While sure, you can start doing an opinion outpost or few to start making some extra money, but a good place to start is reducing the expenses that you already have. From getting rid of your cable bill, to avoiding going out to eat, to even just cutting out impulse purchases that you don’t need, you can free up extra money that you can put towards better use, such as paying down debt, building up an emergency fund, or better yet, saving for retirement. I understand there are certain purchases that we do need to make, and that’s where we can apply the best practices to save as much money as we can.
Keep a List
Sure, it can be helpful even for online shopping to avoid filling the cart with items you don’t need, but before you go out shopping, especially when it comes to going grocery shopping, taking stock of everything you need before you leave the house can be important so that by the time you do get to the store you don’t forget what you went in there for, not to mention coming out with plenty of things you didn’t need in the first place. A list can help you stay organized to maneuver through the aisles getting exactly what you need.
Find the Best Deal
In order to compare prices, we would have to drive all over town, going from store to store to try and save money, and by the time it was all said and done, between dealing with traffic, wasting gas, to maybe save a few bucks, it makes you wonder if your time isn’t more valuable. These days you have the luxury of being in your own home, able to flip to virtually endless amounts of websites in a matter of seconds each, trying to find the best price. Best of all, you don’t have to fight the crowds.
Take Advantage of Credit Card Rewards
Credit cards used to get a bad rap, but if used correctly, they can actually make good financial sense. Take rewards for instance, by making the purchases that you would be making anyways, you can earn points of which you can redeem for gift cards, hotel, or airline miles, or even a cashback check. It can be argued that you could actually use a credit card for all purchases, but for some, seeing the rewards add up could mean more purchases, and if you are unable to pay off the full statement balance by the due date, the amount you pay in interest could outweigh the rewards.
Or Try Using Only Cash
Credit cards are not for all, and I understand that, so if you are at risk of going into a spending frenzy then perhaps using cash in credit is the way to go. This way you can allow yourself a certain amount to spend, and once it’s gone, it’s gone. This could be a nice way to budget all expenses and the little spending money that you have left over.
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