Drop One Expense RIGHT NOW | Community Insight
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EDITOR’S NOTE: Be sure to check out today’s video post on The Blueprint.
Think of your monthly expenses. Is there even ONE thing on this list you could see living without? If so, DROP IT! And do it RIGHT NOW!
This edition of Community Insight is focused on trying to save you money and doing so immediately.
We all have these expenses. You know the ones I’m talking about. Expensive coffee twice a week, DVD rentals, junk food from the grocery store, more cell minutes than you ever use, etc… Basically, stuff that you either don’t need or don’t even use. I’m not here to be the fun police or anything. Liz and I use Netflix and enjoy watching the new releases as they come out, but even THIS was an opportunity to cut costs. We realized that we hadn’t been using the two DVD limit that we were paying for, so we dropped it to one, watch the amount of movies we always do and saved about 5 bucks. Not huge, but that’s still $50 a year.
You may even want to think about your driving schedule. Are there ways to cut down on miles and gas? Maybe drive a different rout or get more done with less trips and so on?
This post is about looking through your outgoing cash and seeing where you can plug a hole. Just one, mind you. All I ask is that you knock out ONE THING. And then share that one thing with the rest of us. Maybe it’s something a few other readers can do to cut THEIR costs as well.
I’ll start…
OK, so I mentioned the Netflix one, but that was just an example and one we took care of months ago. So for today, I’ll share my latest cost cutting change.
I use a shared cell plan with Liz and it includes roll over minutes. Our plan offers 1400 minutes a month. When I was heavy into my consulting business this was necessary, but now, not so much. As of today, we have about 3 months worth of roll over minutes stocked up so it’s evident we no longer need such a large plan. I will be dropping down two notches in my cell plan which will save us about $20 a month which is $240 a year. Another way to look at this is that after one year we will have saved enough to roughly pay for one months worth of groceries (those with children are probably laughing right now. You’re thinking, “One month, try one week!”) But my point is that small changes can really add up over time.
So what about you?
Now it’s your turn. Which single expense can you drop ASAP? This might seem like a trivial exercise, but I promise there’s something there that you can delete from your life that will save you money. Something that you will not even miss.
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It’s not something you can “cut,” but it’s a good time to refinance a home and save some monthly cash (no, this isn’t spam).
Great idea Eric and one that I’ve advocated for on several posts. Dropping one extra expense like this can save us much more than just money in our pocket.
For me it’s the one or two lunches a week where I forget to prepare something the night before and then eat out the next day. The $5 – $10 I spend on the meal is money I’m throwing away and it isn’t healthy for me either.
Neil’s last blog post..Finding The Time To Exercise: Adaptation
Small changes absolutely add up. I’ve trimmed all my fat. No cable, shared cell phone, no land line, no Netflix, walking most places… etc, etc, etc,. Pennies do make dollars, and enough lettuce will make you rich.
Writer Dad’s last blog post..Lobster Racing Part Duex
Same as Neal. Lunches out. My New Year’s Resolution is to kick my type II diabetes to the curb so this can only help.
I dropped my land line 2 years ago and haven’t missed it.
Spacing out my hair appointments 2 weeks further out. Going from every 6 weeks to every 8 weeks at $100 a pop will save some change. I’m too lazy to do the math in my head.
Also, if you’re like me (and my husband) and have to dress up for work, now is the time to buy winter clothes. I buy winter clothes at the end of January and summer clothes at the beginning of September. Saves a fortune.
The things I have agreed to cut out right now:
1. No more starbucks out. Before I was doing it on a card basis — I’d put $20 on card and that was it for the month. Now I have bought coffee and I make it at home and take it with me. Saves me $20 a month
2. No more blank books or magazines for the year. I buy these things when I am bored, but I don’t get as much out of the magazines as I should, and they take up space. I have a blank book (and pen) addiction, but I don’t NEED any more of these things. I have pledged that I will not buy any for myself this year.
3. Craft supplies. Again, I have more than I need.
4. Eating out — cut back from a few times a week to 2 times a month (the fridays my kids are with me) which will save me between $100 and $200 a month. I will make meal plans and work off those, thus cutting back on meals out as well as extraneous trips to the grocery store to buy meals at the last minute.
