A simple strategy that anyone can use to save money and get rid of debt – reduce your expenses. It doesn’t matter how much you earn, what matters is how much you manage to save by the end of the month. By trimming your expenses, you’ll get to keep more, and debt will become a thing of the past.
Even if you are not under debt, you can use your savings to invest and create wealth for a better future. There are plenty of things you can do with saved money. It all starts with simple, but effective savings measures. By creating wealth, you can achieve something that people always want in life – financial freedom.
With that in mind, let’s look at four simple ways you can use to reduce debt. They may not always be easy, but they work. Tough times call for tough measures.
1. Cook at home
This long-forgotten art has as many financial benefits as health benefits. These days, most people are too busy to prepare their own meals at home. They always purchase food from outside and it has become the norm.
Not only is store-bought food unhealthier, but in the long run, it’s costly too. Upon initial glance, it may seem like it’s more cost-effective to purchase your meals from stores. However, if you did the math, you’d realize that you’ll be saving yourself hundreds of dollars just by cooking your own meals and eating at home.
The top bodybuilders and fitness athletes on the planet prepare their meals at home. It’s that good for your health. You’ll lose weight and be less likely to get diseases like diabetes, high cholesterol, hypertension and so on. In addition to saving your money on food expenses, you are much likely to lower your medical bills too over time.
A medical problem can sink you up to your eyeballs in debt. It’s best to cook your own healthy meals. Cook once on Sunday and pack all your meals and store them in the refrigerator for the week. Or, you can find any number of simple recipes on YouTube that can be prepared with just a few ingredients. It’s an easy way to reduce your expenses.
2. Stay home
Just when you thought eating at home was going to cramp your style, now you’re being asked to stay home too. Yes, this is one of the best things that you can do. If you’re deep in dept, staying home will help to curb your frivolous expenses.
We are not suggesting that you stay home in an unhealthy way. Going out for a long walk or a visit to the beach is not going to hurt you financially. On the other hand, visiting costly restaurants, clubs and shopping malls can hurt your wallet in many ways. It is these outing we are talking about.
By reducing unnecessary outings, you’ll be less likely to buy items you don’t need, or fritter away a few dollars at the bar, or spend money on gas, etc. Go home after work, eat your home-cooked meal and relax with a book or watch TV.
It may be boring, but it is something you have to follow at least till your finances are back on track. Also, it is a very simple way to reduce your expenses. Getting rid of debt will require extreme measures until you have a grip on things.
3. Study your bills and trim the excess
Study your bills and trim out all the ‘fat’. Have magazine subscriptions? Cancel them. You’ll survive without the magazines. Have subscriptions to multiple streaming platforms that you never use? Cancel them.
If you study your finances with a fine-toothed comb, you’ll be able to find many ways to cut unnecessary expenses. Keep a notebook where you write down all your bills and expenses.
You’ll see what really matters and what doesn’t. Remove what doesn’t.
Get a copy of my budgeting eBook to learn the best ways to learn the simple measures you can follow to cut down your expenses.
4. Pay more than the minimum sum
You’ll never get out of debt if all you pay is the minimum sum on the credit cards you own. You’re paying every month for the interest the banks are levying on you. You MUST make a dent in the interest.
The best way to do this is to pay slightly more than the interest. Pick the credit card with the highest interest rate on your outstanding balance and pay more on that card than the minimum. If you have several cards that have an outstanding balance, pay the minimum on those and work on paying more for just that one card.
Over time, you’d have repaid all the debt on that card. Now, use the amount that you were usually paying on that to pay over and above the minimum for the next card.
When the second card is done, move on to the third and the ones after that. This is the fastest way to pay up your credit card bills.
Adhere to the 4 tips above and not only will you reduce your expenses, but you’ll also reduce your debt. Depending on how much you owe, it may take you a few months or even several years. That’s just how it is.
You’ll need to keep your nose to the grindstone and grimly make progress. The good news is that by the time you’re done, you’ll have more financial discipline and awareness than you ever had before.
If you are looking for a way to get your finances in order, your search ends here. We’ve put together an eBook on Setting Up Your Family Budget in 2021 which provides practical tips on money-saving, budgeting, debt management, and more.
Get your copy today! Take the first step toward getting your finances in order!
