1 Part: Maintaining Balance of Payments
1. Create a list of daily necessities, which should include food, water, electricity, heating and other infrastructure and clothing. As the name implies, necessities of life are those things that you can't live without. For example, if you spend a few thousand yuan less on clothes every month, you can still live well (even if you don't feel it yourself), but you probably can't live without eating for a day.
2. Estimate your income, preferably monthly income. If you have a stable job and a fixed income, the estimation is very simple. But if you only work part-time, stay at home or rely on your family to pay for your living expenses, your income is not so easy to estimate. The best way is to add up the income of the past three months and get the average. Although it is not so accurate, it is more reliable to make a budget for revenue and expenditure. When estimating income, don't forget to deduct the tax part. Everyone's tax amount is closely related to his income. After deducting the contribution to the country, the actual income is not as gorgeous as it looks.
3. Develop the habit of keeping accounts. Write down what you usually buy, how much you spend and where you spend it. Don't need too many details, such as "I spent 600 yuan on food at Wal-Mart". Of course, it's best to keep a monthly record, 1 month 1 day, so that you can clearly know how much you spend on necessities and non-necessities. If too many things are paid in cash (I'm glad you did! ) and it's hard to remember clearly, or the bill is too messy, so you can write down the expenditure this month or next month from now on.
Compare your income and expenditure to see if you earn more or pay more. If you save a lot every month, congratulations on your excellent work! But if your expenses and income are basically balanced, you won't save any money. If your expenses are even much higher than your income, you may have to consider your financial problems. Of course, if you are only a student now and have no income, it is normal to make ends meet, but you can also put the plan of saving money in the future on the agenda.
5. Evaluate whether your spending is worthwhile. First, you need to know where all your money has gone! The first step is to classify your consumption, one is "necessities", and the rest can be classified according to your preferences, such as "eating out". After the classification planning, you can add up all the consumption of this kind to calculate the total.
6. "Slimming" expenditure plan. Generally speaking, besides "necessities", there are more than one kind of expenses that cost you a lot of money. Take a good look at this kind of expenses and subtract all the unnecessary ones. For example, if you see that you spend eight or nine times in Starbucks in the category of "eating out", then you can try to reduce the number of times you go to three or four times, which will easily save one or two hundred yuan. If so, subtract everything you can until your income exceeds your income. Please refer to section 3 below for how to save money effectively.
7. If necessary, raise your income level. You may feel that you have made ends meet, and it is difficult to make ends meet just by saving money. At this time, you are likely to need to work overtime, apply for a raise, and find a full-time or part-time job with high income to increase your income. If there are other office workers at home, let them work with you. If your children have grown up, try to let them learn to do odd jobs.
8. Set goals to save money. Set yourself a reasonable and feasible goal within a certain period of time. Your goal may be to deposit 1200 a month, or to travel to Paris at the end of next year. Generally speaking, the more detailed and realistic your goal is, the more likely you are to achieve it. If your goal is only to spend less money, such vague goals will not motivate you, and it is difficult for you to measure whether you are doing well or not.
9. Save some money for emergencies. If you want to live a decent life, you can't let an accident (such as a car accident or unemployment) completely ruin your financial plan. Preparing for a rainy day is not sensational. Even if you can only save 500 yuan every month, you will have more confidence and security than the irresponsible behavior of spending every penny every month. Saving some small change in your "emergency piggy bank" every day, even if it is only a little, will gradually make you get into the habit of saving some spare money for emergencies.
Part II: Adjust your consumption concept.
1 First of all, we should clearly distinguish between "what we want" and "what we need". Of course, you may say that you really "need" a big-screen HDTV, but if you buy a smaller one, or carry the old one for a while, will you really suffer? Do you really need big-name shoes or sunglasses, or are you willing to accept cheaper ones? It really costs more than 500 yuan to have dinner with your boyfriend, or can you go to a more economical restaurant or have a nice candlelight dinner at home? Knowing that you don't really need so many things can definitely keep your life in order. It's ok to shed some blood once in a while to buy something less "needed", but enough is enough, don't indulge in it. So, when you want to spend money on a whim, remember to remind yourself that life will go on without buying those things.
2. Don't compare with your neighbors. Although a neighbor has just built a swimming pool or a new house, he may earn twice as much as you. If you compare yourself with the people around you, you will not only be unhappy, but also find it difficult to manage your finances reasonably, because you waste too much time to maintain an image that is difficult to achieve. Indeed, the brand-name jeans worn by your good friend give her a unique style. Seeing her lovely appearance, you should be happy for her from the bottom of your heart, not want to have one sourly. Jealousy will make you dissatisfied with the status quo and make you unhappy.
