A guide for those who come to dread the idea of spending less. Remember that feeling – I have money, I can spend it on this or that. And it doesn’t matter that I don’t need either. I can afford it, so I’ll buy it. That’s how money flows away – on things you don’t need.
- Make shopping lists.
First of all, this applies to the daily trips to the supermarket. You’ve probably noticed that you usually go to the store for milk and buckwheat, and come out with bags of sundries, which you do not need right now.
To avoid wasting money, draw up a menu for the week and make a list of which day you need to buy what products. That way you’ll be less likely to find that the food you spent your hard-earned money on has gone ignominiously stale in the depths of the refrigerator.
- Keep an eye out for discounts
Sign up for online store newsletters, study supermarket flyers, and install a discount aggregator app. It doesn’t take much time to find the best-looking prices, and the savings, in the long run, can be quite decent.
There is an important point: if we are not talking about the nearest store, but about a hypermarket on the other side of town, estimate how much money you will spend on the road. The cost of a cab ride or your car can reduce the tempting discount to zero.
- Think about acquisitions
First of all, decide whether you really need this thing or just found a stray mood and want to spend money urgently. Wait at least a week: if they desire to buy the cherished thing that has not disappeared, go on to the search for the most profitable option. Perhaps on the Internet, you can find the thing of your dreams at a discount.
And you should not go shopping on payday, when you get all the money from the paystub format and go to spend it. Suppose you now have a decent amount in your pocket, but that does not mean that you need to spend it as quickly as possible. You still have to live on that money, and no one has done away with the financial safety cushion.
- Cheap does not mean bad.
Take at least the products of private label hypermarkets. As a rule, these things are cheaper than similar products with a big name.
For the sake of interest, compare how much is a can of peas from a well-known brand and own-brand hypermarket. The quality of the product does not suffer, so you can safely buy and save.
- Make a list of things that you can not save on.
Savings should be reasonable – the excessive limitation of spending often leads to even greater spending. For example, buying cheap shoes for the spring is threatened by the fact that after the first walk in puddle’s shoes give a leak, and you have to spend money to repair or a new pair of shoes.
Good clothes and shoes, medicine, fresh food – that’s the minimum list of things that are worth paying a little more. If you can find the perfect combination of price and quality – fine, if not – still choose quality.
Conclusion
All poor people make one of two mistakes — they either spend more resources than they can afford to buy cheaper, or they don’t want to spend less resources to achieve solid savings.
All rich people weigh every deal — whether they can buy it cheaper and how much it will cost them to find a cheaper option.