Pam’s last blog post..NO! He didn’t!!!!….
I could never get rid of my Netflix, I LOVE IT and look forward to a dvd arriving in the mail.
However, I did stop drinking Redbull. I was spending quite a bit of money on the little blue can and not only do I have more money in my wallet, but I also have lost some weight.
Danifer (Jennifer)’s last blog post..Question Of The Day
@ChasingSanity.com: Yeah, that was sounding like an ad.
But it’s very sound advice. The problem for a lot of homeowners, though, is that they’re not in a good place with their mortgage anymore. A few years ago this was a given. Now it’s totally a toss up from person to person.
@Neil: The lunch thing always gets me. It’s also an enticing excuse to eat junk food, like you said. I actually buy trailmix in bulk and then keep ziplock bags of the stuff with me so I always have something to snack on that’s healthy and cheap.
@Sean: We’ve also cut our cable as well. With everything on the Internet these days it just doesn’t seem viable to pay for a separate cable bill anymore. Most of the live stuff that really matters (sports and such) are on the local stations and we get these with a cheap TV antenna anyway.
@Kay: Buying things out of season is a great tip. Christmas stuff AFTER Christmas is much cheaper as well.
@Pam: I thought I was the only blank book and pen purchaser. Seriously, I use to go to Staples and roam the pen isle. There’s just something NEAT about a new, different pen.
@Jennifer: Like I said in the post, we CUT BACK Netflix, but definitely didn’t get rid of it all together. Like you, we enjoy watching a movie every week or so. And it’s just too expensive to do it any other way. Eric
The small things definitely adds up. By making small changes in our life and making conscious effort in keeping expenses down, we can definitely save a big amount in the long run.
Cheers
Vincent
Personal Development Blogger
Vincent’s last blog post..Why Show Gratitude When We Can Be Selfish?
@Vincent: Very true. Eric
Hi Eric,
I came out of my reader to comment and the first thing I saw was the Starbucks picture. I had to laugh because that’s so cliche when we talk about an expense to get rid of.
Anyway, I wanted to say people should also think about not incurring any more expenses.
For instance, I recently received an offer to get 26 issues of Fortune magazine, PLUS all the freebies, for only $10! Wow, what a deal! But you know what, I was going to do it, but then I ripped it up and threw it away.
Could I get $10 worth of good reading material out of it! Im 100% sure I could. But I am on a simplicity kick for the year. I am selling a lot of stuff and being fairly ruthless about new stuff I accumulate.
In any case, great article to get us all thinking!
Cheers,
Jeremy
Jeremy Day’s last blog post..In Praise of Lifelong Learning
@Jeremy: Ha Ha! I know, the Starbucks image is TOTALLY cliche! Buy hey, it got my point across, right?!
Magazines are evil when it comes to wasting money and paper. OK, maybe not evil, but tend to be very wasteful. Definitely a good thing to knock out of your life, no doubt. Eric
This is a very timely post. This last week I too changed my cell plan to fewer minutes and stopped cable on the house we’re remodeling. That comes to about $45 a month right there that I’ve saved, just like that.
Not going to renew my Vegetarian Times magazine. Just visit their online site instead.
kara’s last blog post..Keep Your Metabolism Stoked
@Paula: SWEET! That’s awesome! Thanks for sharing and I hope you keep finding ways to keep the bills light so you can enjoy more time to do the things that are truly important.
@kara: I’ve been doing the same. I used to buy certain hobby magazines, but now I just enjoy their websites and forums. More interactive and of course, FREE!
Eric
Hi Eric
There are always better deals out there – especially now that customers are in short supply.
Change insurance contracts, medical etc.
Also, often it is cheaper to combine contracts if you are married.
Also, check out the best way of minimising bank charges (not cheap in South Africa)
Loyalty scemes can help sometimes.
These options can actually reduce your monthly budget for good – even after the bad patch is over.
Juliet
LifeMadeGreat | Juliet’s last blog post..Would You Choose To Be Immortal?
