Financial realist and businessman, Ronnie F. Lee faced a lot of financial struggles in his life. Throughout his childhood, his family survived with a single check that his father earned monthly. By the end of the month, they would have barely any money left to even eat properly. All the financial mistakes Lee saw his parents make taught him a lot about money management. He started out with barely anything and eventually earned enough to increase his net worth, start different businesses, and purchase a chain of houses in Las Vegas. Now, Lee is sharing his best strategies and techniques to help people improve their money management skills in his latest book, Know Money No Problem (ISBN 978-1952263583). The book serves as a guide for people who earn earnestly but are unable to maintain a budget and save their money.
Saving money smartly can truly change your life around and improve your financial situation. While it may seem difficult to save a good amount of money, it really isn’t! The only hard part of this journey is to take the first step towards saving money. Once you are over that hunch, it only becomes easier. According to Trent Hamm, founder of The Simple Dollar, here are some ways to save money around your house:
· Move bank accounts to take advantage of perks and earn more interest
If you’re paying a monthly fee for your checking or savings account, you would benefit from researching some of the newest banking offers out there. Not only do some of the best banks offer sign-up bonuses simply for opening an account and setting up direct deposit, but some offer attractive interest rates to new customers as well.
· Turn off the television.
One big way to save money is to drastically cut down on the amount of television you watch. There are a lot of financial benefits to this: less exposure to spending-inducing ads, a lower electric bill (and perhaps a lower cable bill if you downgrade your subscription), more time to focus on other things in life — such as a side business — and so on.
· Stop collecting, and start selling.
There was a time when people thought their collections would bring them riches. Beanie Babies were a big fad at one time, as were Longaberger baskets. Now you can find those items on resale sites like Craigslist and at garage sales for a fraction of their initial cost, leaving many people who sunk thousands of dollars into their “investments” wondering what happened.
If you want to avoid that situation, don’t collect items of questionable value. And if you want to recoup some of the money you’ve already spent on collectible items, you can start selling them now and use those funds for any number of worthy financial goals.
· Use credit cards wisely.
If you have a habit of overspending with credit cards, hide your cards and keep them in a safe place in your home, not in your wallet. Keeping your card “out of sight and out of mind” might help reduce temptation while you’re out and about. Already in trouble with bad credit? Apply for a bad credit credit card and rebuild your credit through slow, consistent spending on essentials.
· Install a programmable thermostat.
Installing a programmable thermostat is a no-brainer if you want to cut down on energy usage while you’re not at home, or simply regulate the temperature in your home. By setting it to heat or cool your home at certain times, you can ensure that your utilities aren’t being wasted while you’re at work or asleep – and save money in the process.
· Avoid stress-spending.
It’s easy to justify spending money just to wind down from a stressful day at work. However, it’s rarely a good idea. Instead of buying things you don’t need to make yourself feel better, it might be wise to find other ways to de-stress instead.
An exercise is always a good option, as is meditation and even a good old-fashioned nap. Read, watch movies, or work in your yard if you’re stressed out. Spending money won’t reduce your stress in the long run.
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