Shop Online or Have a Non-Negotiable Shopping List
Supermarkets are laid out intentionally to make you buy more than you need.
A great solution to this is to shop online. By opting to do this, you’re removing yourself, for the most part, from a financially poisonous environment.
The best thing about online shopping is that you can do it from the comfort of your own living room and you can review the price of your trolley as you go through. If you have a set budget, it’s easy to edit out a few items and keep on track. Just don’t get caught out by ‘deals’!
Alternatively, if you prefer the experience of shopping with a tangible trolley (not a virtual one) and think you can be strict with yourself, take a non-negotiable shopping list with you and stick to it.
Be Unfaithful
If you have been with the same service provider for years, whether that’s your internet connection, your energy, or your mobile phone contract, consider being unfaithful and joining another company. You can compare the prices of service providers online, so make sure you’re getting the best deal.
Make Your Own Lunches
It’s tempting to go for the convenience of purchased lunches, but you will save a lot of money by making your own, or just freezing off leftovers from dinner.
If you make your own dinner anyway, you might as well make double portions, so you can enjoy your own home cooking at work too. For the days where you can’t use leftovers, knocking up a delicious sandwich takes mere minutes. Jamie Oliver has a whole website full of recommendations for quick and easy lunches.
Turn Your Tap Off!
By turning your tap off when you brush your teeth, you can save a considerable amount of money. Small amendments to your water usage will not only help save the environment, but your bank balance too!
Remember To Pause Before You Purchase
A great way to avoid impulse purchases that you could live without is to choose to sleep on it before you buy. Need a new jumper and you’ve found one that you like?
Give it a week or so and see if you feel as strongly about that item as you did before. Can you live without it? Do you really need it? It can be easy to get caught up in the moment when shopping, after all.
Get a Library Card and Use It
Instead of buying fresh books or DVDs, pay a visit to your local library and borrow them for free! Of course, you will have to remember to return them in time – otherwise you will find yourself with hefty fines – but if you can manage that, this is a great resource for learning and escaping from daily life.
I picked up some books from the library last night. It’s such an awesome resource. I can’t remember the last time I spent money on a book…
I regularly go to the library for new books and it’s where most of my books comes from. My library has an interlibrary loan system set up too, but it’s $2 a book (most libraries I’ve been a patron of were free). Still, going to the library is a weekly ritual that I’ve continued since I was in elementary school. It’s saved me thousands over the years!
I am a friend of the library. I think most of my time is spent reading books at the library from novels to textbooks. It feels good that I can get to read most novels without even buying it. I hope I can still be able to use the library after graduation.