A new year has rolled around and you may be hoping to start afresh with resolutions for a new you. Make this year the year you resolve to break those bad habits which you may not even realise you had, that are stopping you from managing your money properly.
Invisible Spending
What do we mean by invisible spending? It’s when you spend money on little things every day without noticing how it’s adding up. How many times do you stop on the way to work to buy a coffee and a sandwich? Do that every workday and maybe at the weekend as well when you pop into town and you’ll be shocked when you add up how much this costs over the year. Just one £2.50 coffee a day adds up to over £600 a year! Instead, why not invest in a flask to take in your own drinks which you make at home. A £3.50 sandwich 5 times a week costs £17.50; multiply that by 52 weeks and that’s £910 over the year. Make some sandwiches or a boxed lunch at home too and take these to work. Doing this just twice a week will save money.
Don’t buy bottled water every day; it’s expensive and is no better healthwise than tap water. Buy a refillable water bottle and fill it from the tap instead to save money.
Subscriptions You Never Use
We all know about the well-meaning but futile resolutions to use the gym four times a week. A gym subscription can be expensive so if you know in your heart that you’re not going to use it – don’t buy it! Similarly, with magazine subscriptions for publications you won’t have time to read or buying expensive supplies for hobbies or classes you will never start.
Save on Social Activities
Saving money doesn’t mean never going for a meal or a night out. There are ways you can still do the things you love but cheaper. Get into the habit of searching out vouchers for free or cut-price meals, cinema tickets or activities. Many restaurants or fast food eateries like Frankie & Benny’s offer things like two for one vouchers to tempt you through the door. Some offer loyalty cards but these just mean you have to spend a lot with them to get not very much so avoid these.
If you go to the cinema it’s often cheaper mid-week than weekends. Take your own snacks and drinks to avoid paying cinema chain sky-high prices.
Use restaurants that allow you to take your own alcohol to avoid paying top prices for house booze.
Overhaul Your Monthly Outgoings
Sit down and go through all your monthly bills – broadband, mobile phone contract and household utilities to see where you can switch to cheaper tariffs. Paying for an expensive TV package is pointless if you rarely watch most of the programmes on offer so consider a Freeview box instead. A Now TV Subscription allows you to cancel any time without penalty.
Spend a day working out where you can save money becomes a good habit worth keeping.
