The money saving hacks that are giving me extra coin!
- Carly Morton
- Oct 19, 2019
- 3 min read
There are two ways to have more money in your back pocket:
One, earn more.
Or two, spend less.
Being that I'm a Government employee, earning more isn't really up to me, unless I want to take on a side hustle...and if you saw how shocking the last one worked out for me (cue the pushy princesses pressuring me to make more money for THEM) then you would understand why option one doesn't really sound appealing to me.
So spend less and save more it is!
I'm very thankful that I come from two parents that instilled the importance of saving into me at an early age, but if you didn't have the pleasure, here are some of the strategies (large and small) that I'm using to tighten those purse strings.
No buy-
I'm starting a six month no-buy to carry me through the second half of 2019. I did attempt this at the start of the year with limited success, but now as the building of my house is drawing nearer as well as the incentive to want to travel more, I'm ready to have a second crack at it.
If you want to see the things that I will and won't be allowing myself to buy, as well as my goals for this project, you can check it out in my YouTube video.
Be more conservative around the house- To do this we are:
- Using up all of our fruit and veggies instead of chucking them out. Some nights that means having a mish-mash meal or meal prepping for lunches.
- Taking advantage of the clothes horse to dry washing on wet days.
- Turning off lights when we exit a room.
- Closing windows at night to keep the warmth in and opening them up during the day for added freshness.
- Making my own cleaning products.
- Propagating succulents rather than buying home decor.
- Having showers at the gym on the weekends rather than at home.
Some additional saving strategies:
- I read the 'Barefoot Investor' book and am starting to put his recommendations into action. It is certainly worth a read.
- Accepting hand-me-down clothing or looking for items at vintage stores.
- Finding new uses for things around the house e.g. old candle holders can be used for potting small plants.
- Limiting myself to one meal out and one takeaway meal per week.
- Unsubscribing from advertising emails.
- Watching YouTube videos around saving.
- Shifting my mindset around money to one of freedom and abundance rather than fear and lack.
I'm currently reading the book 'The Art of Frugal Hedonism' which is definitely worth a read. The premise is that you can find pleasure in the simple, cheap or even free things. The authors talk about how excessive work and consumer culture is a modern construct and that 'back in the day' people would work when they wanted and be frugal because they had to, but also lived a more simple life where they took pleasure in the little things.
My parents didn't raise me to desire 'stuff' so excessively, so I can only assume that the abundance of media and the ease with which we can buy things (things that are often so poorly made) has fostered this mindset of Keeping up with the Joneses...or in today's society, the Kardashians!
Here are some simple things that I enjoy doing that are cheap or don't cost a thing:
- Going for a walk in nature.
- Reading a book.
- Having a bath.
- Listening to a podcast or dancing around the house to fun tunes.
- Catching up with family or friends.
- Sitting down with a cuppa.
- Cleaning/organising.
I have a heap of videos over on my YouTube channel all about minimalism and sustainability so make sure you go over and check them out!
Carly xx
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