Budgets, investments, savings plans – all uncomfortable topics to talk about. Talking about money means taking responsibility and accountability for the purchasing decisions you make on a daily basis. It also brings about an uncomfortable bout of insecurity about both your net and individual worth. No matter your financial situation, the truth is that you will have to deal with money. But dealing with money doesn’t have to be a daunting or insurmountable task. Here’s a guide for any modern lady to start saving and taking responsibility for her funds.
An essential part of saving is being self-aware. What habits do you have that are consistent? Do you go running every day? Do you get coffee often? Recognize them and use them to your advantage. Whenever you go get that morning pick-me-up, put an extra dollar into a jar. Whenever you go running, put in a quarter. It doesn’t matter how much you stash away as long as you’re saving a little bit at a time.
Generic products get a bad rap and have a slight stigma attached to them, but when it comes to saving money, purchase generic products – they work just as well as the name brands. According to CBS, items like flour, medicine, or paper products are just as good if not the same as the name brand. Name brand doesn’t always equal better. In some cases, you’re paying for the brand and the packaging rather than the quality of the product. So cut wherever feasible. This can and will save you money.
Credit can be a slippery slope, but because of the way our world is set up, you need credit. Without it, no one has any proof of how responsible you are with money. However, a credit card can be an excellent way to save if you know how to use one. Getting an excellent credit card is a twofold benefit. First, getting a positive credit score will save you money in the future. If you have a good credit score, you’re eligible to get lower interest rates on loans, should you ever need one. Second, the rewards on the credit card, depending on the card you have, can generate enough points to get you free flights, gift cards, or cash back. It’s a smart way to be able to spend responsibly and get rewarded for it.
A trick to garner points is to charge your bills to your credit card. You have to pay for bills so why not use the opportunity to get rewards? Just make sure you actually have the money to pay the balance at the end of the month.
This is the most obvious way to save but it can help depending on your income. Evaluate any activities or habits you have that are costing too much. Do you buy $200 shoes too often? Do your find yourself buying books before you’ve even finished the one you were currently reading? If so, you might need to rethink your spending habits and find out where can you cut costs. Not everything you buy is always necessary, so get rid of whatever spending habit you can do without. You can put the money you used to spend on these habits into a savings account. That way, you will be saving yourself money by not indulging.
The key to any American business is to rely on the consumer’s desire for convenience. We have grocery delivery services that bring our groceries to us. We have spending tracker apps that tell us how much we’ve spent because we don’t want to keep track of it ourselves.
Find what you are currently spending your money on that you can easily make yourself. Ingredients usually cost a lot less than buying the product individually. If you buy all the ingredients to make a natural face mask, it might seem more expensive initially, but you’ll be able to use those ingredients to make more masks, which will save you money over time.
Saving really doesn’t have to be a daunting challenge that takes all your time and energy, but it does take some smart thinking and prioritizing. Once you put the work in and see results, saving will be a lot less scary, and when you realize your financial goals, you’ll be able to breathe a little easier.
