How To Tighten Your Belt

Belt tightening is something we could all practice. Do you really need those new shoes? Did you need a $35,000 car or could you have gotten by with a $20,000 car? These are questions that you have to ask yourself every day when you make purchases.

First you need to distinguish between the things you need and the things you want. The things you need are food, shelter, medicines, and the things that you could absolutely not live without. The things you want are that new 60" big screen TV, and that new SUV that you paid over $30,000 for because you felt that you needed it. You have to tell yourself that you need a television, but you don't need a big screen TV. You need a car but you don't need an expensive SUV.

Don't impuse buy. If you go out and find something that you really want, pass it by and take 24 hours to decide. Go home and think about it rationally. What purpose does it serve? Do you already have something that serves the same purpose? Will your life significantly benefit from your purchase of this item? You might not need that coffee maker with the alarm clock and lots of bells and whistles if you already have one, but buying a new coffee maker to replace a broken old one is something that would benefit you greater.

The greatest expenditure that people waste their money on is food. Does the meal that you spent $100 on really taste that much better than a $30 meal? When shopping at the store, try to buy generics when possible and use coupons. Clip the coupons out of your Sunday paper and/or look online at manufacturers' websites to see if they offer coupons on their products. Also you can see if your favorite restaurants have a 2-for-1 night or a children's night where they eat free.

What can you sacrifice? Now I'm not asking you to go without any luxuries, but are there any you can cut out or partake in less frequently? If you visit the nail salon once a month, can you go every 6 weeks? Or if you have all of the cable television channels, how often do you really watch those pay movie channels? Can you just get buy with one of the movie packages, do you really need all of them?

Another great sacrifice is while you're grocery shopping or even shopping at Wal-Mart (I do this frequently myself). As you make your way to the checkout, take a look into your cart and see what you are going to buy. Is there anything that you can put back? You'd be amazed how many times I've saved myself $10-$20 just by putting the stuff back that I didn't really need.

Follow these simple tips and you'll find more money in your pocket! You don't have to be cheap to be frugal. Have all of your luxuries but cut down on the ones that are ridiculous. Make sure you don't buy anything on a whim, and shop around before you make any large purchases. You are on your way to tightening your belt!

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