I have been asked by a few of my friends to reveal my “secrets” on saving money. Just as there is not a “secret diet” to lose weight, there is not a secret method to save money. It is common sense. DO NOT SPEND MONEY! However, we all know that this is impossible. There are everyday expenses that have to be taken care of. With this being said, I have made a short list of the some of the things that I do to save money. Please feel free to comment below and add some for yours… Remember, its not only how much money you make, it is how you spend it.
- I use a budget. I get to visually see where my money is going and how I spend it. If I budget $200.00 a month for entertainment, I try to spend at or under $200.00. Looking at your finances on paper can be a real eye opener and it just might make you realize just how much money you spend on (enter name of expense here)
- I try to conserve utilities. Turning off lights when not used and using natural light during the day can save on your electric bill. You may want to invest (budget) for CFLs (Compact Fluorescent Lamp) that provide the same if not more lighting for a fraction of the electrical cost. However, these bulbs cost more than regular light bulbs, so it will take some time to get a return on your investment. I changed out my bulbs with CFLs and I do notice a substantial difference in my electric bill. Another idea is using a programmable thermostat that adjusts the temperature of your home when you are sleeping or away. I adjust our thermostat manually. When we buy our next home, I am seriously going to consider a new learning thermostat from Nest.com. Check out the video at http://www.nest.com If you are tech person like me, it will have you drooling…
- Reuse and recycle. We do not buy kitchen trash bags. We reuse our plastic shopping bags from WalMart and other fine retailers. It irritates me knowing I am buying something just to throw it away. Some things you really can’t get away with not buying to throw away… (don’t squeeze the Charmin)
- Leftovers… I know that people get tired of Turkey on the 5th day after Thanksgiving, but if you plan it well, you just might not have to throw away any bird. I like to make Italian meatloaf. I buy 3lbs of good quality hamburger and divide it. The first half I make a regular loaf. The other half I make meatballs. The first meal we have meatloaf and (insert name of sides here) The next day we have an “Italian” submarines with melted mozzarella. The 3rd day? You guess it… spaghetti with meatballs. If you plan correctly, you can do this with just about any food. Rotisserie chicken leftovers become chicken tortilla soup, chicken chili and chicken salad. The bones I use for chicken stock. Now that is efficiency!
- Dining out – You can really save money by limiting your dining out. I fully appreciate the break from not “slaving over the stove” and having a nice dinner at a favorite restaurant. However, when I go out I seldom order a beverage. It is usually water with lemon. Ever wonder why there are not any drink prices on a menu? It is because the restaurant doesn’t want you to know that you are paying $3.00 or more for a glass of fountain soda. Does this make me cheap? No, it makes me financially responsible. I also save money by skipping the appetizers and the dessert. Usually any entree you order will have plenty of food to make you full. Sometimes I will order an appetizer as my entree or I may just have dessert.
- Haircuts – My wife, Ruby, has been cutting my hair for almost as long as we have been married. I am not picky on style. Just shave it all off… We purchased a set of Whal clippers over 15 years ago and have been using the same pair ever since. I save an average of $390.00 a year on haircuts. Cha-ching!
- Kill the cable – We used to have cable TV. We had the fancy schmancy digital/DVD/internet based kind of cable. My bill would be almost $150.00 a month with Internet. What I had noticed is that my daughter never really watched it, but instead, watched her cartoons on my laptop. So I decided to forgo the cable and get Netflix. If there is something we really have to watch, we grab a movie at Redbox for a little over a $1.00.
- Drive a used, paid for car – I have a 1998 Honda Civic EX 4-door with almost 202,000 miles. It gets around 28MPG city and almost 35MPG highway. That is pretty good gas mileage for a 14 year old car. I paid $2500 for the car and have about $3200 in it after a tune up and fixing a few issues here and there. I am saving quite a bit of money because 1. It is paid for, so no interest on a loan. 2. I only have liability insurance since it isn’t worth very much. 3. It still gets good gas mileage and 4. It has depreciated about as much as it is gong to. Another good thing about driving my “debt beater” is that if it gets a scratch or ding, I don’t stress over it. Who cares! Think about the 1st parking lot dent, scratch or ding your $30k new car received. Stressful huh?
