Saving Techniques

Saving is not easy for me, lol it's a challenge. I'm sure a lot of us can relate. But just like all challenges, they can be overcome. Being able to save short term or long term is a management skill and exercises discipline, especially if you like nice things but financially you are not there yet. If you have multiple incomes you should still be saving and analysing your outgoing and incoming. 

Soooooo, good old Frugal Fran is here to save your bank and mine!

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1. Pay yourself. It could be 10%, 25%, 50%, 75% etc of your earnings after tax or it could be earnings before tax. You know how much each of your incomes are bringing you, so work out how much you would like to pay yourself.


2. Take home cooked food to work or set a small budget for lunch and buy meal deals. This works for everyone unless you receive free lunch meals.


3. The weekly trips to Gaucho/Hakassan (lol  *guilty*) may need to be cut back to Bi-weekly or monthly. 


4. Have a look at bills. (Regular beauty treatments are not bills) lol. Can you get a cheaper phone bill? Maybe a change of gym membership? Maybe working out at home and investing in affordable equipment!


5. Ladies, invest in wigs, learn how to braid, wash and style your hair. For major cuts, I recommend a professional. It will save you £200-500 depending on where you purchase hair extensions from, not forgetting the installation or custom services.


6. Create a shopping budget, whether you purchase luxury shoes, makeup and beauty, high street clothing or a luxury handbag just know that if you blow your budget on one item, that's it.


7. Following on from the previous point make a spending budget to make things easier and this should cover shopping, entertainment and leisure. e.g £200 a month. Be realistic. 


8. Home beauty. This excludes spa treatments and Massages. Go to a professional spa for all that. For Mani's and Pedi's, you can definitely do that yourself at home. Try the Scholl Pedicure Set If you like shellac's or normal polish on your natural nails, invest in the home system. You can even go to a cosmetology school and some of those services are really cheap.


9. You could set up a saving group with people you TRUST!!!!!!! lol have to stress the 'trust'. For example, 4 of you put £100 into a pot each month and a different person takes the total £400. First month Person A takes the £400, next month Person B takes the £400 etc. By the fourth month everyone would've had a turn receiving £400.


10. Sow a seed. This means being generous. Being generous with your time, expertise, kindness , money etc. E.g. If you can meet/solve somebody's immediate need with your money (a fiver for their lunch) and you can afford to do without it, why not do it? Put good into the world and good will always find you, just when you need it.

Be you and Be true to who you are.