Cheap Living Tips

By Trevor Johnson

A person who believes that they need all the latest gadgets may ask, how do I control my spending? Well the first thing that you must do is to prioritize. Take a serious inventory of where your money is actually going.

Every time you open a newspaper, log on to the Internet or turn on the TV set, you read or hear about some new gadget that is available. The advertisement suggests that you just cannot live without it. That if you don’t get it, you are somehow inferior. All of these advertisements suggest that you need more. They suggest that you need something bigger, better, newer.

Take your cell phone for example, since you started using a cell phone, how many have you actually purchased? And why? Because something newer and supposedly better became available. Now your cell phone can be used to take photographs, movies, and maybe by next year you can program it to cook dinner. If you already had cell phone, did you stop and ask yourself before your purchase if you really needed a new one? Or were you just convinced by the advertising that if you did not get a new one, you would somehow be falling behind the times?

It is all well and good to try out new gadgets, or replace old ones which have become worn out, however, this requires thought and planning. If you really want to control your spending you must plan on and question every purchase. You absolutely must give yourself a budget, and stick to it. This budget should include investment and savings as well as spending.

When you are inclined to buy the latest “toy” that you see or hear about, remind yourself that it won’t be long before this item also becomes “obsolete”. if you choose to make this purchase anyway, you may as well just give your money away as soon as you get it. Why not save for? Why not wait a year or two until the price comes down?

“Saving money for a rainy day”, may sound cliché, however, rainy days, arrive when we least expect them. Remember, when this happens you will need money to purchase an umbrella.

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By Marie Jones

Setting financial goals is one thing, but setting reasonable financial goals that actually work may be a whole new ballgame for some individuals. A lot of times budgeting systems do not work because they are not flexible and the financial goals established are set too high or are just unclear. If you want to put into effect a long-term successful plan, here are some considerations to be made:

Clarify Your Goals

If you can understand your own goals, how can you expect to work towards accomplishing them? Setting clear goals that are easy to understand and not impossible to reach is your first step. You need to be able to say you are going to retire in 15 years, having saved $300,000 in the bank instead of saying I’m retiring at the age of 67. Such a statement is not going to get you to far.

Goals Must Be In Steps

Once you declare your goals, you need to incorporate them into steps that include goals for the short term, the long term, and the time in between. Create a columned sheet that includes these three phases and put goals that match into each category. This will give you a visual of what you need to do and when. You also need to ensure that each of your sort term and middle term goals will in fact lead to your accomplishing your long term goals.

Keep Them Reasonable

Logically, there is not much use in creating goals you will never reach. You can’t go into it thinking you will come out a millionaire, unless you have a reasonable plan to save that money within a set period of time. Not only will you not reach your goals, you will also likely not stick with any plan you have created. Take your goals step by step and watch and enjoy your progress.

Retain Flexibility

Times change and so will your income. You must be willing and ready to be flexible with your goals and changing them up as needed. If you give up because things didn’t go the way you wanted them to, you will not get far. You need to be proactive in creating goals, changing them, and making new ones to replace those after they have been reached. Changing your goals is not a negative action, but a very positive one you need to pursue to continue your financial growth.

Set Your Own Goals

Playing follow the leader with your finances may not be the ideal game when it comes to your situation. What goals your sister or best friend sets will not necessarily work for you. You need to work based on your own financial situation and set goals you can reach, not just work towards what everyone else is doing.

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By Kristen Easton

Analysts and pundits can’t seem to agree. Some say the recession is in full swing, others say a recovery is happening and the market has found a bottom. I don’t know what to believe. The recession took longer to hit in my area and is only mild so far. But I know that prices are dipping a little and there are lot more sales than usual, and the sales are better than they used to be. For anyone who has a little money left over this is a good thing.

Some items we have to purchase every week anyway, things like food and gas. But some items are really things that we could do without but are just on the want list. Even though it seems crazy to buy more during a recession, it can be a smart time from a “good deal” point of view. People are getting some of the best deals on products like home stereos and home improvement items that they haven’t seen the likes of in years.

My point is that if you’re able to and willing to, consider spending some money and getting yourself a good deal on portable gas grill or a new carpet steam cleaner. They aren’t things you desperately need, but your purchase could help a local business and you’ll save even more money in the process.

