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Can you see yourself sitting on a beach sipping a piña colada, soaking in the warm Caribbean sun? Or moving in furniture into your dream house, with the white picket fence and large eat-in kitchen? We all have some sort of goal(s) that we’re working our butts off to achieve. Many of these goals require some (or a lot of!) extra cash. If you’re like me, you want to achieve these goals sooner rather than later so you need to find a way to get cash in your hands quickly. Believe me when I tell you that this might be one of the easiest things ever, if you make a few simple changes (All Legal, I promise!). You just need to know all about saving money and how to save money fast.
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Table of Contents
How to Start Saving Money, You Ask? How to Save Money Fast?
Is this Even Possible?
Why yes, yes it is! You’d be surprised by how much money you can actually save with some self discipline and a few simple changes.
Are you ready for a few extra hundreds every month? Do you finally want some wiggle room in your budget at the end of this month? Then read on, my friend!
To Start Saving Money, you Need to:
1. Rule your Finances instead of allowing your finances to rule you
Take control of your budget. Ensure that you are able to account for every incoming and outgoing cent in your budget.Have a proper financial plan in place. You must know exactly what you want to achieve and how much it will cost to do so.
Write down every bill for each month and have a good idea of the numbers associated with each. You need to make sure that your incoming money is not more than your expenditure.
If this is the case, then you will need to make some calls to the bank to refinance, or find a second (or third?) job before moving forward. Once you show your finances who is boss, it better watch out!
2. Start clearing debt fast
Debt is a parasite; and you want to get rid of it as quickly as possible. Sky-high interests and ugly credit card fees all drain our pockets at the end of each day.
To be able to save money fast, we need to able able to tackle and clear debt quickly. Gather all of your resources and try your best to keep paying more than your minimum payment each month.
Related Articles:
17 Money Hacks that will Make you Rich
29 Best Money Saving Apps to Turbo-Boost your Savings Account
25 Fail-Proof Frugal Living Tips to Drastically Reduce your Household Expenses
How we Saved $24K in 7 Months
3. Set up a Standing Order
If you’re trying to figure out how to save money fast, a standing order is the answer! Go to your bank and set up a proper system so that as soon as your money hits your bank account, a standing order will quickly direct it into a separate savings account.
Ensure that there are limitations with respect to using or withdrawing money from this account. The idea is if the money never reaches your hand, you wouldn’t be able to spend it. Right?
Alternatively, if you do not get paid through the bank, you will need to set up some other savings technique. Piggy banks or envelopes work for some. Or maybe you just need some discipline to get to the bank and deposit it yourself. Saving money requires A LOT of self discipline!
4. Meal Plan & Cook at Home
Meal Planning has literally saved me thousands of dollars this year! I plan out my meals each week and cook at home each day. Not only does it save me money, but it’s also a much healthier option!
When you plan your meals, look through your pantry and plan your weekly grocery list. The trick is to use this list (and stick to it!) to make only one trip to the grocery store. If you go to the store less, there are fewer opportunities for you to spend.
Not sure how to get started with meal planning? Grab a copy of my free Meal Planning e-guide below.
5. Cut Bills in Half
How many bills do you have? If you can cut each one in half, how much will you be saving at the end of each month? Yup, this is exactly how to save money fast! Unplug, save energy, and practice electricity smarts to cut your electricity bill in half.
Reevaluate your cell phone plan and decide if you need it. Is cell phone data absolutely necessary? Do you have wifi everywhere (or most places) you go? Well stop paying for data!
Do you need cable? Can you downgrade to a cheaper internet plan? Do you have any subscription plan that you barely use?
Well, you know what you need to do to start saving money now!
6. Develop Frugal Habits
Developing frugal habits is a must if you’re trying to save money fast! Little changes make the biggest impact.
You can start growing a kitchen garden to save tons of money on fruits and vegetables. Or start using filtered tap water instead of buying bottled water.
For shoes and clothes, you can shop sales, use coupons or take advantage of thrift shops. Gently used can look just as amazing as brand new!
To save even more money, don’t fall into the ‘name brands‘ trap. A no-brand product can sometimes be even better than the ‘brand name.’
When trying to save money fast, ensure that you don’t make impulse purchases. Give yourself time to think or sleep on it, to decide whether or not it’s a purchase that is necessary. Some even use the 30-Day Rule. The gist is if you’ve waited for thirty days and still believe that you need the product, then go ahead and buy.
Having a few no-spend days/no-spend weekends is also a great way to save some extra cash fast.
America Saves has an awesome list of ways anyone can start saving or check out the list of 29 Things I stopped buying to save money (some of these even made me extra money!).
7. Develop a Side Hustle/Work-at-Home Job
When you’re strapped for cash, things are hard, and you’re just trying to find your way again, developing a side hustle may be the way to go. What easier way to save money fast than creating an additional income stream? It’s a no-brainer, right?!
Sometimes I dislike the term ‘side hustle.’ It makes it seem like you’re hustling to make an extra dollar here or there. What some people don’t realize is that a ‘side hustle’ can actually start making you more than your current 9-5; and in the day and age of modern technology, making a few extra hundreds can be done with just the click of a mouse.
For example, I opted to start this blog. You can start a blog for as low as $3.95 per month and you can work your way towards making a full-time income from it. I made $200+ in my first month of blogging!
My plan is to work towards a full-time income. If this seems like something you can see yourself doing, feel free to follow my step-by-step easy tutorial on how to start a money making blog.
If you’re looking for another option to save money fast, you can try some work-at-home jobs such as freelancing, taking surveys or teaching from home. There are countless ways you can earn extra money from home!
8. Create more incoming Cash
If you’re trying to figure out how to save more money,try to increase your incoming money in any given month by having a garage sale or selling off items that you no longer use on craigslist or ebay.
Just like YOU are trying to be thrifty and save money fast, someone else may be trying to save a few dollars by purchasing gently used items. Sell your extras and make more money. You’re basically getting paid to declutter! Win Win!
Related: 21 Brilliant Passive Income Ideas that will Make you Money while you Sleep
9. Make a few Phone Calls
You will be amazed by how much money you can save by making a two minute phone call.
For example, if you call your internet company and subtly indicate that you are interested in cancelling your plan and switching companies, chances are you may be offered an even better deal or increased savings to stay with your current plan. Companies don’t want to lose your business, so you can apply this little trick to almost all of your services.
If this is not an option for you, it never hurts to ask for better deals or lower rates. Let’s say you’re struggling with your credit card payments, call your credit card company and request a lower interest rate. Some of them can be really helpful!
10. Create a Vision Board for Motivation
This might not be a necessary step for everyone but for someone like me, motivation and inspiration is a must!
I am a daydreamer and this doesn’t always help my situation, but I definitely find that I am motivated to work harder and keep pressing on when I write down my goals and picture the end result.
This is where a vision board comes into play. Stick up a picture of your dream house. Imagine yourself sipping the piña colada in the warm Caribbean sun. Picture the family vacay! Saving money fast is easy to accomplish. It’s all up to you!
Now that you know how to save money fast,
Don’t wait a minute longer to start. Go unplug your unused appliances, call your credit card company and get started on your meal plan!
So, what are you going to do with your extra cash? What goals are you working towards? Do you have any additional tips on saving money andhow to save money fast? Share with us in the comments below. I’d love to hear from you!
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OHH, and I’m on Pinterest! Let’s be friends. 🙂
***Before you go, are you looking tomanage your moneybetter this year? Sign up for myfree5-Days Money Management Course!***
Until next time,
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