Most people can appreciate the importance of having a good financial plan to build a healthy nest egg for retirement.
It's taking action towards making it a reality which is all too often the difficult part. Implementing a savings plan when you trying to make ends meet with mortgage payments, children's expenses, household bills and the many other things that have a stake in your money is difficult if not impossible. So most people decide that they will get around to it someday, the only problem is the someday never comes.
If you are sick of flushing your hard earned money down the drain, if you've tried unsuccessful to go frugal with a tight budget that was always doomed to fail or you're finally ready to start thinking about your financial future then getting started is a lot less painful then you might think. Everyday we are doing countless idiotic things that create a gaping leak in our bank accounts.
To patch the crack in your financial health and get it to a healthy state here are some areas that need to be addressed as to whether they belong or you can do without.
1. Cancel your cable TV service.
One of the great promises of Cable TV when it was first introduced was that you could watch what you wanted, when you wanted and without the annoying ads. This is off course not true, when you want to watch a certain movie or show, chances are it's not showing at that time and you find that most of what is showing is really not all that interesting anyway. After a long day at work there are better things to be doing than watching mindless TV.
Total Saving: $50 per month or $600 per year.
2. Take your lunch to work.
It's tempting to just go out to lunch with your work colleagues or rush through lunch time crowds to grab something on the run but how much easier would it be if you just took your lunch to work. Not only will you be saving money but chances are its more nutritious for you as well. If you're spending $20 per day on lunch you could be saving $100 per week.
Total Saving: $400 per month or $4800 per year.
3. Get rid of your gym membership.
If you have a gym membership and you aren't utilising it then you need to seriously think about why you have it in the first place. If you are serious about losing weight or keeping fit why not consider alternatives to the gym, like jogging before work.
Total Saving: $100 per month or $1200 per year.
4. Buying bottled water.
It's understandable if you are living in a third world country but when you have perfectly safe drinking water it doesn't make any sense to buy bottled water. Not only are you contributing to the mountains of waste that results from throwing away the plastic bottles, but you are also paying for something that you could get for next to nothing. If you're buying a bottle of water per day at $2 per bottle then this really starts to add up.
Total Saving: $60 per month or $720 per year.
5. Kick the nicotine addiction.
Yes, you've heard all the health warnings connected to the addiction but if you haven't quit yet then obviously this isn't a good enough reason. How about the hole it burns in your hip pocket. If you are currently smoking a packet a day then it is costing you about $5 per day.
Total Saving: $150 per month or $1800 per year
If you were to implement all the above ideas you would be saving $760 per month or $9120 per year (These figures are for illustration purposes only and are not indicative of what your actual savings will be, please take the time to determine your own figures and your own circumstance). Even if you were to only implement some of the ideas you will be making a significant contribution to your overall financial health.
At the end of the day remember life is meant to be enjoyed. If some of these suggestions seem to be too much of a sacrifice today for you then think about what areas in your life can be trimmed.
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