- Jippy Lube – Another way I save on automobile expense is that I change my oil every 5000 miles instead of 3000. Jiffy Lube is a big proponent of changing your oil every 3000 miles. Why? Because they make more money. This is not the 1960′s and this is not your father’s oil. Motor oil technology has advanced over the years and have been formulated for longer drain intervals, even longer with synthetic. I use Amsoil synthetic motor oil and change it every 5k. 5k is an easy number to remember. I also rotate my tires every 5k miles as well. If you buy a “lifetime” tire balance and rotation from places like Sears auto, it will save you money after your second rotation. I paid $69.00 for a lifetime balance/rotation and most dealerships charge around $40.00 per rotation. Once I hit rotation #3, I just saved a nice amount.
- Cheap entertainment - Let’s face it. Entertainment can be costly. If you do not watch what you spend, it can really break the bank. As a family, we like to go to .75 cent movies at the “dollar” theater on Tuesdays and $3.00 rollerskating with free skate rental at our local skating rink. If we decide to stay home we will break out the Monopoly board and I will give everyone a financial spanking! Another cheap entertainment idea is the library. I like to take my daughter, Natalie, to our local library. We have a nice one with tons of reading material. They even have DVDs, audio books and magazines for check out.
- Clothing at thrift stores – A place I never thought you could get a good deal was a thrift store or second hand store. I cannot tell you how many new clothes I have bought there. Many of them have never been worn and still have the original price tags on them. $3.00 shirts and $5.00 jeans? You betcha.
- Return excess stuff – I remember when I had a costly illness called Stuffitis. I would wake up every Sunday and grab the morning paper and go crazy with the sale ads. I would take a pen and “go to town” circling everything I wanted to buy at Best Buy. I would rush there, buy everything I had circled and came home with bags of “stuff.” I did this because “stuff” was on sale and I was saving money… Next thing you know, my closet was full of “stuff” that had never been opened, never use. Just sitting there collecting dust. This is when I knew I had “Stuffitis.” Now, every time I see something that has not been opened or used, I take it back. Less clutter that way. Besides, if I every really “need” anything, I can just go buy it again.
Well, there you have it. These are some of my “secrets” for saving money. Feel free to share them and yours as well. Below this article is an area for comments. Please don’t be shy and leave a comment. I would love to hear about the ways you save money. Remember, sharing is caring… 
To your financial health – Martilyo!
Fortunately I’ve never been afflicted with stuffitis — sounds horrible
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It is awful! I am glad that anti-stuffitis cream worked! :-p
Martilyo recently posted..Ways I save money
I have tried and tried and tried to convince my wife to cancel our satellite service (over $100 a month)…but she absolutely refuses!
We also have a big problem with eating out all the time. We’re slowly working on that.
I do, however, drive a 14 year old paid-for truck.
Great list. Thanks for sharing!
I can understand that she does not want to give up satellite if she watches it all the time. Maybe you can switch to a cheaper package or change to a cheaper cable package and bundle it with internet. There are always way to be more efficient with money, you just have to figure it out. Being married for 15 years has taught me that communicating with the “other half” is not as easy as one might think. The easiest way for me is to put it down on paper. $100/month = $1200 a year = $6000 every 5 years… that would make an awesome vacation…credit card payment…new (used) car…. If there is a will, there is a way
As far as the eating out, I try to limit it to 4 times a month. Every payday. I don’t think eating out 4 times a month is too much. You have to enjoy life or what is money worth later if you cannot enjoy it? Take all things in moderation and I think you will be just fine. Thanks for commenting.
Martilyo recently posted..Ways I save money
Great tips and that is one cool thermostat! I’m still working on my mild case of stuffitis *sigh* and eating out, gahhh food really is my downfall.
Yes, that thermostat will be mine one day!!! Yes, I could definitely learn to curb my eating out and is definitely my downfall as well.
