BUDGET:
Create a written budget showing all income and all expenses … even the insignificant expenses as these add up over time to become significant at some point. From there you can begin to determine exactly where you have options to maximize on the money you have to spend.
Spending your money wisely will give you the confidence to make wiser choices that will further improve your financial situation. You will have more control over all aspects of your life as you gain control over your available income.
FOOD:
1. Make a list prior to shopping based on your local grocer’s weekly sale ads .. purchase the items that the stores advertise at or below their cost just to get you into the store. You can purchase meats, fruits, vegetables in larger quantities then divide and freeze for later use. (Tremendous savings)
2. Create weekly menus, if possible, based on what you purchased and cook ahead on a weekend afternoon, then freeze for use the next week. This prevents drive thru’s on an afternoon when you are running late, exhausted, and cannot imagine cooking. Just thaw/heat your frozen dish and add a salad or side dish of choice.
3. Purchase in-season local produce and creatively change your recipes to include these. Local produce will be fresher, provide more nutrition, and not be affected by transport charges from across state, country, or hemisphere.
4. If not already using lentils or beans add these to your menus. Their nutritional value is unbelievably high and the cost is very low. Beans can be a substitution for meats in many recipes at a much lower cost.
5. You can always try growing food on any scale as in from a small flower pot to an outdoor garden.
CLOTHING:
1. Buy more classic basic items and accessorize with the trendy ones.
2. Recycle your gently used clothing in a garage sale, consignment shop, or by donating to a charity such as Goodwill and take the charitable donation off your taxes next season.
3. Shop consignment and Goodwill for great finds at an extremely low cost.
4. If you are crafty start sewing!
TELEPHONE/INTERNET:
1. All areas of the country are not accessible to same phone/internet plans. Shop among those companies to which you have access. In my rural area I do have access to high speed DSL (thankfully) from ATT. I still keep my landline for local calls only with a total bill of $45.00 per month for both DSL and landline (quite inexpensive) and I added a wireless router (purchased from Netgear for $40) to my PC which enables wireless access up to 300 foot away.
2. There is cable internet (Charter, Comcast, etc.), satellite internet, among others–just look at those options that are available in your area and compare the cost based on your needs.
3. If you want to just do away with your landline you can use one of the VOIP (internet based) phone services which operates through your computer and is enabled when the computer is ON. These can have voicemail to ensure no missed calls.
4. OR you can simply use your cellphone for all your calling needs. With the new month-to-month plans offered by Boost, Walmart, etc. you can have unlimited access to phone, email, web once you purchase a phone their plan uses and activate the service on a month-to-month basis with no contracts for $40 to $60 per month.
The bottom line is spend more time planning and shopping around and less time buying. Develop a written plan (begin with a basic one) that is an organic, living document that will change based on your ever increasing knowledge of spending money wisely and your changing needs as your life unfolds and enjoy your life more!