How do you save?

I found a lot of useful information at Robert Kiyosake's website called richdadworld.com. I know...the site has a slightly cheesy name but the financial education there was enough for me to climb out of a hole of debt and it provided me with the assistance to start climbing the mountain of investments (so to speak). I really feel that if you and your husband use the information found there...you could very easily be financially free in a few years time. It is free to sign up and use many of the courses including some free seminars to watch.

The greatest lesson I took was to pay yourself a percentage first...and use it wisely, mainly for investment. All the best....Also, learnvest,com is a nice site although it is more aimed specifically at females.

 

I am in a simular situation. I have learned though that it is import to make a budget, (that I have written down) and stick to it no matter what. The budget includes savings. If I see I am coming up short somewhere, not adding to my savings that week is not an option. I do my best to make up the money somehow. It means I have to find better coupon deals that week, or find something online to do, or shave off of my groceries or scraping up change from around the house and cars. Its important that I always put something into the savings.

 

I save on the most common things. I don't keep water running while I brush my teeth. I do the dishes in a bowl, so again, no running water all the time. I turn off the computer if I'm not going to use it for a longer time (the same with TV) and I turn off the light when I'm not in a room. The latter I do unless I've got those saving energy bulbs as they take more energy to turn on then they take when they are on all the time.

Also I don't buy too much food, as I can't eat everything at once, so I won't throw anything away.

I think there are more but I just buy what I need, and if I don't have money I don't think of anything else, I don't need much.

 

We do just about everything to save here. From not letting things run needlessly to using the most eco efficient systems. I personally even put all my lose change and dollars to the side and let them build.

 

I think you should set aside a certain amount from each paycheck and just tell yourself that it is for SAVING. Unfortunately, there just does not seem to be too many places to put savings where it can grow fairly safely and where it won't erode from inflation. This is so frustrating. I think right now, I would not recommend even anything like the stock market or even 401(k)'s. I would just put some money aside, find the best interest rate for a savings account or a short-term CD and wait a year or 2 (at least until after the election) to see what is going to happen to the economy. I would also focus on the things you CAN control. Cut expenses, be thrifty, maybe re-finance your mortgage if you need to. That kind of stuff.....

 

I find it difficult to save at times, but I do try and make profit from the cash I do bring in to help with bills, etc. I look for products/items I can buy and sell for a resonable profit and use ebay to sell them. I've slowed down a little, though, because of royal mail prices going up and paypal fees, which eats into my profits.

Limit the luxuries you may buy and save through them. Growing your own food can also save you a small fortune over the long run. If you have a vehicle or two, maybe you could sell them and buy something much smaller to save on fuel and maintenance. How about making your own product and selling it on Ebay. A friend of mine makes her own candles and displays for them(a small glass bowl with colorful pebbles in them) and she makes 3-4x times what it costs to make them. There's thousands of items you can create and sell on Ebay if you put your mind to it. Good luck!!

 

I put aside little money like 5, 10, 20 and 50 cents in my piggy bank, and I let it build. Has worked out fairly well until now, as it holds a minimum of 100 hundred dollars and sometimes, depending on the coins that have been inserted, it goes to 200 or 300 hundred, and that's a nice amount when you need some

 

That's a good idea, provided you use cash I did this when I was in London, to save some money I put every 1 pound coin into my piggy bank. I was really nice to count it after three months.
But in Poland I hardly ever use cash, I usully pay with my credit card so the idea doesn't work anymore.

 

For those that are younger, the Roth IRA is a savings/investment plan that should be utilized by everyone who can. I continue to contribute, by setting aside at least a quarter of what I make at a time, while still budgeting for every day and monthly expenses. Short-term CDs are also saving implements that I have used, I still recommend them even though interest rates are really low!

 

Right now I just have a little online savings account that doesn't earn much interest, but I make sure to feed it consistently at least ten percent of every paying show. It won't grow quickly that way, as I don't get paid much, but it's better than nothing, and once I'm making more, I'll save even more.

