The vast majority of people struggle with financial independence. On the one hand, there are those still working their way towards it. On the other hand, some have attained it by the struggle to maintain it. No matter how much money you have it all boils down to your spending habits. It is a pearl of the age-old wisdom that it is prudent to spend within your means. Sadly most people live their lives in total violation of that simple principle. Have you ever or do you ever objectively assess your spending habits? There are definitely some things you could be spending too much on; I am discussing them in this article.
Groceries
There are so many ways in which you could be spending more than is necessary here. For example, you can significantly drive down your grocery costs by changing where you buy from. The irony is that there are so many grocery items that cost a fraction of the price when you get them elsewhere. For instance, buying fresh produce from produce markets as opposed to supermarkets makes a huge difference. At times it can be through exploring different even little known brands – the quality can still be good even better. The other issue is on meticulously planning meals.
Often time people purchase quantities that are unnecessarily too high. Globally, it is said that a third of food produced annually goes to waste – that over 1 billion tonnes of food. Part of that contribution comes from food people throw away due to expiries or being in excess. It is recommended to plan down to ingredient quantities for a meal so that nothing is wasted. That will prime you to buy only what is necessary and not spend more money unnecessarily.
Eating And Drinking Out
Eating out is all fun and games but it can eat into your pocket without really realizing it. There is nothing wrong with eating out but at times you have to be objective about it. A simple example, I know many people who spend on average US$2 on lunch every day – 5 or 6 days a week. That translates to almost US$50 per month just on buying lunch. Fair enough some might argue that the person affords it but that does not nullify how unnecessary that cost might be. Within a year you would have splashed US$600 on buying lunch. Yet you can completely do away with buying lunch and instead bring food prepared home. It even gets more interesting when you consider drinking out. I know many people who spend on average US$5 every day on alcohol. You could spend way less by drinking at home. The examples are many here but the truth is you could be spending too much money on eating or drinking out.
Buying Brand New Items
With objective consideration, you will at times discover negligible differences between buying a brand new item and a pre-loved one. For example, a pre-loved vehicle or refurbished smartphone can be a good deal. The same applies to refurbished furniture and second-hand clothes. You will be amazed at the many people who wear second-hand bale clothes out there. Once they have washed them and pressed them you might never tell it is second-hand clothes.
The reality is second-hand items might even be more durable than brand new ones. This of course does not apply to every single scenario but weigh your options. At times buying brand new items might not be worth it. It is somewhat similar to the argument that doing more than 3 subjects at the Advanced Level might not be worth it. A person with 15 points and another with 20 or 25 points can end up enrolling for the same degree program. At times the seeming difference is really not worth it.
Weddings
This is an interesting subject of debate with strong arguments for and against. The rude truth is that most people do lavish wedding ceremonies to impress people. Rather, let me say, most people do them due to peer pressure or simply because it is a societal norm. The sad thing though is that a wedding might not translate into real value for a couple’s married life. It is well known that the majority of couples get into debt just to put a wedding together. There are so many ways you can spend much less when it comes to this.
First off, you can do away with the whole idea completely. With just a handful of loved ones, you can do a simple court one. Alternatively, you can hold a small reception, even at your home, with loved ones and that is it. The costs will just be to get a marriage officer and buy some food for the handful of attendees. People can say all sorts of things but surveys have shown that people are spending almost 300 times more than is necessary on weddings.
Phone Bills
A lot of people are found wanting on this one. I personally have even noticed it at times. I remember there was a time I was buying 25 GB of data for the month. Then later due to costs, I started buying 10 GB. Funnily I still was able to do all the core things i.e. work-related stuff. So clearly I was spending more than was necessary all that time I was buying 25 GB. The same applies to voice calls; a lot of the calls you make are unnecessarily long or even unnecessary at all. Unfortunately, we mostly think of that only when money is tight.
Take stock of how you are spending your money on things. You can save on lots of money and even have disposable money to invest in meaningful ventures. So do not take these things lightly; the capital you might be looking for could already be in your possession. All it is waiting for is for you to redirect it from where you are currently spending it.
