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Who doesn’t want to save a little extra money? Exactly. So one of the best things you can do is to live life as you normally would but in a way that allows your pockets to fatten up a bit in the process. If you’re someone that HAS to have a $6 gourmet cup of coffee made by the cute blonde at the national coffee chain on the way to work – think again. Join a coffee club, get a coffeemaker (usually free with most clubs you join) and learn to make the perfect cup o’ joe yourself.
Here are six more things you can change in your life so that you can actually enjoy life fuller and longer in the end – with more cash in hand. Doesn’t everybody want to retire in style? And if you’ve got more on your plate (and mind) than retirement, living frugally for a few weeks (months? years?) can definitely pave the way for a great retirement someday.
Free Entertainment
City and county governments are always trying to fill up their calendars with lots of great things to do for their citizens. Enjoy anything from outdoor events like seasonal concerts, holiday parades, and heritage celebration to the local library, community recreation centers or fruit/veggie picking. The possibilities are endless when you factor in each holiday throughout the year (Halloween, St. Pat’s Day, Easter, or National Apple Pie Day to name a few). Most of these events cost little to nothing and are usually free for kids. You can visit parks, see fireworks, enjoy natural beauty in the area, go on a picnic or attend charity-based events while getting in some exercise too.
Use It or Lose It
We’re not talking about exercise here, rather your old stuff. You won’t believe how much you can make (saving with a little discipline) by selling off things you don’t need. This can be anything from old computers and electronics, furniture, magazines and books or toys. If you have an old vehicle you have sitting around thinking you will “get around to fixing it up someday” JUNK it and save hundreds (more?) for a rainy day. So many people are obsessed with owning stuff that they tend to have so much of it that they don’t even need! If you have duplicates of one thing, over and over again – get rid of the extras.
Get Couponing
There is a two-sided message here. 1. Get Couponing and 2. Get Coupons! By “get couponing” we mean that you ought to understand how it works, respect the process and get going on it. The latter is simple – just go out and start grabbing coupons for anything and everything you see that you would normally spend money on. Long before the TV show Extreme Couponing came out, people were clipping coupons to save hundreds upon hundreds of dollars each month. Do it just a little bit to get a feel for it and then dig in! Don’t forget the library has a million of them (at least) on hand.
Plan Meals Ahead – Way Ahead
The whole idea of fast food is not necessarily that food is available fast but also that you didn’t have time (or make time) to plan a meal so now you have to think fast. The amount of money Americans end up wasting on take-out (and dine-in) is astronomical and with just a few simple changes you can be way ahead of the game both food-wise and financially. Put meals on paper, plan them out so that one blends into the other*, shop ahead of time. It’s as simple as that to save hundreds of dollars if not more – each month.
*If you bake a chicken on Monday, make chicken fajitas with the leftovers on Tuesday.
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
We’re not talking about washing out the empty milk jugs and chucking them in the recycle bin (although in the long run that IS saving the planet some cash) but instead, investing in used furniture pieces and then refurbishing them. It’s amazing how nice an old dresser can look after it’s been sanded and stained. Paint some old dining chairs and you’ve just saved yourself a TON (depending on where you might shop for regular price chairs). This even works great for those really expensive kids’ toys that have been around for generations and will be around for generations more. Why waste if you won’t know the difference once you personalize the secondhand stuff?
Savor the Stuff You Already Have
Too many people buy stuff and then forget they even own it. Savor what you have and forego the next trip out shopping. If you have old books, let go of spending $5, $6 sometimes more on a magazine and go for the classics. In fact, visit your local library (yes, we keep mentioning the library) and enjoy all the freebies there – books, CDs, or DVDs. Depending on where you live, a lot of libraries even offer a ton of activities for kids or enrichment classes for everyone else.
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Try it for one month – and write back to us. We’ll post it on the blog to share how everyone’s doing. Trust me, it will be a ton of fun!
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