Saving money might seem impossible – but one mom is here to convince us otherwise.
It’s common to get stuck in a spending routine, splashing the cash on things we think we “need” to buy – which can leave us with little money left over to save.
You’d be surprised at just how much money you can hold onto when you only buy the essentials.
Lara Joanna Jarvis, who’s one of the best budgeting role models online, shared her experience of committing to a “no buy” year in 2019, where she was only allowed to make purchases that she deemed absolutely necessary.
And before you dismiss this idea entirely, Lara and her partner managed to save $42,430 in a single year – enough for them to buy their first home.
Stay with us for some of Lara’s best tips, as outlined in her YouTube video:
1. Follow the 30-day rule
We’ve all bought something that we’ve ended up regretting later on down the line. Material goods can seem so tempting at first, but after the first week of excitement has worn off, they end up just adding to the clutter in your home – and you’ve ended up wasting your money.
As Lara says:
“If you want something then put it on your wish list, and if you still want it after 30 days have passed, you can allow yourself to buy it. It stops that impulse spending.”
2. Plan your meals
When we don’t plan our meals, our grocery shopping trips end up being all over the place. We buy the things that we’re hungry for at the time, or the things we think we might like – and they end up sitting in the cupboard, or worse, the fridge, until you throw them out.
Lara says she cut her food bill in half by meal planning, adding:
“Meal planning not only alleviates the stress of trying to find something to eat, it saves you time, it saves you money, it makes you more organized.”
3. Use cash, not card
It might seem a bit old-fashioned for some of us, but making cash payments will help you keep a better eye on what you’re spending than if you’re blindly tapping your card every time you make a purchase. If you take out a certain amount of cash each week, you’ll be far more in control of your spending.
Lara says it right:
“It just devalues money so much, cash just makes it a bigger deal.”
4. Document your nice outfits
This seems like an odd one, but if you’re the sort of person who has a serious clothes shopping addiction, it might really help you. Lara says that you should snap pictures of outfits you like to create a visual library of style inspo that you can look at when you feel like you have “nothing to wear.”
She added:
“Whenever you feel like you haven’t got anything to wear, you can look at your photos and pick out an outfit.”
5. Don’t forget your end goal
If you want to save money for a specific reason, keep that end goal in mind. It’ll act as inspiration when you’re considering making an impulse purchase, making you more likely to avoid spending in favor of the bigger picture.
Lara advised:
“Know your why, write it down and always keep a look on it and congratulate yourself. Celebrate the little wins along the way and just keep your why in your vision because otherwise, you’ll lose your way a little bit.”
This is all pretty easy advice to follow – the biggest step is getting started!
Once you start cutting back on those spontaneous purchases, you’ll realize that saving money isn’t so hard after all.
Check out Lara’s full video for all her useful tips below.
Please SHARE this with your friends and family.
