Life is not a bowl full of cherries for the salary class people. And with the upcoming purchase-inviting Holiday season, the mission to put some money aside seems rather impossible. Don’t worry, you can still learn better ways to save money even in times when it is likely to be spending cash buying presents. The key to money-saving is to get rid of your vices and adopt new habits you can benefit from. It’s in everyone’s best interest to nurture a few effective saving habits. In the long term you’ll see that this is the right way to make your life much easier.
Here are a few useful ways to boost your income for the holidays:
Make extra cash doing part-time jobs from home
In the Internet Age, there are plenty of online job opportunities. If you have a daytime job and only want to boost your primary income, you will be surprised to find out how many companies are out there hiring people to work in the comfort of their home and make extra money. If you are good at writing, you can register to websites for freelancer and get a job offer to write articles and get paid. If you enjoy excellent typing and listening skills, you can do transcription work. Most of the transcription jobs don’t require former experience or any social qualification. Here are more modern jobs available for remote work:
- Data entry
- Translation
- Test websites
- Social media/ web search evaluator
- Review Music
- Rate online advertisements
- Booking and accounting short tasks
- Review products
Set up a holiday budget and stick to it
This is the best way to avoid to unplanned purchases. Create a list of the people you are willing to buy presented this year and follow it strictly. Try to overcome any impulses of purchasing things that are not needed for the moment. Add to the list costs for travel costs, gift-wrapping, home decoration, etc. If you enjoy sending greeting cards, make sure to include these costs in the list as well.
Buy the presents online
It’s cheaper and it save you a lot of time shopping round stores. But more importantly, you are less likely to get enchanted by consumer goods that are not in your list and make impulsive purchases. Plus, browsing online allow you to compare prices and if you encounter any lovely thing you want to but, it’s much easier to handle the temptation of buying it by simply closing the website or switching to different page.
Don’t borrow money or take short-term loans
If you want to save money, the worst thing you can do is borrow cash. Asking friends or family to provide you with temporary financial support is acceptable only if you are in a very difficult situation and have no other options. However, if you were to choose, let it be the lesser of two evils: take money from friends instead of applying for sameday loans.
Always look for the best deals
Great deals can be just round the corner. You only need to know where to look. Find out in which stores and outlets there are things on sale. Usually, big retailer stores announce promotion or discount options on their website or social media pages so check them regularly. If by any chance you have a purchase discount card or coupons, what better occasion to use them but for buying holiday presents.
Sell old things you don’t use anymore
Everyone has lots of things they don’t use for a very long time. Why keep piles of unnecessary stuff when you can get rid of it quickly and gain a good amount of cash in the meantime. Start now. Make an inventory of your things and separate your things the important from the less important and the less likely to use anymore. Textbooks from passed school years, games you won’t play anymore, shoes, bags, clothes, accessories, old tech devices, duplicate copies of books – no point to keep it if you are not going to use them. It’s better to sell the using the most common legit web platforms like eBay.
Reduce your domestic costs
You can save so much money on gas if you take the bus to go to work or simply walk to the office if it’s not too far from your home. Limit eating out. The food from fast food restaurants is highly unhealthy anyway. Instead, prepare your meals at home. If you are an avid coffee drinker, buy a package of coffee and prepare it in the office. Thus, you won’t have to buy it from the café nearby where it costs three times more. Take account of the money you sped on hobbies. If it’s too much, perhaps you might want to quit some activities at least until your savings are stable.