3. Redefine what is "rich". Being rich is not necessarily driving a BMW and going to Capri for a holiday in autumn; Having enough savings to make his wife and children happy is a kind of wealth, and it is also a kind of happiness to travel with the other half and enjoy a moment of pleasure. When you know how to define your "wealth", you can live a free and easy life, and you won't care what others think of your money.
Understand that spending less money will not reduce your quality of life. Instead of wasting money in a noisy bar, you can invite a few friends over for a good bottle of red wine. Drive to road trip with your partner instead of flying luxuriously. Will the above practices really reduce the quality of life? Of course not. You just do what you like in different ways. Never get used to thinking that spending less money will make your life worse. In fact, spending less money can "improve" your quality of life. You don't have to suffer from inner condemnation because you always spend money recklessly. You can be more calm when making any decision.
5. Always be grateful for what you have at this moment. Don't always worry about what brand of car you want, what style of suit you want and how big your house is, but cherish everything you are lucky to have now. You may not like your TV, but you love your desktop. You may want a new coat, but there are dazzling sweaters and sweaters in your closet. Write down what you already have, big or small, and you will thank God for giving you a safe lover, several lovely children and a shelter from the wind and rain at home. Always remember what you have, so that you can feel the richness of life and reduce the impulse to spend money on shopping.
Part 3: Save, if possible.
1, try to eat at home. Eating at home is not necessarily less interesting than eating out. It can not only exercise your cooking skills, but also let you control your food intake and create a warmer atmosphere for dating or gathering. Don't forget, you can save a lot of money. If eating out accounts for a considerable part of your expenses, try to reduce the number of times you eat out twice a week. If you think it's okay to go out to eat only once or twice a week, then cut down on a few more meals. Of course, sometimes you have to go out for dinner-such as a colleague's parting dinner, a friend's birthday party, etc. But when you go out to eat, you should also pay attention to how much it costs. Don't go hungry, which will easily lead to excessive consumption.
2. Wait until the sale. Some things need not be bought at the original price. When they have a big promotion, get some vouchers before you buy them. You just need to wait patiently, and you will find that what you were eager to buy will eventually become cheaper. You don't have to buy the latest iPod or new online games. When the price comes down in a few months, you can save hundreds of dollars. There is nothing wrong with buying second-hand goods. Going to a second-hand shop is also likely to find clothes with exquisite workmanship.
You don't have to go out for entertainment, but you can stay at home. You don't have to go to a bar to drink, but you can have a party at home. You don't have to spend more than 100 yuan to go to the cinema on the first day of the film's release. You can enjoy it by inviting a few friends to watch it at home. Sometimes, gathering at home will make you feel more comfortable, because you don't have to deal with strangers like you do outside, you can decide what to eat and drink by yourself. So, the next time you want to invite friends to a party, you might as well let them come to your house, which is much better than going to those expensive and noisy bars.
4. Clean up those membership cards that you don't need. These miscellaneous membership cards that you have forgotten in the corner may cost you hundreds of dollars a month. In order to save money, we might as well cancel some of them. Fitness card. If you only go to the gym once or twice a month, stop your card and run instead.
Netflix member. If you want to save money, you should only pay for Netflix's streaming video service, and the extra DVD viewing fee can be exempted.
Magazine subscription. If you read one or two articles in the magazine you subscribe to every month, you might as well read them directly online and save this expense.
5. borrow and buy. Borrow books from the library instead of buying books from the store, and borrow DVDs from friends instead of renting them from the store. If you only need to wear a skirt once, borrow one from a friend who has a lot of clothes instead of going to great trouble to buy a skirt that you may never wear again. Share your belongings with your friends and give them roses, so that you can enjoy the fragrance. Borrowing things is also a unique and interesting way to save money.
6. Build your own garden. Gardening can not only relax the body and mind, make people happy and prolong life, but also definitely save you money. You don't have to buy vegetables and spices every week. Put your money into gardening at one time and see how much you can save every week.
7. Don't shop without a list. Whether you go to a small grocery store or a big shopping mall, once you browse with casual eyes and full mind, you are likely to throw out a lot of money on a whim. So make a detailed list every time you go shopping, and try to shop according to the list as much as possible, unless you really forget to write something down. Even if you just want to buy three things at the mall, write them down on paper first, which will help remind you not to buy anything unnecessary to go home.
8. Give yourself 48 hours to think before making a large-scale purchase. When you see a new jacket or beautiful shoes while shopping or online shopping, don't rush to start. You'd better give yourself 48 hours to weigh carefully first. Maybe you will find that you don't need them so much, or you can find a cheap substitute. But if, after careful consideration, you still think that you really need this thing, then you will feel more at ease with your behavior.
Tip: If you can cut expenses on a large scale, you might as well save your money for a rainy day.
Don't be too hard on yourself in money. You earned it hard, and you have the right to be kind to yourself. If you save money now, you will find it difficult to manage your financial problems as planned.