Hi Eric – This is something I constantly do, especially with our business expenses – insurance, cell phone bills, fuel, etc. At home I have switched out most of our light bulbs for the efficient ones, turn off lights behind me, turn down the heat a degree or two and grab a sweater instead, keep my car tuned up so I’m not wasting gas, run errands in circles so I don’t backtrack, etc.
Most things aren’t huge savings by themselves, but when I add them up, the annual savings can be huge.
Barbara Swafford’s last blog post..They Don’t Have To Be Einstein To Figure It Out
@Juliet: Thanks, Juliet! What a great bunch of ideas.
@Barbara: I’m with you there. I’m always turning off the lights as I leave a room and even dropping the head a notch a two when possible.
And yes, maintenance is a great way to save money in the long run. A little here, a little there is much cheaper than any kind of repair bill. Eric
[The Simpsons] I’ll start smoking and give that up! [/The Simpsons]
I’ve thought about this many times in the past months. I considered giving up my Country Living Magazine, which costs me €48 per year, but then I decided not to because that’s something I look forward to every single month and many months it’s my major for-pleasure expense (€4).
I had a very hard time finding those regular ‘out of the pocket’ expenses to give up this time. I haven’t always. I did give up buying fruit smoothies and history magazines on my out of town chore outings (they always get long, since I save them all up for one day since travel is expensive)!
Emma’s last blog post..The mind beyond the brain
@Emma: I totally understand what you saying here. Life shouldn’t be all about necessity, ALL THE TIME. We need our little treats here and there. If there’s nothing to look forward to, than what’s the point, right?! It sounds like you’ve already weeded out much of the clutter in your life. Good for you!
Eric
We’ve done several things. First, we cut off the cable tv and Tivo serivice a couple of months ago and saved $60 a month. Surprisingly we haven’t missed it and are able to get many shows online these days for free. Second, we dropped the collision coverage on our 2 cars as it’s not worth it a this point. Third, we’re one month away from being completely out of debt and will save $200 a month in credit card payments.
Things just keep on getting gooder and gooder!
PizzaForADream.com’s last blog post..Please Tip Your Pizza Delivery Driver, They’re Unsung HEROES of the Pizza Industry
I am busy adding expenses right now….feels kind of hard to do and yet easy? My Internet and Phone have been up and down for the month and that makes working hard – I have to switch to the only other provider and that is $1 less a month, but I had to switch my cellphone up in minutes to drop the overcharges of my daughter’s over use. We also got her a blackberry with a plan which will cut the $15 a month tutor fees to get her verbal assignments to her computer and due dates on her calendar.
I bought a Kindle and now I have cut the cost of books dramatically, but the books are the library are free – just they don’t have most of what I need????
I have no magazines
I do get one movie a month from Netflix so I can watch on line the free ones
We finally got a TV and the only service we could get, because of ocean currents etc, is very basic cable for $15.00 a month which goes to $25.00 a month for HD service basic on Feb. 17th
I bought each of my 3 daughters designer jeans for Christmas, because I thought they should each have one pair. Daughter #2 took her money and put it towards Grad School needs. This was fine with me…
We have cut back so much over the years and we grow lots of our own food…..so we were relaxing a bit with our own needs…and adding a few wants.
We still need to pay 1.5 quarters of all expenses for youngest s college…just took a pay cut to keep everyone employed at our office. We are extremely frugal and careful
we were able to refinance our house at a much lower rate at the credit union – in progress and that will save us $500 a month.
Our goal is to take the Architecture2030 challenge and drop out energy usage 50%….we are at 21% now but the bills don’t go down because the rates go up…
Good idea – lots of work…nice post
Patricia’s last blog post..Doctor, Doctor are you Listening?
@PizzaForADream.com: “…we’re one month away from being completely out of debt and will save $200 a month in credit card payments.” Congratulations! That’s great.
@Patricia: I hear ya. Sometimes in life we have to spend more and sometimes we can cut back. I like the 50% energy cut back idea a lot. I think this is something that could make a huge difference in more than just our bank accounts. Thanks for you thoughts and I hope you find your way to that happy place of more time AND more money. Or at least more time without losing money. Life’s just too short to not enjoy the time we have. I know YOU know this. Eric