Martilyo recently posted..Ways I save money
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Great article with great saving ideas! Thanks very much for sharing
Thanks Kelvin! Glad you stopped by. You are welcome here anytime!
Martilyo recently posted..Ways I save money
The eating out thing adds up to sooo much! It’s really a money killer.
A car is also a big expense, for the time being I have convinced my bf that we can do without and it saves us loads!
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Yes! There is no need to spend $30,000 on a car that takes you from point A to point B. Well, unless of course you are a multimillionaire and $30,000 is just pocket change! Thanks for stopping by!
So glad you pointed out the oil changes. Its such a misconception these days that your oil has to be changed every 3k miles. 5-6000 is the new standard. You can also save money there by becoming a little handy and changing it yourself!
Absolutely. If I did not live in an apartment complex I would change it myself, but I have a shop I go to that is reasonably priced and I am in and out of there in under 30 minutes. I change my oil and rotate my tires every 5k miles. It is just easier to keep track that way…
Great list! Keep up the frugal living =)
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I am keeping on keeping on!! Thanks for stopping by!
Hi, I’m Chris Rosin and I am currently in 10th grade and attending Singapore American School. This year I am taking a finance as a course. My Teacher Andrew Hallam has always been talking about limiting your expenses. He believes once we start writing down our expenses we would see what we spend most on and try to limit our spending. Also I agree with most of your points about saving money, but i believe we should still spend money, not a lot, but just to have fun. I remember one day in class he told us a story of when he was fresh out of college and worked as a teacher. He would put adds in the newspaper saying that he will look over your house while you were on vacation (to basically remove the cost of a home) and would literally bring a sleeping back to the fireplace during the winter so he didn’t have to pay for heating.
Hello Chris and thanks for commenting on my blog! I am so happy to hear that your school offers finance courses. Personal finance is a very important skill that everyone should acquire. I would also agree with you that you have to treat yourself for your hard work. However, treating yourself does not mean to go into a debt or buying something you have to buy with credit that you do not have the resources to pay. Debt is like a hole, the deeper you dig it, the harder it is to get out. Good luck to you in school and study hard!
Some great tips here. I don’t currently live with anyone so I give myself haircuts. It saves me hundreds of dollars like you said as well as valuable time.
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Absolutely, I am glad my hair is one less thing I have to worry about or spend money on. Efficiency of money is very important to me. When people pay interest on credit cards and fees to the big banks, their money is not as efficient as it should be. My quest to become debt free will not be an easy one nor will it happen over night, but with perseverance and discipline, I will succeed. Thanks for commenting and good luck to you on your achievements.
Also, if you want to go out to eat, try eating during lunch, it is much cheaper and they have alot of specials.
And even if your car is old, be sure to add “uninsured motorist” to your policy. It costs nothing to do that when I had Progressive Insurance. Shop around for insurance too, you can almost always find a better deal.
And Credit Unions are far more cheaper than banks. Of Course, online banks are a deal compared to brick and mortar banks.
Just chipping in my 2 cents. Love, Mom.
I totally agree. The price between lunch and dinner can be almost twice as much! Most states require uninsured motorist coverage. I just added roadside assistance to my policy for a mere 55 cents a month. Can’t beat that. I use credit unions and online banks. No way I am paying a bank to keep my money!
Martilyo recently posted..Ways I save money
Great list of actionable items! One tip I can add….we have four kids and snacks on road trips can be outrageously costly! We can easily spend $10 – $15 on drinks and munchies for the car. I pack a snack bag with chips, crackers, etc. and a cooler with drinks and fruit. If it is a long trip and I want a little splurge, I will pack a 2 liter of soda and cups & ice. Every little bit helps!
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Great idea Pam! We have done that as well. When traveling long distances we try to schedule gas stops to use the restroom and for meals. Any munching will be done on the road. We pack snacks and a cooler with ice, bottled water and soda as well! Fortunately it is only me, my wife and daughter. I am sure you as saving a lot having four kids and not buy snacks at a convenience store. Thanks for commenting!
Martilyo recently posted..Ways I save money