Saving money can be tricky. Not just tricky, but impossible.
When I worked part-time I was a terrible spender, often ending the month with no savings. I've learnt that having money saved for a 'rainy day' is more important than you realise. I learnt the hard way, luckily people around me trusted me enough to lend me money at the time.
The first rule is to think of the bigger picture. Do you REALLY need that £15 lipstick? That's just over two hours work for me. TWO LONG HOURS! What else could that money get you instead? Or what could it go towards.
There are several ways to save money from the large to the small and everything in between. Here are the ones that i use.
1. Firstly, total your monthly income and take away your monthly bills, including petrol & food. This will leave you with what you have to save and spend. Depending on how good you want to be.
2. If you find it hard to resist, budget yourself weekly and withdraw that money. Leave your card at home! Then you know how much you have to work with.
3. Be realistic and cancel any subscriptions you don't need or don't use. If you find it hard to decide, total these subscriptions up, how much could you be saving?
4. With the remaining money, set up a Direct Debit to take money out of your main account weekly. I like to take £100 every Friday from my main account to my ISA. But this will depend on your income and how much you have to save for. I find it easier to take money out Weekly rather than monthly as its gives me more movement if i need to transfer anything out in an emergency.
5. Stop buying food and coffee when you're out and about! And if you do it at work, you're even worse! The amount of people who buy food at my workplace on a daily basis is unbelievable. The products aren't cheap and there are some people who spend £7/10 a day just on food. To me that's insane and I've always been a strong believer in packed lunches.
6. Make the most out of your store loyalty cards!
7. When buying online, buy through Top cashback where you can get certain percentages of money back! If the store you want isn't available, then search on google for a discount code!
8. If you want to buy new clothing or beauty products. Try selling some first, and use that money and that money ALONE to buy your new items. Try eBay for clothing and Depop for beauty.
9. With left over change, pop it into a savings tin that you cant get into without breaking it! Home Bargains sell giant tins for 78p. Don't go buying a savings tin for £8, it defeats the point all together.
10. To make myself feel guilty, i like to note down what I've spent on a piece of paper in a noticeable place. These small cheap items, soon total up to a large amount and has you feeling awful.
11. If it's too easy for you to dip into your savings account. Set up a savings account in a different bank all together. Don't log in on your phone and don't memorise the account numbers. Put the information away safely, this way preventing you from temptation
12. Once the months up and you're left with a plus in your account. The day before you're due to get paid, transfer the remaining money into your savings. This will prevent you from spending what you have saved and set you up for another budget month.
What ways do you use to save money?
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