If you are trying to lose weight you know that a box of doughnuts is not good for you. Just as well, if you are trying to cut your expenses, there are many expenses you can reduce without affecting your quality of life.
Be ruthless! Here is a list of suggestions:
- Buy your clothes at a discount outlet such as Walmart, online stores like Amazon
, or a second-hand store. Help the environment and nonprofit organizations. I shop at Le Chainon, a second-hand store close to my apartment. My $20 Walmart jeans are just as good as the $200 designer jeans.
- Make sure that your windows and doors are tightly sealed to avoid wasting too much money on electricity. You will save money in electricity and your house/apartment will be more comfortable.
- Consider using public transportation. I use a bicycle. If you need a car, consider one of the many car-sharing alternatives. In Montreal, we have a great service called Communauto. If you live in a major city, I am sure there is a similar service near you. Believe me, not having a car makes your life so much more stress free and you can save thousands of dollars.
- Get rid of your cable package or better yet, throw away your tv. Canadians watch about 30 hours of tv per week. In the U.S. they watch about 34 hours of tv per week. This is crazy. People complain about not having enough time. The tv is constantly putting crap in your head. My downtime distractions are writing, listening to podcasts, or watching YouTube videos. They all cost a lot less than cable TV.
- Have a big garage sale or donate all the stuff that’s taking up space in your house. Use the 12 months rule. Have I used this in the past 12 months? Will I use it in the next 12 months? No? then it is junk. Having a Zen and clean environment is more valuable than having a lot of stuff in your house.
- Cancel subscriptions to newspapers, magazines, etc… Everything except the gym. But then go to the gym. Some physical activity is good.
- When eating out, don’t order soft drinks (they are poison for your body) and don’t order dessert, most of us eat it out of gluttony.
- Christmas, Thanksgiving, and all those holidays have become too commercial. Agree with family members to stop buying crap for each other. It’s all about love and company, not about buying each other more plastic from China.
- Drink coffee or tea at home instead of buying it at the local coffee shop, unless you are using the coffee shop to have meetings.
- Bring your lunch to work instead of buying at the local restaurant.
- Get energy-efficient appliances and a programmable thermostat that will shut off when you are not home and will come on one hour before you come back home.
- Get rid of your landline phone. My mother have a landline and a cellphone. I see that as such a waste.
- Never, never, never pay interest on your credit card. Always pay it on time. Credit cards charge about 25% on the outstanding balance, that is crazy and only idiots pay that.
- Don’t get a Mac, get a PC. Macs are ridiculous expensinve for no reason at all. You are paying extra money only to make Apple shareholders richers.
- When traveling, don’t use hotels, use Airbnb. You pay half of the money for a lot more and you get to experience a new city like a local and not as a tourist. I host tourists in my Airbnb place.
- Start a small business, any small business, and start writing off rent, utilities, office supplies, etc. I always get a GST rebate check from the government every year.