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Unless you’re already as frugal as you can be, we can all benefit from a little cost cutting and optimisation.
So whether you just need to tighten your belt to get over some short term financial hurdles, or adopt a more frugal
standard of living for the long term, try some of these basic cost cutting tips: - Do you need it –
is your current house too big for your needs? Is your car really practical for your needs or just for show? You may be able
to downsize on your house and/ or car and save heaps on repayments and maintenance.
- Get the right shopping habits - so much of the money we waste is just because of HOW we shop. Learn to question your shopping choices and whether you really
need to make the purchase or not.
- Cut back on luxuries and holidays – we can all afford a little bit of luxury for ourselves, and it’s good to do so. But not if it is at the expense
of essential things like putting food on the table. Pick your luxuries and only buy them when you’ve had a good weekly
budget otherwise.
- Can you DIY – there many things you can do cheaper yourself. Take your own lunch to work rather than eating at the local café,
certainly do your own cleaning and labour at home where you can rather than hiring someone, make your own dog food from left
overs and rice (this saves heaps if you’ve got a big dog) – and many others.
- Be Healthy – in a lot of cases, eating healthy food can be a lot cheaper than eating take-aways and processed dinners. Do your
body and wallet a favour by healthy eating. And better still, grow your own vegies if you can! And cut back on smoking, alcohol
and gambling too.
- Don’t be wasteful – if you buy something only to throw it out, you’ve
just wasted money. The same applies to buying products in extra packaging – you pay for this packaging and usually just
end up throwing it out. What a waste!
- Save the planet! – Is your carbon-footprint reflected by the lifestyle you lead? You bet, but the smallest changes can lessen the impact on the environment and planet.
Cutting energy and water use not only helps save the environment, but reduces electricity and water bills too! So walk to
work, turn off electrical appliances when not in use, optimise heating and cooling and keep those hot showers short. Check
out this webpage on Environmental Goals and tips on HOW you can reduce energy, fuel, water and resource use – and save money.
- Optimise tax – keep receipts for valid tax deductions and talk to your accountant about how to make the most out of tax laws. But
never ever break tax laws – taxation departments in most countries are aggressive in tracking down and prosecuting tax
cheats.
- Barter – or join a bartering scheme. Most communities have one. You can barter your own services or goods with services or
goods from other people and save paying for them in the process.
Have a close look at your expenses – where
do you spend the most money? What else can YOU do to cut your expenses? What do you think you can cut your expenditure down
to?
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