The ABCs of Saving Money was originally going to be an all-in-one post, like my post The ABCs of Frugality: 26 Frugal Concepts. But as I tossed the idea around, and asked others, especially on Twitter, I realized there were too many good concepts to cram them all into one, looong, post. So I decided to break them up! The ABCs of Saving Money will appear throughout 2010.
A is for…
Automatic transfers of money make savings a snap. If the money leaves your bank account before you even notice it’s there, than your savings will grow with little effort. Don’t think that if things are tight, very tight, it’s not worth it- saving just $10 a month is still better than saving nothing at all.
Advertising. How much do you watch? And your kids? You might think that you don’t watch any or very little, but ads are everywhere. Heck, there are even ads on Almost Frugal! I know that when I watch TV or read glossy ads I want more stuff and will even be on the road to buying more stuff, without giving it a second thought. Instead, I try really hard to watch what I (and my kids) watch, what sites we access and the magazines we read, not only for the content but also to limit the exposure to the ads we see. If I do want to learn more about a certain product, I ask expert friends or go looking for the information myself. Strange talk for a marketing consultant, isn’t it?
Accepting your weaknesses and analyzing your strengths. I know I have a hard time with impulse spending, especially when it comes to cute shoes, stuff at Ikea and books. So I stay away from shoe stores, book stores and Ikea as much as possible. When I do need to go into one of those places, I go with a list, a budget and a plan, having done my homework and knowing how much money I have to spend. More importantly, I also give myself permission to come back later if I really want something- which I almost never do.
What’s the A in the ABCs of Saving Money for you?
Read the other posts in the ABCs of Saving Money series.
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{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
Automatic transfers has really helped me get a hold on my finances. Now every month I actually look forward to the transfers taking place and going into their various savings account which helps me budget better.
Craig´s last blog ..Tonight’s PF Twitter Chat is Canceled
My A has to be Attitude. My attitude about money, money mindset if you will, will always influence my saving and/or my spending of money.
Carol Ann Wiley´s last blog ..We need to be pro-aging instead of anti-aging.
Saving is hard to do, especially if you want to invest on to something that would best suit us. . If you don’t try to do a little bargaining when you make the big purchases, you will spend way more than you need to, and you’ll end up contemplating payday loans to keep up with the payments before too long. Obviously, trying to secure discounts on some things is a fool’s errand (clothes, food, small level stuff) but other things, like cars, homes, appliances and so forth are completely subject to haggling. Salesmen will be anxious to close (especially now) and just because you need to make a big purchase doesn’t mean you can’t be saving money at the same time.