Remember our article on making more money, we discussed the basic formula of Increase Income + Decrease Spending = More money? We’ve been posting articles on investing more money lately so we decided to spend a bit more time discussing ways to save you more money.
Of the two things you can do to have more money, the easier option is to save more money. You don’t have to change anything drastically. Saving money is an art in itself and if you’re creative enough, you can turn it into a game to make saving money a bit more interesting. You’ll be surprised by how much money you waste on things, especially the ones you think won’t hurt much.
So here are our 8 Steps to help you save more money.
Step 1: Self Control
Spending money is one of the easiest things to do. You just got your salary, paycheck, or monthly business profit, you’re flush with cash and considering a “small” reward. You get to enjoy an expensive dinner or maybe a new gadget. And then you spend some more on little things like coffee, those extra earphones, that new subscription (which you won’t even use), that extra new set of clothes, kicks, or whatever. The next thing you know, your money’s all gone.
Hold on, buddy. Learn to control yourself from these small purchases. These things add up. Now, what should you do to practice self-control? Learn the art of delayed gratification. Want a new gadget? Sure. Delay buying it for 2 weeks and think if you really need it. Review every few days if that gadget really makes a difference. If it doesn’t, don’t buy it. Same thing with clothes. Check your wardrobe, do you really need it? How many clothes do you need? Are you still wearing each? And if after two weeks, you end up deciding to buy one, go and sell whatever it’s replacing in your life. You don’t need clutter and it will most likely lose its value over time.
What else can you do? Study minimalism. You’ll be surprised by how much clutter you have in life and how much this is affecting your health. Yes, you read that right. The more things you have, the more things you have to worry about. Check this video out, the guy has only X number of items in his life. That’s everything he has. You don’t have to be this extreme but we hope you’ll get the point.
Track everything first. We have habits and most likely, we end up spending on the same things over and over. And you’ll be surprised by how consistent we spend on things if you start tracking each. Just get an app or use a website to type in your spending. There are tons out in the market. Just check out a couple and see what works for you. The key here is to look at the things that you’re spending your money on. We’ll try to remove things that aren’t “essential” and the things you think you can remove in your life.
Step 2: Set a Monthly Goal
Goals and gamifying your life might be a great option for you to learn self-control. Let’s say your spending is around $1,000 a month (for easy computation). You can set your goal to cut your spending by 10% or $100. Now you have an exact number to save. Knowing what you need to be done provides an extra step in
Step 3: Shop Wisely
Now that you have a goal, it’s easier to look for things you can cut and spend less on. Go with commodities first. If something contains the same ingredients, then it should look and taste the same. Same for medicine, buy generic medications. It’s practically the same chemicals you’re drinking. Why spend more? It doesn’t make sense. The Kirkland brand presents a huge value for money for its prices. Kirkland has some of the cheapest goods out in the market from vitamins to motor oil. All of these are of good quality scientifically tested and proven by YouTube channel enthusiasts.
Step 4: Take Advantage of Coupons and Cashback Apps
A discount is a discount. And anything that helps you save money on things you’ll purchase anyway are a big welcome. Also, you can use both a coupon and a cashback app at the same time for more savings. You may or may not get a lot of discounts but like the little expenses you make, everything adds up. We featured Coinout and Rakuten for this. Check out our cashback app blog pots.
Step 5: Learn To Haggle
Yes, it’s easier to just buy whatever’s on the tag price but trying to haggle for a price discount might get it to a lower price. But if it’s a small business you’re dealing with, maybe it’s better not to haggle with their prices anymore.
Step 6: DIY
You’ll be surprised by how much cheaper and or healthier your food will turn out once you start cooking everything yourself. We’re surprised why most people don’t know how to cook their own meals. The best food is home-cooked. And it’s not rocket science at all. There are tons of videos on YouTube. Start with basic frying and all in one pan recipe and then move on to more complicated stuff. Gym rats can also meal prep with specific budgets using some of the most popular bodybuilders on YouTube. They usually buy bulk and meal prep for one week. Check out these YouTube videos.
Step 7: Get Healthy
Fewer hospital bills = A lot of savings. Prevention is better than cure. Drink water, eat your fruits and veggies and exercise. You can also take supplements if you think you’re not getting enough greens. The little investment in your health pays a lot of dividends once you avoid hefty hospital bills. Everything is expensive nowadays so try to avoid getting rushed to the hospital. Eating right and exercising will also make you feel good. Make yourself a priority.
Step 8: Reassess Your Savings Plan
Like every other plan, you’re going to have to re-assess your old plan to check if it’s for the best. Sometimes, you’re going to have to adjust according to your needs. Learn to adapt.
Any savings can go to your investments or just sit there as available cash. Saving will also make you more motivated to snowball your early retirement up a notch. Fewer items, less stress. More savings, more happiness. Life is short. Make it count.