This is the theory we’re trying to do in our house. Sure, we’re careful, but we always have been. So we’re just paying even closer attention to the deals and occasionally bumping up a purchase if we think this is the best price we’ll get in a while. I don’t recommend this for cash strapped houses, but if you have a little wiggle room you can do a lot of good for your pocket book and the country as a whole if you do a little shopping.

If I’ve sparked your interest in those things and need more information on carpet steam cleaners and portable gas grills please see our websites.

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By Ashley Woodyatt

It might be all doom and gloom at the moment whilst we are in the grip of a recession but there are ways that you can survive it. By making the most of the bargains out there you can help to reduce your monthly outgoings. The internet is a great place to find money saving deals and below are just three of the ways you could save money online…

Shop online

Shopping online is a quick and efficient way to purchase goods. It not only saves you time in having to make a journey to the shops but it will also save you money on your bus fare or petrol. By shopping online you will know instantly if an item is in stock or not and you can easily compare prices of items throughout multiple stores so you can get the best deal. Grocery shopping online is always a good way to save cash as you can easily seek out two for one special offers and resist the temptation of stocking up your trolley with expensive treats.

Use discount codes from the internet

More and more people are switching to shopping online as goods can be cheaper but you can also make use of discount codes which can help you to save even more money. There are many websites which offer great discounts on a variety of products and services. Discount codes can be used to get money off a range of items from food and beauty products to travel insurance and books. The discounts tend to be offered in a variety of different ways from exclusive offers for customer loyalty to offers where everyone can benefit. It can be time consuming to keep checking up on the latest offers available which is why most of the websites offer a free subscription or newsletter service with details of new offers and any offers which are closing. Many websites are also offering restaurant deals on eating out so you don’t have to deprive yourself of the little luxuries in life!

Compare your service providers

Electricity and gas bills can be one of your major monthly expenditures so it’s always wise to keep an eye on the market to find the best deal. There are a number of comparison service websites which let you know if you could reduce your bills by using a different service provider. It’s usually a simple process of entering information such as your postcode, the number of rooms you have and who your current supplier is. The comparison service will then search all the companies who supply your area and produce a list of suppliers and energy costs so you can select the cheapest. You can also reduce your costs further if you consider changing the way you pay your bills, for example, if you switch from a payment on bill or pre-payment meter to a direct debit over the internet you could save even more.

Don’t let the credit crunch get you down as there are still many ways that you can bag a bargain by doing a little research online.

This article was authored by Ashley from CheapDiscountCodes.com, a great website for finding UK, US and Canadian discount codes. More interesting shopping articles can be found at the CheapDiscountCodes.com blog.

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Why Pay for One Expert’s Opinion When You Can Get Over Two Dozen For Free?
By:  Susan Young

Go to Amazon.Com and search for the words “career strategies” you will find over 1500 books on the subject with a prices ranging from $11.21 to $1750.   There is no shortage of advise and resources available, if you have the money to spend.   However, the last thing I want to do in this time of economic uncertainty is to spend money needlessly.   Since you are here, reading Cheap Living Tips, it is a pretty good bet you feel the same way.

One of perks of living in this century is the abundance of information that is available at our fingertips.  Type almost any question into a search box and you can find the answer on the internet.  Most often that answer can be had for the asking.  No charge. For free.  Don’t be fooled into thinking you have to pay high dollars to get valuable information.

A perfect example of big value without a big price tag is a publication aptly named “The Best Career Strategies of 2009” compiled by Bonnie Lowe.  If you are facing the challenge of looking for a new job or want to be prepared, just in case, you could, as I mentioned above, start looking for answers on Google or in a book store.  Or, you can download the this publication and save yourself both time and money.  Lowe has done the leg work for you.  She has collected over two dozen tactical approaches for making that impending career move, whether it is one of choice or not.  Did I mention that Lowe is giving this book for FREE?

Contrary to the old axiom, this is certainly one case where you get much more that you pay for.  I don’t know how she managed but her list of contributors reads like the who’s who of career counselors.  Download your free copy of “The Best Career Strategies of 2009” and see for yourself.

Susan Young, editor and publisher of CheapLivingTips.com, is a retired GISP (Geographic Information Systems Professional), starting Stage 3 of her life as an internet blogger, online entrepreneur, and promoter of struggling artists.

Her initial internet activities are focused on those people and things closest to her heart: her daughter, Staci Black, an aspiring artist, the task of saving the environment, her journey to better health and fitness, and surviving the current economic crisis.  You can find links to her blogs on the all these topics on her home page, From The Deck in San Felipe.