Good morning Dinks. Think about your spending over the last week or so; are there things that you could have lived without? I am sure the answer for most of us is YES. Sometimes I spend money just because I have it, but that doesn’t necessarily mean I should be spending it.
I personally don’t want to live in a world where I save every single penny I earn and I don’t want to live in a world where I don’t spend any money on myself because in my opinion that’s not a life worth living. I enjoy spending my money, but at the same time I save for the short term and for retirement because I don’t want to be forced to use credit in case of an emergency and I definitely want to retire some day.
What could you cut out of your weekly budget?
1. Bottled water. I absolutely love bottled water, but my boyfriend Nick is really into saving the planet so unfortunately this was a luxury that I cut out of my weekly spending. When cases of water go on sale we can buy 24 bottles for only $3 and since I change the water bottle twice every week a case of 24 bottles can last for 3 months. However Nick doesn’t like buying bottled water so I bought a reusable Brita bottle. I paid a one-time $9 cost and saved a fortune on bottled water.
2. Starbucks. I am not a huge coffee drinker, but when the weather gets cold I love a good Pumpkin Spice Latte or Caramel Macchiato. I limit myself to Starbucks once a week – if I feel like it. I would love to be able to afford to drink Starbucks every single day, but I can’t so $5 once a week fits perfectly into my budget. Savouring and saving for my Starbucks visits makes me appreciate my Starbucks moments even that much more.
3. Drinks and smoking. I don’t do either and I really hate it when people complain about not having any money then they light up a cigarette, it’s absolutely my pet peeve. If you buy one pack of cigarettes per week for $8 it adds up to over $400 a year. If you smoke a pack of cigarettes a day it adds up to almost $3000 a year. I am sure we can all agree this is money that can be better spent.
4. Public transportation. I personally hate taking public transportation because people have germs and I am not a big fan of crowded spaces. However during the cold, snowy winter months up here in the Northeast I take public transportation – I don’t like it, but it’s better than catching a cold or walking home in a snow storm. I live approximately 30 minutes from my office so walking to and from work at minus 40 is just not an option. Walking helps me relax after work and decompress before I get home. It’s also a great opportunity to run some errands on my way home.
Photo by dannyman
Kristina Tahnyak
Tahnya is a Certified Financial Planner and former Investment Advisor turned marketing and communications professional She holds a degree from Concordia University, is debt free and currently works in the field of digital marketing.
Totally agree about the cigarettes and drinking. Usually they found money for a tattoo as well. At cigarettes $5-6 a pack, a pack a day smoker could save $140 a month for their IRA or debt repayment. As for the bottled water, we get a case when we have a driving trip but for those bottles we use at home, we refill them with tap water and have several in the fridge at any time.
Oh yes Kathy, I don’t understand why people can’t see the value in saving money instead of spending it on smoking.
Pingback:Lessons learned from Labyrinth | DINKS Finance
Pingback:How much money equals happiness? | Articleroster.com
Pingback:How much money equals happiness? | DINKS Finance
Pingback:4 things I always do with my money | DINKS Finance