In this article you will find information on how to reduce your costs by using simple and accessible methods. The key to reducing costs is to plan your costs in advance. Of course, you can't plan all your expenses in advance, and you have to do that. We are human beings, not robots.
But still, there is nowhere without planning. It's about planning the costs that make up more than 10% of your total income. Why 10, ask you. Because the sums of money that make up more than 10% of your total income are essential for your budget, and the unforeseen costs of such sums can knock you out of your financial balance. Well, that's how it works. This has already been tested in practice, so just accept this fact.
So, the rules below are basically based on preliminary planning, because this is the way it really works. Study and apply on health. Everything has already been tested in real life.
Let's go!
1. Make a cost plan for each month.
The sums of all expenses must be included in this plan. If you can't tell us what you want to spend in advance, then include as much as possible.
This approach gives you a vision of where you will spend your money and how much you will spend. And then you won't have any surprises in the form of unexpected expenses for a month.
It's like the way a company plans its activities. This is exactly what you should do. Here is a real example of how to plan your expenses. Click here.
2. Plan all purchases in advance.
It is about what you are planning to buy, for example, a washing machine next month. Find out what it costs and see if you can buy it from your next salary. If so, then fine, and if not, then you will have to save for it. Read here to learn how to do this right.
Avoid spontaneous purchases as you may not be able to calculate your financial strength.
In addition to planning all sorts of shopping, you should also plan other expenses such as birthdays, holidays, etc. Then financial surprises will bypass you.
3. Buy products according to a pre-written list.
Why is there a separate conversation about products? Yes, because the cost of food in our budget is about half. So write down the list of products you need to buy, and then go to the supermarket. And also, take as a rule, do not buy those products that you do not have in the list. Even if you need them, but you forgot to include them in the list. It's okay. Buy next time. This method of shopping on the list has a very significant effect and will save you from buying too many products. We do not need much, in fact. Using this method, you will be surprised to find that your product costs have decreased.
4. Do not buy products when you are hungry.
This may sound ridiculous, but it is a fact that when you find yourself in a store or supermarket and you want to eat at that moment, 90% of the time you come home you will find yourself with a lot of extra food or too much to eat. Observe yourself or, if you want, experiment. This happens to everyone.
The conclusion is quite simple - eat first, and then stomp into the store. So you will buy only what you really need and save yourself from unnecessary spending.
5. Do not take with you more money than you may need in a particular situation.
This is a very simple, but very, very effective rule. You just can't spend more than you have in your wallet. This rule is especially necessary for those of us who have a weakness to spend money under the influence of different circumstances and emotions.
6. Watch how you spend money from month to month.
This rule tells us from the fact that we have to watch as we spend our money from month to month. This, if I may say so, is a statistic. Keep your expense statistics from month to month. You can keep these statistics in any form that is convenient for you. And why should you keep these statistics? The answer to this question is hidden in the following rule.
7. Get rid of unnecessary expenses.
As mentioned in the previous rule, you should have, so to speak, statistics of your expenses for several months. Then you will be able to remove any unnecessary expenses you may have. But it is not a fact that you will have such expenses. It is quite possible that you have all the costs "necessary". Do not be upset. You can try to reduce some of your expenses.
8. Get rid of your debts.
You need to get rid of all your debts as quickly as possible. Because any debt is an additional expense for you. This is especially true for loans. These debts draw money out of you. Get rid of them as soon as possible. Read here how to do it.