enroll in auto-pay. A reliable money lender usually provides a small interest rate deduction if you register to such technology.
Make Your Own Lunch
Another surefire way to save money is to pack a lunch and bring it to the office. You can save hundreds of dollars if you choose not to eat out for a month. Take a step further by planning your meals for the entire week so you’ll know what you need to buy while shopping for groceries.
The amount you save depends on how much you typically spend to purchase lunch on the office or what types of items you’ll be placing in your lunch bag. For a fancy sandwich and soda, the cost can run around $10. If you create your own sandwich at home, you’ll definitely spend significantly less.
Don’t Spend Beyond Your Means
A general rule in personal finance is to spend within your means. Obviously, you can’t save money if you spend more than you can afford.
Let’s say you earn $1,000 per month. You should spend less than $1,000. Going overboard means a deficit on your budget. Usually, that extra dollars may come from borrowed money and that comes with an interest.
As you start to spend more than you earn month after month, you’ll be surprised at the number of dollars you can be in debt. So be vigilant and discipline yourself to spend less than you can afford.
Drop Under-Used Subscriptions
Now, it’s time to evaluate the usage of your current service subscriptions. Do you use your gym membership regularly? Do you still need your cable subscription? Do you use your landline when calling?
A lot of people just use the gym for the first few months and get lazy at the end. Keep in mind that gyms get most of their profits from unnecessary memberships. If you find out that you don’t use your gym membership anymore, throw it away. That is one of the best ways to save money.
Cable subscriptions have become unnecessary with the emergence of Amazon Prime, Netflix, and Hulu. With these online services, you can now see your beloved television shows and movies at a lower cost. It’s the same thing with landlines. They become almost obsolete with the existence of mobile phones.
Avoid Being Too Frugal
While being thrifty is a distinct way to save money, we don’t want you to be too frugal. Cutting back on your electricity bill and groceries will put at a risk of having a poverty mentality. This type of mentality feeds on your fear of loss to create decisions.
What we want you to do is to focus on earning and saving. Instead of being afraid of failure or loss, look at the possible benefits when making a decision.
Save Money Today!
Do these ways to save money sound good to you? They should because we need to plan our finances and save money for the future. Yes, there are a lot of loan options available but we don’t want you to spend thousands of interest for many years to come. Follow the methods above and watch your savings grow each month.