According to statistics, about half of couples spend their money without making savings. Many don’t know how to control and correctly plan the budget, so they can’t save money and there is a lack of money. Therefore, it is necessary to learn how to earn and spend money. With proper distribution of income and expenses, the financial stability of the couple will be ensured and it will be possible to save money for large purchases.
To correctly plan the budget, you don’t need to have special education. To do this, you need to identify the “weaknesses” of your budget, begin to consider costs and eliminate rash purchases. Saving the budget is impossible without cost and income control. Without careful accounting, it’s hard to see where all the wages go.
Tips on how to save money
Actually, no matter how much a person earns, he or she will always find what to buy. Thus, a person can become poor even with a well-paid job. There are many such examples. To prevent this from happening, you need to learn how to manage finances.
- Give up bad habits
Alcohol and smoking are the two most harmful habits that empty our pockets. And even though alcohol and cigarettes go up in price every year, and their quality decreases, many people buy it anyway. If you don’t have these habits, then we congratulate you. And if you do, then we will ask you this question: “Have you ever counted how much of your money fly away with smoke and alcohol vapors?”
- Don’t delay with paying bills
You should pay for the apartment and utilities as soon as the bills arrived. Yes, it may seem difficult, but you can’t postpone it in any case. In a month, payments will become even larger and it will be more difficult to deal with them. You can get into debt, getting out of which will be difficult. Saving this way will not work. You will also lose if you suddenly get a fine or disconnect some service, for example, the Internet (thus, you will refuse hot women chat either).
- Always live by your means
Yes, sometimes you want to buy an expensive thing, go to a restaurant or on an unplanned vacation. But doing this is better if you have extra money that is not included in the main monthly budget. The ability to properly manage your money is real work that allows you to establish friendly relations with money. Life from paycheck to paycheck is a prime example of unreasonable spending.
- Save money after each payday
Take the habit of saving a certain amount of money immediately after each payday. Thus, you will provide yourself with a certain “airbag”. In the future, this money can come in handy for any major investment or purchase. Also, introduce a system of rewards and punishments for yourself. Suppose you can spend a specific amount of money once a month on what you want. However, if you couldn’t restrain yourself and spent more than planned, limit your spending next month.
- Attend sales
Buying items at sales is not just about saving. For real shopaholics, this is a whole science, the ability to plan, wait, and come up with a shopping strategy. First of all, you shouldn’t chase fashion and constantly update your wardrobe. You should always correlate the price and quality of the goods. Keep track of sales and promotions – save on your purchases! When planning the purchase of the necessary thing, analyze the prices of stores. Sometimes the difference in price can reach 30% or more percent.
- Shopping online
The network now has a huge number of offers for all product groups. And the prices here are more than affordable. It is possible to cooperate with other users and buy things at wholesale cost. For this, even special groups have been created. On the Internet, you have the opportunity to quickly compare prices from different sellers. It is very convenient, doesn’t take much effort and time. Just sit down in the evening and choose the goods at the price that suits you.
- Try to visit stores no more than once a week
You shouldn’t visit stores often because they are an eternal temptation. Observations show that almost half of the customers go to the store 3-4 times a week and buy 54% more goods than planned. To save more time and money, some practical shoppers go to the supermarket once a month. For some, this may seem extreme, but here only careful planning and rational shopping are needed.
- Don’t buy everything at once
Don’t rush to buy new items or run for the first sale. If you really want to buy a thing, then you should do a market analysis. For example, look for similar models on the Internet and you are 100% likely to find them much cheaper. The main thing in a reasonable economy is discipline. It is difficult to save money without it. It is hard at the beginning when you are forced to refuse certain goods. But over time, you will realize that saving will bring you pleasure and practical benefits.
- Don’t visit fast foods and cafes
Fast food cafes such as KFC and McDonald’s are located in almost any city. For the convenience of consumers, delivery of snacks, rolls, pizza (in which the cost of food is inadequately expensive) works. Salads are generally 5-10 times more expensive than a kilogram of vegetables from which it is prepared. In addition, fast food is incredibly unhealthy. It has already been proven that the constant use of such food threatens obesity and other health problems.
- Reduce entertainment costs
Bars, clubs, and cinemas, of course, make life brighter but turn into big expenses. In addition to the admission ticket, we buy drinks and snacks in such establishments at a price much higher than the market price. For the budget, it is useful either to completely refuse expensive entertainment or spend money on them wisely.
Bonus: interesting ideas on saving money
To start saving money, you first need to decide at what point you start saving. You need to choose a specific date. You need to choose the goal. This goal should be very desirable so that it would be possible to deny yourself some petty pleasures for its sake.
- Game “Piggy Bank”
In a game form, it is easiest to save since the game entertains a person, which is an additional motivation to continue to save further. The most popular game is the Piggy Bank. You can start playing it any day and finish it exactly one year after the start. The essence of the game is to save a certain amount insignificant for you every day. For example, it can be 1 or 10 dollars. You must put the selected amount into the piggy bank daily because you can’t skip payments.
- The rule of 4 envelopes
The essence of the rule is that when you receive income, you first pay all the required bills – utilities, Internet, credit, travel, etc., and divide the remaining money into 4 equal parts. Each of them is the amount that can be spent in the coming week. If something remains after a week, you can either put it to the piggy bank or do whatever you want with them.
- Percentage of income
In this game, your main task is to allocate a strictly defined percentage of each salary of the money for your purpose. This method seems to be the simplest as it doesn’t limit all other expenses, and the indicated percentage went to a savings card immediately after receiving a salary. As a result, we don’t “see” this money, and after a couple of months, the savings account will surprise you.
Psychology Features
It’s important to understand that no matter what method you choose, you will need firmness and discipline. To make it easier to cope, there are several tricks on how to save money with a small salary based on knowledge of our psychology.
Before making any purchase, ask yourself a simple question: “How many hours of my work does it cost?” Even if you are a big fan of shopping, you will surely stop when you find out that a new handbag or gadget costs 2-3 of your working days. Realizing how much effort you spend to earn a certain amount helps save money, rather than spending it on dubious pleasures.
Also, there is a problem of psychological waste. Psychological waste is when you have already mentally spent the money received for the work that has not yet been completed or distributed your income several months in advance. In this case, the earned and received money doesn’t bring you joy. Stop spending money in advance, and they will begin to bring the proper pleasure.
If you live as a couple, then saving is a collective matter. Only in this way, it will give a tangible result. Be sure to set spending limits and don’t indulge yourself.