Money Saving Tips

Over the period I have realised that there are lot of places in our daily life where we can save money. I am not advocating being a miser, but avoiding carelessness, does have its own benefit. There are lot of times, when we just spend money because we enjoy, for example, going to flashy restaurant once in a month or purchasing that sexy negliee to impress your wife :) or buying that expensive cellphone.
To me personally, these are definitely NOT wastage of money. It is always a good buy because it gives you happiness or satisfaction. Even though any of these are not assets building but it gives immense pleasure which is why they are worth doing it.
I am not going to talk about stopping such impulsive buying or focussing on building your assets or making your money work. Most of us get into this because of either peer pressure or guilt. For example, in Bangalore everyone is buying a house, despite the fact that they are forking out as high as 50% of their salaries and with increasing interest rates, it is pinching harder. I have realised that the main reason a young couple in 30s want to buy a house is simply peer pressure, since everyone in their circle is buying a house. A house of your own is important but not at the expense of enjoying your life.

Here are some of my money saving tips:

• Keep a box and put whatever change(1-2 Rs, coins etc) lying around into it. It not only helps to save money but also very useful when needed
• Save electricity and water usage. Make this a habit and inculcate in your children. Unless you get that habit, your children wont. It not only saves your money but the environment too.
• Experiment with brands and defy the marketing gurus. Dont be shy to experiment with brands, sometimes the rival brand has a good product and cheap too.
• Buy daily usage items from near-by stores, even if bit costly. The saving of fuel and time of going to large supermarkets will be worth it. Also everyone tends to buy more in super markets than near-by shops.
• Repair your motorcyle/cycles and start using it rather than using car for every small distance you go. It will also save your time during traffic hours.
  
• You dont have to pay exhorbitant money for 1Mbps internet connection, instead opt for 128Kbps/256Kbps, these are also good speeds.
  
• Turn veggie and non-alcoholic for one or two weeks in a month. It is good way to stay healthy too. Boozing/Partying every weekend is not compulsory.
  
• Start exercising daily and brush your teeth twice a day. How does it saves money? It will avoid your medical expenses over long term. It also saves money on life insurance.
  
• Share/Borrow with your friends the DVDs & books, instead of buying/renting. It is a win-win for all and you save money too
• Dont buy softwares unless necessary, spend time in searching for some alternative freeware software.
  
• Be aware of reward points earning on your credit cards. Most people dont bother about it. Some few months back I purchased a full flight tickets just using the accumulated reward points.
• If you can refinance your loan, even if getting a 1% reduction in interest, do it. It will really worth, on cumulative basis.
• If your office provides Sodhexo coupons, use them and dont feel shy to ask even in large restaurants/shopping malls, whether they accept them. It is as good as your currency and its tax free.
• You can save substantial amount simply by paying entire credit card bill before due date. Only use the interest-free period (30days - 45 days) rather than revolving credit. When you make a credit card purchase make sure you can pay it withint 30 days.