I'd like to open up an IRA, but I don't have the initial deposit yet. That's what I'm saving up for now.

 

So how do i save? Hmmmm honestly I suck at saving money. I always wanted to save and actually I could save up $200-$300 from being a writer and from my forum but I would send it right away with things that I see on the department store or online. I have tried multiple methods to save but I still fail when I already have the money in my account. I would always tend to spend it. grrrrr!

 

To add to the excellent suggestions, consider transitioning to more reusable products. For example, we use mostly cloth napkins in place of paper napkins and towels. Make use of old worn out t-shirts by cutting them up and turning them into cleaning rags.
Also think about incorporating some DIY projects. I make my own laundry detergent from borax, washing soda, and Ivory soap. Additionally, I use white vinegar (a natural disinfectant!) and water as an all-purpose cleaner. Baking soda can also be used in several cleaning solutions. In fact, I make my own toothpaste out of baking soda and coconut oil.
In end, I would like to reiterate what I think is the most important tip: creating a budget and sticking to it. There are several websites that contain free budget templates. Enjoy saving and congratulations!

 

I just talked to my bank about taking 50$ out of every one of my paycheques.

I know it does not seem like much, but it will add up! Maybe I'll be able to afford the next snazzy thing that Apple puts out in the future. But maybe that's being a little too hopeful... I might just end up withdrawing it prematurely to fund another one of my quick purchases.

 

I save in a lot of ways. I bargain shop and use coupons. We also save change and do small things like that. For bigger progress, I use direct deposit. My company allows 3 direct deposit accounts. We opened a separate account away from our main bank and use it only for saving. We also have a savings account at our main bank and direct deposit into that as well. We use our employers 401k's. Outside of all that we are trying to pay off all our debt so we will have more to save.

 

I save a lot by making sure that I don't spend all my allowance in one day. Since I am a student I try investing or rather saving my money for future use. I also don't want any sort of debt that's why I live up to my means. When I know that my peers are going on a spending spree, I make sure that I have a little money to spend. Most of my cash are stored in my cash box and I find it always rewarding to see my money grow.

 

I save by using a variety of ways. When I get my monthly allowance, I make sure that I set aside the half of it for my monthly savings. I also have different containers for every coin that we have here in my country. I also do some online jobs that provide me with an income that I also save for my online venture usage.

 

Honestly saving money is really about looking at the big picture and letting go of the small things. My mom use to say if you can live without it you don't really need it. That being said I had to resign from my full time work in order to better supervise our kids. I am now earning only a part-time salary so cutting down on expenses is the order of the day in order to still save money. This is what we do:

1. We have severely limited having pizza, burgers etc delivered when we are tired or just too lazy to cook- To compensate I have learned several easy to prepare meals that have become our staple when both my hubby and I are tired and the temptation to have food delivered is at an all time high. I always make sure I have enough of the needed ingredients when I shop. This saves a lot.

2. We eat at home before we go to the mall so we don't have to eat out.
3. My hubby and I have our coffee dates at home I bought a cheap coffee press and coffee beans are pretty cheap at you local market.

 

For us, the biggest savings come from:

1. Not eating out. And I don't mean going out to the Olive Garden. I mean like McDonalds, Panera, Dunkin Donuts, etc. Those little trips really add up for us.
2. Taking lunch from home. Still trying to get DH to be better at that.
3. No expensive cell phone plans. We switched to Metro PCS and pay $60 for two smart phones.

 

I do what dexterlablab does and every day put loose change away in a piggy bank somewhere There are people with good Ideas here although my phone bill is kind of high at about $110 for one smartphone and one regular phone :/ I manage it though. I like eating home made lunch and it's an all around save on itself. Saving can be hard if you have a child, but do it for the child's college or if you don't want to just pretend it's for it's education for a little extra incentive haha