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Every Day Is A Money Saving
Opportunity!
1. Bring your own lunch to work, and bring your own snacks with you
for eating on the go! So much cheaper than buying a mocha and muffin.
2. Stop smoking, save on future medical bills and
on the smokes too!
3. Turn down the heat and put on a sweater or extra blanket.
Save Money On Gas
by: Heather D. Reese
Are you into hypermiling?
I was looking on the net for cooking help. I'm
a horrible cook, but that's another post altogether... so here I am typing "chicken easy" and somehow I found
a website that is dedicated to the fine art of hypermiling! From what I'm reading you can go from 22mpg to 32mpg (or the
like) if you follow the steps. I'm going to try it... I'm always up for a challange. Here's a link to the hypermiling
website http://www.hypermiling.com/car-mpg.html.
Frugal, Prepared
and Organized... the typical saver by
Heather D Reese
I've noticed that personality traits of financially successful people share the same
basics... they are frugal, prepared, and organized. And they are smart enough to hire others with these traits if they do
not come naturally to themselves.
On a simplistic level, frugal thinking will lead to increased wealth. If you
are aware of your income and careful with your spending you will amass increased funds. Every expense is a chance to save
in the eye of a frugal shopper. They buy low and sell high, they are the buyers in todays real estate markets. They have been
sitting back and watching and waiting for this opportunity. They shop their insurance costs, car prices and loss leaders in
the grocery store weekly flier. They get a thrill from saving money equal to that of a habitual gambler! They work their bank
for the best rates (did you know you can bargain with your banker for a better interest rate on both loans and deposits?).
They are your penny pincher's and proud of it!
Savers are also prepared people. They are prepared for a down
market, natural disaster, they're grocery shopping and they children's and grandchild's college education. They
plan they shopping for coupon usage and sales, and they plan their eating out based on promotions and general taste and appeal
of the restaurant. They want to be recognised as successful, but they still want good tasting food and service... they hate
to feel like they are wasting their money. They plan every aspect of their life in advance, but they don't feel burdened
by this structuring, they feel relieved to know everything is under control.
Organization is another very important
aspect in a savers life. They know that in order to keep growing their wealth they must be organized, you must know where
your money is and were it's going. They organize their days based on the most efficient routes and they organize their
pantries for time saving simplicity. They want to know where everything is so that they can spend less time searching for
items and more time working and playing. They know that the time spent organizing is given back two fold.
Lessons
we can all learn from are simple. Think of every purchase in regards to your net worth. At the grocery store ask your self
if you will actually use this item before the sell by date. When shopping for a home consider if it's not only within
your price range but if it will fill your needs in the years to come. If you are considering starting a family don't buy
a one bedroom condo. Savers plan for the future and know that if they buy a house that will keep them happy and safe for at
least 5 years they will save money. Organize your life not just your desk or pantry. Be efficient. And remember, that as long
as you are doing something you love, your life is already rich!
I haven't
paid for toothpaste in 7 years... By
Heather D. Reese
It's true, it's been about 7 years since I actually "paid" for toothpaste...
I assure you all that I have been using toothpaste and I have been brushing my teeth, but I just haven't had to pay for
the product!
I love coupons and rebates. I hate paying for something that is going to be going down the sink. Sometimes
I even get paid to bring home toothpaste... can't get much better than that!
I recently spoke to two CEO's
of Major Corporations, it was a casual conversation and we got on the subject of spending money on toiletries. They BOTH said
that they still use coupons to buy those products. These are mega millionaires, and they admit to using coupons too. Their
take on it was that it was stupid to waste money on something that is so easy to save on. They literally said that you would
never become a self made millionaire if you don't think about every purchase as a way to save! One of the wife's of
the CEO said that he will go without deodorant before buying it without a coupon/not on sale. Thankfully this has never happened
as there are so many coupons out there!
So here's the scoop. It's easy to not pay for your toothpaste or
other health and beauty products.
Step #1- Save coupons.
Step #2- Match coupons to items on sale
Step
#3- look for any available rebates on these items
Step #4- Buy item with coupon and/or fill out rebate forms and send
them in.
It's best to do this is batches, called stockpiling. When you see that you can get this item for cheap
or free buy as many as you can so that you can wait till the next great sale to have to buy again!
