I don’t know about you, but reading all this talk about Wall Street fiascos and government bailouts and bank failures has got me nervous. I’ve been keeping a close eye on my finances and trying to make myself feel as secure as possible. Here are a few habits I’ve picked up over the last couple weeks. See if any help you out:
1) I brought my calculator to the grocery store. Instead of keeping a running “estimate” in my head, and inevitably going over budget, I decided to keep a tight reign on my spending. I made a list before I went, noting specific quanities that I needed. (As in, three oranges, two bell peppers, etc.) Then, as I picked up those items, I marked down the price on the list and kept a running tally on the calculator. When I got too close to my budget (I budgeted $50 for the week), I could look at my list and see what I didn’t really need and what would put me over. Yes, it seems a bit much, but if you regularly go over what you intended to spend by about $10-15, you can save a ton over the year.
2) Take longer than 10 minutes to make your list! This is soo crucial. If you hurriedly write down the things you think you need, you will inevitably miss some items, go over your budget, and it will be that much harder to put down the ice cream you hadn’t intended to buy because, “Hey, I’m already over. What’s an extra $4 gonna hurt?” Spend the extra time going through the refrigerator to see what you’re actually out of and almost out of.
3) Clean out our refrigerator and cabinets often. I have a lot of food up there is either a) ready to be tossed, b) no one eats it, or c) both. As a result, I think we have more food than we actually do. So when I go shopping, I don’t buy the right things and have to go back to the store later in the week. The more trips to the store means the more money you spend. Period. Try heading into the store for just one item. I double-dog dare you. Bet you come out with at least two bags, looking dazed like, “What just happened?”
Saving money is really just about being conscious of the money you spend. Pay attention to your grocery bill and you’ll learn how to save by cutting out things that waste money.
Stay tuned for more tips….
This is so true! I went into Kroger (like Giant Eagle/Tops) just the other day for maybe 3 items I needed. Kroger just so happened to have a really good sale going on for the week. “Edwards Key Lime Pies for only $4.99 and they are usually double that price?! Oooh, lemme get two of them then. Breyers Ice Cream on sale?! I think we have some in the freezer, but since it’s on sale, let me get at least one. Bagelfuls 2/$4 and they are usually $3.99 a box??? Lemme get about 6 of those…man I love those things.” Needless to say by time I checked out I was baffled at the total and thought to myself, “But I only came in here for a few things…how did I end up spending this much?! Now my budget for the week is all thrown off!”
My problem is that if I see something on sale, I feel like I have to get more than one, i.e, the pies or bagelfuls (I really got 6 boxes of those things!) and that’s what takes my bill up so much more. Since I’ve became a mom, I’ve discovered the power of coupons though!!! I signed up with Enfamil, Similac, and Huggies. They send me coupons every month and it helps so much!
Instead of estimating in my head, I round up and write it on my list after I cross a particular item off and that helps me keep track of where I am….when I actually take the time to make the list
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