Having a nest egg, or even a small emergency fund when you are living paycheck to paycheck is super tough. It can get so frustrating when there is still a week or two of the month left and you see the balance in your account dwindling. So, how do you save when there doesn’t seem to be enough money coming in? Here’s a couple of tips I learned when times were leaner and the kids were younger:
Start with tracking your spending religiously. Keep every receipt. Jot every expenditure down {including the $.75 you feed a vending machine} for an entire month. You really need to know where your money is going. You might be really surprised. You might not. Only tracking will tell. We track all the money we spend in our Personal Capital Account. It’s totally free and we LOVE that we can see EXACTLY where every penny has been spent in real time.
Next, create a budget. Start with the fixed expenses. Take a hard look at those fixed expenses. Are any of them some you could trim the fat from? For example, maybe just have Amazon Prime, and cut Netflix and Hulu {or any other combination} for television? Maybe you could shop around for auto insurance and reduce your rates? Whatever savings you can find, immediately apply those to an auto-transfer into a savings account each month. As you work your way through your budget, continue to decide where you can trim the fat. “The fat” should immediately go into savings. Don’t trim so much that you can’t stick to the budget–that is a recipe for failure.
If you have trimmed the fat {or weren’t able to find any}, it’s time to start thinking about ways to bring in a little extra income. That can be super hard if you are the primary caregiver to the kiddos or have other restrictions, so consider more passive income that you can do any time of day. I personally like Swagbucks, because it allows you to earn a little extra. You can trade your Swagbucks in for gift cards–use those gift cards for things like groceries, and take the saved cash and throw it toward savings. Sure, it takes a little finagling, but so does the rest of life. Creativity wins. I also sell things on my Etsy or Ebay pages and local facebook buy and sell groups for extra money.
Apply money-saving strategies to every aspect of your budget. Shop around. Eat seasonally and simply {and from scratch}. Do with less. {I plan on offering lots of money saving tips on the blog this year, so stay tuned.} All of those savings equal money you can be putting aside.
For those of you who don’t know, basically Ibotta is way to earn cash every time you shop. All you do is check the Ibotta app before you shop for product offers, bonuses, new store coupons. Then, simply upload a picture of the UPC code and your receipt and get paid {via paypal or gift cards} once your balance hits $20. Join Ibotta with this link {my referral code} and get $10! Trust me, it’s easy.
Every time you get a raise or trim some fat, immediately apply that money to savings. You’ll never miss it, if you never had it. On that same note, try not to dip into your savings, unless there is an emergency. Otherwise, it kind of defeats the whole purpose.
Intellectually, most of us know that we have to spend less than we make. Putting that into practice is a totally different ball game, though. If you are having a hard time getting started, set a goal with a time frame–kind of like a personal challenge. Tell yourself you’ll stick to your budget for 3 months, and do it. At the end of the three months, evaluate your savings. Evaluate your budget. Can you commit to another 3 months. It’s a baby-step plan, What About Bob? style.
Here’s to a new year, full of money-saving possibilities!
~Mavis
Carrie says
I like your idea of a 3 month goal. I’m the kind of person who gets really excited about my goal, plans well and begins but I loose momentum after the starting high wears off.
More money= more problems. I lived simply and was happy and carefree when I made $10/hr and lived paycheck to paycheck. Now that I make $18/hr and own a house I have problems saving money for emergencies, house and car repairs. I end up putting more towards my house premium instead of saving that money in an account. I put 12% of my income into my work retirement plan also. I know I need to trim fat from my grocery bill. le sigh
Carolina says
I had all ready committed in 2017 to savings all of my change, as well as saving the amount that my grocery/personal items/cleaning supplies budget was reduced by the use of coupons. Now you have given me yet ANOTHER great Mavis-idea and I thank you for it. I have been using Swag bucks gift cards for about 2 years to help with groceries, and starting today I will be adding to my savings the amount that I use in swag bucks. I can’t wait to see how much I have by December, 2017!!!
Kat says
I use coupons that I’ve printed from Swagbucks and MyPoints and earn points at both sites for using the coupons. Compare point offerings at both sites when shopping online to see which offers the most points for the store I want to purchase from. I’ve racked up Swagbucks and MyPoints by using the pick up at store options at Home Depot and Walmart, especially around the holidays. I have my reward money deposited to my PayPal account and some is stacked at Amazon. Funds are easily transferred from PP to my checking account. I also use PayPal to pay for my Hulu and Netflix payments. I also purchase gift cards for restaurants I know that have gift cards available at MyGiftCardsPlus, via Swagbucks or MyPoints and earn points for eating out.
I’ve always saved my change but in 2016 I also started saving $1.00 bills.
Peggy says
Hi Mavis, I luv your blog! Your various tips and information are awesome. You are so simple and down to earth! I am especially in luv with Lucy! Luv seeing her pic’s and hearing all about her! I am from Hatboro Pennsylvania (just outside of Philadelphia) and we have two bakeries in our town one is Nonno’s, an Italian bakery and the other is Lochel’s. They are almost directly across from one another right on the main street through Hatboro, York Road. Would luv to see you come and try them out! We are not far from Amish country in Lancaster, PA, I no you would luv a stop in that area as well. Hopefully you will consider a trip to the area sometime.
Thanks for all your wonderful advice and idea’s!
Peggy Hartnett
Hatboro, Pennsylvania