Skip to main content

How to save extra money so you can reach your financial goals


Are you looking for ways to make extra money to pay off debt or save for that piece of furniture you have been dreaming about for months? Here are four tips and tricks you can incorporate to find extra money to put toward debt or savings without getting a side hustle.





Tighten up your budget.

Many want to get out of debt or save up for a large purchase but are hesitant to make cuts to their budget to achieve that goal. Look, I get it, it's hard to make sacrifices from the lifestyle you have grown accustomed to, but doing so will help get you to your goal quicker, and that's what should be your focus. Here's my challenge to you, commit to making cuts to your budget by a certain percentage on individual line items that you control the amount allocated. So what's it going to be? 5%, 10%, 20% challenge yourself, even if you already live a lean lifestyle. 


Do weekly check-ins.

By now, you probably know I am a huge proponent of living with a monthly budget, assigning every dollar a "job." Once a week, sit down with your spouse and go over the week's expenses to see if any budget line items need extra attention and improvement going forward. These check-ins let you see problems and make the necessary corrections right away rather than waiting until the end of the month when it is likely to have become an even bigger issue.


Pay cash for the line items that tend to be easy to go over budget.  

Now we all know that there are those line items in our budget that seems impossible to avoid going over budget. Be determined to set a weekly budget if it happens to be items like groceries or gasoline and pay cash. If paying cash is too hard because stores are not accepting it due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Challenge yourself to keep a running tab of what you spent on your phone or the back of an envelope, basically something that you keep with you at all times so that you can immediately update the budget and track your progress.


Implement a spending freeze.

I would start by doing this for one week and, over time, build up to a month. If you are freezing your spending for a week, try and dedicate one week every other month. Challenge yourself to spend not one dime, take the savings, and apply it toward your debt/savings goal. However, if you are implementing it for a month-long spending freeze, impose it one to two times per year. You will still need to allow a small budget for fresh items like produce, dairy, and other basic staples, but you should limit the amount and stick to your budget. Either way, this is your opportunity to use overlooked or ignored food in the depths of the freezer, pantry, and refrigerator while saving toward your goal. 


So try one, try them all. It's up to you to decide how badly you want to reach your goal, but these tips will help you reach your goal quicker. Don't forget to check out my other money-saving tips blog post.


Labels:
Location: Houston, TX, USA

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Tips and tricks for getting out of debt, and staying out of debt. (Part 2)

Welcome back! All right, now its time to get busy!  Last time we discussed the steps to gather and determine what you owe, which was a critical step to getting started.  You have to know what you are dealing with so you can tackle it with gazelle intensity.  Now, let's take action and continue with the steps to get out of debt. Steps 6 - 10 of my 10 Steps to Get Out of Debt 6)  Breathe, I promise, you can do this. 7)  Starter Emergency Savings  -  before you start paying off debt, it is essential to save up or set aside an emergency fund.  Dave Ramsey suggests that you save $1,000, if you already have more than $1,000 in savings, use any savings above the $1,000 to pay down debt.  This will provide a buffer should you have a real emergency while trying to get out of debt. If you don't...
Post a Comment
Read more

When and How to Get Out of A Car Loan

There is no doubt in my mind that Americans have had a long-standing love affair with motor vehicles.  There's no escaping it, from celebrities to commercials, and even songs that we hear on the radio, cars have become a trophy to most Americans. So let me ask you, do you see your car or the cars that others drive as a status symbol?  What exactly does it tell you?  In my opinion, nothing!  You see, just because someone drives an expensive car doesn't mean they are financially healthy.  In fact, it could mean quite the opposite, we just don't know.  So why do Americans tend to put so much value in the car they drive?  After all, they rapidly decrease in value and add no real value to your net worth.  In fact, it shouldn't be considered an investment, in my opinion.  So why are we so quick to come up with all the excuses to buy or own a particular vehicle?  I am not sure, but if you are reading this post, it is likely that getti...
Post a Comment
Read more

Starter emergency fund explained and some ideas on ways to save for it. (Baby Step 1)

Simply put, a starter emergency fund is a little buffer between you, and the curveballs life throws at us. It is a fund for unexpected emergencies that pop up at the most inconvenient time, which is the last thing you want to deal with, especially when you are trying to get out of debt. Dave Ramsey recommends saving $1,000 as your starter emergency fund. The idea behind it is not to provide a cushy cushion but rather be a safety net you can fall back on in case of an actual emergency while you are making progress knocking down debt.  This amount makes some people nervous, and there are some valid reasons, in some cases, so I will say if your job or income is precarious right now, then it may be a season of stacking up cash rather than knocking down debt, but that's a whole different topic. You have to honestly evaluate your circumstance to determine what is best for your situation. I say "honestly" because we can play games in our minds and convince ourselves that "n...
Post a Comment
Read more