If you desperately need money, here are a few ways you can cut down on your spending, reduce bills and earn a little extra.
The big money save! If you’re already part of a money-saving forum or community, you’ll be aware of the well-meaning posts that float around at the start of the year. In which everybody pitches in claiming they’re going to try their best to save money and be frugal. It’s all in good spirits and there’s no doubt those posting really do start out with the best intentions. It’s one of their New Year’s resolutions, a path for them to follow to get in line for the year ahead. But for those of us who aren’t a money saving expert, where do we begin? Is it too late?
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Become A Money Saving Expert
Saving is a word that serves many purposes. You can put your money straight into your bank account where it’s safe and secure. Ready to be used at any given moment. That’s saving in one sense. The other one is making clear decisions to reduce the amount you’re paying out.
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There are sites such as Coupon Sherpa which are able to give you discount codes, vouchers and coupons to put towards your shopping bills.
Change Where You Shop
If you desperately need money, something as simple as changing where you shop could save you a lot of money over the month.
For example, simply swapping from somewhere like Waitrose to Aldi or Lidl could save you around £25 per shop – for the same items!
Then there’s the case of opting for non-branded products over branded. It’s likely many of these items came from the same factory, or are even have the same ingredients. You just aren’t paying extra for the label – which you’re only going to throw away anyway!
Shop Around
The great thing about the internet is it can tell you where the best deals. Comparison sites such as money supermarket are in abundance. Finding out the price at one store compared to another can be done in an instant. Knowing where to go to get your weekly shop done for less is half of the battle.
We rely too much on convenience over money nowadays. Preferring to go to a place that doesn’t take us out of our way, or somewhere we know. Spending more money than we would’ve liked, just for the sake of saving extra time and comfort. When saving, this is a mindset that needs to be snapped out of. There is so much to benefit from simply by looking around for your deals.
Set Yourself A Goal
When you desperately need money, setting yourself a goal can be a great help to achieving it.
If you don’t know what you’re aiming for, you won’t be as likely to put yourself on a clear path. Not having a direction to follow when you’re saving money is like trying to find a black cat in a dark room. It can be done, but it’s harder to get to where you need to be.
Whether you’re in desperate need of money so are trying to save in every area to pay bills, or even just put food on the table. Try setting yourself a goal of perhaps, for example, saving £10 from your energy bill each month, or £5 from your food shop. By setting these targets you’re more likely to hit them as you have something to shoot for.
Don’t set your goals too high; something unrealistic is equally unachievable, and you don’t need to dampen your spirits at the beginning. Every little helps. You only need to be putting away a small amount each week to see the benefits at the end of the year.
Put Yourself Out There
Every time a cashier asks you whether you’ve got a loyalty/reward card, accept and say yes. Even if you don’t think that you’ll be going back to that store anytime soon.
The amount that you could save on small purchases is definitely worth it in some places. For example, IKEA have launched a Friends and Family card.
Look For The Little Things
As money adds up whilst you’re saving, keep an eye on what’s leaving your bank too! Simple things like…
- Switching off plug sockets when you’re not using an appliance.
- Making sure the lights are switched off when you exit a room.
- Only staying in the shower for as long as necessary.
- Walking instead of taking the car.
- Put a brick in your toilet cistern to use less water.
- Drink water instead of expensive squash or fizzy drinks.
Just a few of the things you can do to save money. Have a couple of months of being proactive over your spending on household bills. See just how much it saves you.
Think About Gifting
A lot of money each year is spent on gifts for other people which can soon add up. Look at the bigger picture and calculate both what you’re spending and what you can gift instead. If you’re in the position where you can suggest it, see if your friends and family would accept a no-gift pledge.
Instead, gift them your time and effort with the things that you know that you’re good at. Whether it’s helping out with DIY, babysitting or even teaching them how to become a money saving expert. Or, perhaps you can make them something instead – a cake, or have them over for a BBQ or something.
These are all experiences which really do make a difference to people’s lives rather than monetary objects. Give them memories instead of gifts you can’t afford right now. If they love you, they won’t want you to be spending money you don’t have.
Utilise What You’ve Got
There are hundreds of ways to make money that are just sitting around your home, unused. If you have a spare bedroom, you could rent it out on Airbnb for example; an unused driveway could be rented out to somebody who is desperate for a safe place to park their car (especially good for those who commute to their jobs if your house is next to a public transport station).
It’s not so much as saving money as it is making it, but it’s still a fund that can be started and put towards something meaningful. There are so many unused items around the average home which could make a small fortune when sold on auction sites such as eBay. It’s time to declutter and look through the treasure to find what could make you rich. (Well, richer than you already are.)
The 10 Second Rule
When you desperately need money, there’s nothing worse than wasting what little money you do have to spare. The next time you go shopping – in any sense, pause for 10 seconds and ask yourself whether you really need it.
- What benefit will it add to your life?
- Can you get away with not buying it, or is it truly essential?
- Does a friend or family member have one similar that you could borrow?
These are all questions that you need to ask yourself. By doing this, you’ll be saving more money than you realise. Perhaps if you aren’t sure, put it back and see if you think about it again as you’re walking round the store. If you don’t, you obviously didn’t really need it – or you simply forgot about it. If you did just forget, see if you can get away with not having it first before going back to get it.
Keep On Top Of Your Finances
How much do you find yourself out of pocket when something goes wrong? Instead of waiting for something to break, take the time to do regular maintenance on everything in your home.
Keep appliances clean and give them a once-over every couple of weeks to ensure that they’re operating the way they should be. You’ll soon come to realise when something is looking like it’s on its way out when you get to know its workings properly.
Buy In Bulk
There’s a lot to be said for the coupon queens and kings out there who hoard masses of products that they’ve gotten for rock bottom prices. Although there doesn’t seem to be so much of a trend for it in the UK, this doesn’t mean that it can’t happen.
Buying in bulk has been made easier by the springing up of wholesale food stores, and ensuring that you have everything you need on hand will mean that you aren’t making last-minute dashes to the shop to buy things for full retail prices. It’s little stops like this that can make a dent in your savings that you’re not really considering.
You might not be a money saving expert – yet, but if you desperately need money, hopefully these tips will help you on your way!
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