Have you used
the $20 trick? by Heather D.
Reese
I wanted to write about something
fun and I knew exactly what to write about as soon as I though FUN!
Vegas of course! So this is our favorite part of our Las Vegas vacations...
We make reservations as normal, check-in at the counter and pass a $20 bill to the clerk and ask for any upgrades.
Now I should backtrack and mention that from the time of meeting the clerk you have to be your usual friendly self... if you
are not usually nice, please have a friend help you with this part. So you pass the $20 and wait. The clerk will normally
thank you for the tip and start looking for an upgrade to give you in the computer.
The last time we did the trick we got upgraded from a regular two bedroom that we had already booked at a "special"
rate of $169/night... to a two bedroom suite with an amazing full view of the strip! It was fantastic! And it cost us the
same $169/night and that $20 bill!
Good luck with
the trick... let me know how it goes for you!
Two Mind Tricks
To Stop Unnecessary Spending
by:
Heather D. Reese
Now I'm no hypnotist, but these two "tricks" work. One of the keys to living on
a budget is to not overspend on "wants". It's such a great feeling to make your money work for you... by putting
it towards your "needs" and building your savings up for your future.
Trick #1- When you see something
you want determine if it is a "need" or a "want". A need is something that you have to have in order
to survive. Some peoples "needs" will actually surprise others. One person's view of a need might be strictly
basic, like housing and food. Another persons "need" might include housing, food and coffee. You need to determine
your "needs" and when presented with a purchase, really evaluate if you need it, or if it would be better to apply
that saved money from not buying it towards savings. If you would have to use money that is supposed to be used for another
item on your budget, do not spend that money!
Trick #2- Determine how many hours you would have to work in order
to pay for the proposed purchase. I was talking to a bank teller once. She really liked having a cafe mocha every morning. After
determining that she would have to work 25 min. (after tax's) to pay for her mocha, she decided that flavored regular
coffee was a better long term choice for her. She only had to work 3 min. to pay for that!
Thinking Outside
The Box When Saving Money
by
Heather D. Reese
I talk a lot about really taking a hard look at your spending and then cutting back.
It seems to be the hardest thing to actually do, but when you actually start doing it it's actually easy. Simple things
to save on gas is to group trips. When it's time to go pick up the kids from school, do your banking and go to the post
office. When you are out and about remember to keep a mental note of gas prices till you have a feel for the station that
has the best price. When you are getting low on gas and you are in that area of town fill up. Make saving money a regular
part of your life style.
I've read so many styles of saving money... from extreme to hilarius. Some of my favorite
advise (for humor value) suggested saving money by making your own lemonade at restaurants (ask for lemons and sugar) and
rinse out potato chip bags, turn inside out and use as a gift bag. I'll never do either of those, first of all buying
potato chips will cost you in the long run with medical bills, secondly making your own lemonade at a restaurant is just plain
cheap. There is a difference between being cheap and saving money. I do recommend saving money by just ordering water at restaurants.
Around here it costs about $2.50 for a drink, with 4 of us that's a $10 savings... about the same cost as the kids meals.
But even more importantly water is so much better for you. How much water do you drink in a day? The recommended amount is
about 8 glasses a day. Most people don't even come close. So please.... drink your water! Be healthy and save water!
How much is your time worth? By: Heather D. Reese
I was just thinking
about everything that is on my to do list. It's months of work deep, really. However for the most part I refuse to outsource
the basics. I could use someone to do my data entry, but how many hours would it take to train the person and then I would
still be stuck answering constant questions on which ledger to apply items to. I know that if I spent a good week or two I
could handle this all. That would take care of about 1/4 of my backlog of work. The rest I could not outsource. But I'm
sick of hearing people saying that they have to pay people to do their work because they are above doing that type of work,
either they are too educated or too busy, but yet these same people are strapped for money. Listen, if you are low on funds
why would you even consider paying someone to do anything you can do yourself. I know we all live very busy lives, but if
you are really that poor and that swamped, something is not right. Time to reexamine what you are doing. Are you working smart
or are you working smart. The most important points I can make are that you must be organized and have a to do list. Write
everything that you have to do, and have everything you need to get it done. Then start working. If it is something you do
not understand, find the answers. Use your money to get help in the areas you really need it in, financial and legal. Do the
rest yourself!
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