Saving money on yourself becomes a lot easier, when you don’t have to make major changes to your lifestyle. Listed below are 15 ways you can save money on yourself, and at home, with minimal discomfort or change. Enjoy!
- Tip 1: Cut your Family’s hair: This is a really easy tip, particularly for men, who often just shave their head or have a simple hair style. Ok I can hear you now wailing about your bowl cut that mum used to give you on Sunday night, so that you’d be dreading the next day at school. Get over it, bowl cuts are so 2009. Only joking, bowl cuts will only ever be cool for monks. But practice will make you better. The kids will suffer for a few months but it will build their character. Otherwise just do no. 1’s, gulag style. The average set of clippers and scissors with set you back around $10-15. The average hair cut is $20. Most people get a haircut at least every two months. If you cut your own hair you will save around $10 a month.
- Tip 2: Find parents to share the baby sitting with: Share babysitting services with your friends and neighbours (those you trust of course!) If you enjoy one night out a month you will save yourself $40 in babysitting fees. There are babysitting clubs on the internet, be cautious as always though.
- Tip 3: Eat breakfast every day: Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and will help to keep you healthy and happy. It also helps to reduce the number of snacks that you buy during the day. Porridge is a good one that keeps giving out energy well into the morning.
- Tip 4: Stop getting the paper delivered: Do you still get the paper delivered? Do you have the Internet? If so make use of your Internet costs and read the news. Or flog the neighbour’s!
- Tip 5: Limit your alcohol: Alcohol in most countries is heavily taxed. Do yourself and your body a favour and cut back on the amount you drink. Limit yourself to three or four times at week at the most. If you are an average drinker you could save yourself up to $50 a month. Alcohol is basically a toxin, they don’t ask you ‘what’s your poison’ for nothing. You’re better off without it, but the odd session waking up in the open countryside, not knowing where you are never hurt anyone…much!.
- Tip 6: Have a “spend no money” weekend: Often we need a few days break from a routine to get our spending under control. Have a weekend where you spend no money at all. Do some gardening, go for a walk, go to the park and cook nice dinners as well as watch a DVD and have some wine that is always at home. You will be amazed at how relaxed you will feel. Alternatively you could have a spend $10 weekend where you can still get two coffees on a Sunday etc.
- Tip 7: Clean out the lint in your clothes dryer after every load: The build up of lint makes your clothes dryer have to work harder and your clothes take longer to dry. If you clean out the lint filter after every load you will save money on electricity.
- Tip 8: Finish all food and house hold products before buying used ones: Do you have a bathroom full of almost empty shampoo containers. Make sure you get every last ounce of product out of containers before you buy new ones. You will save money, have less clutter and know that you are helping the environment.
- Tip 9: Quit the cigarettes: We all know that smoking is addictive and that it can be hard to break, but there are huge health and financial benefits if you do. Depending on where you live, and how much you smoke, you could be spending up to $2000 a year! Think of the huge savings you can make by cutting back or quitting completely. This is probably the most important of the lot if you’re a smoker, but we’re not telling you something you didn’t already know. But believe me this will be the best thing you ever do.
- Tip 10: Watch TV shows online: Many TV shows on cable or satellite can be viewed online for free. Rather than pay for additional channels in your cable package make the best use out of the Internet services you have paid for and view them online. Remember broadcast TV only exists as a vehicle to make you watch ads.
- Tip 11: Write down all of the cheap/free activities you can do at home or near home: Get the family together and write down all of the things you like to do that don’t cost much money. It could be walking in the park, playing in the park, fishing, cycling etc. Massages with your partner may take up the first 5 on the list! Keep this list near your diary, and every time you are bored or looking for something to do, refer to the list
- Tip 12: Increase the length of your eyebrow wax: Plucking at home in between salon visits will increase the length of waxing. If you don’t mind a bit of pain then consider plucking all the time.
- Tip 13: Do your leg waxing at home: Its cheaper.
- Tip 14: Grow your natural nails: Acrylic nails can cost you a heap of money over the course of a year. Grow your own natural nails and then look after them. Definitely a better option.
- Tip 15: Do pedicures and manicures at home: Its cheaper and you can go at your own pace.