How to Easily Save Money Without Giving Up Your Lifestyle
In “31 Solid-Gold Ways to Save” (March 2008 Oprah Magazine)*, Anne Kadet lists some very easy ways you can enjoy life while saving money here and there.
Just the other day I called my cell phone provider and found for the same monthly price I could get free weekend and night minutes. For me that’s her #1 tip: If you’re going over on your cell phone minutes, call your provider to see if there’s a better plan for the same price - or maybe less!
10 More Ways to Easily Save Money from a Reknown Penny Pincher
That penny pincher is me!
- Anne says: Get refills on your Starbucks for 55-65 cents if you’re hanging out. I say: If you really are pounding the stuff, get the larger size from the get go for only 25 cents more than the smaller sizes.
- Anne says: Craigslist your overseas stay, to find good deals on lodging instead of hotels. I say: If you’re really scrappy, Couch Surf your stay. Or check VRBO (Vacation Rentals by Owner). The bottomline: There are good options for finding rentals on sites that have reputation and accountability systems, which Craigslist doesn’t have. Craigslist is always good as a starting point, but look into the other options too.
- Anne says: Find discount codes to use on sites. I say: There are so many coupon sites with good search engine optimization - where if you get to the site they usually don’t have coupons. Start with the well-established Ebates.com where you get a $10 gift card upon sign up. Ebates generally offers the same discounts on hundreds of popular online stores. (and tell them susie at superviva.com referred you!) You simply click through Ebates and don’t need to enter a coupon code on the other site. Although if you have a coupon you can use it in ADDITION to any discount you may get from Ebates.
- Anne says: Check for local rent-a-car companies when traveling as they may have lower prices than the nationals. I say: If you’re not going to need a car very much and you’re in an area with ZipCar (hourly rentals), consider a combo of public transportation and ZipCar as an option.
- Anne says: Swap books and CDs online. I say: Give and request stuff through your local Freecycle group. Throw a clothing swap with your friends, where you lay out all the stuff you don’t want then give the rest to charity. Add in books and CDs to the mix as well, then you can have a part with both guys and girls.
- Anne says: Outsmart the airlines using tricks to get the lowest fares. I also say: Delete your cookies before visiting various travel sites. I’ve heard that they adjust your pricing based on where you’ve been before. It might be an urban legend. Then again it may not be.
- I say: Question the mainstream supermarkets. Compare their prices to smaller local stores, meat markets, and farmer’s markets. Costco often has the same prices as a chain supermarket in areas like toilet paper. Mainstream supermarket produce and other prices may be higher than an independent grocer. And sometimes I’ve found the old school national chains are more than Whole Foods. (Imagine that!)
I thank Anne for making me aware of Frucall which I plan to use often!
*In print you’ll find 31 ways. Online they show you 14 ways.
A couple more ideas:
1) Have a clothing exchange party with your friends
Bring clothes that are too “good” or sentimental to give to the Goodwill but that you never wear. You’ve probably heard cleaning out the closet also has the side benefits of
-saving time when you’re looking for stuff to wear,
-prevents you from wearing stuff just because you have it when it may not be “you” anymore,
-saves space!
So have your friends do the same, then organize the clothes into categories at the party - and pillage each other’s clothing to get stuff that will be new for you!
Then, give the rest to charity. (Actually at my last party I took some of the great clothes that wouldn’t fit me to offer to other friends.) There’s something psychological about first trying to keep your favorite clothes in your circle of friends that makes it less difficult to just give them away after.
2) Second thing - Do you know about Freecycle? http://www.freecycle.org/
It’s a worldwide movement that’s mostly based on Yahoo Groups where you can place WANTED and OFFERED messages for things you need.
Most of the time I have scored. Examples of things I’ve gotten are whiteboards, kitchen supplies etc.
I’ve given away mattresses, cheap furniture etc.
June 26th, 2008 at 9:16 am
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