How To Live And Enjoy Life On A Budget
Who says you need to splurge to have fun? With growing economies and families, everyone is trying to create a balance between treating themselves to a spa day and saving up for your kids' college fund. In this article, we will share with you a few simple tips to live and enjoy life on a budget, to give you the best of both worlds.
Set Your Priorities Straight
The culture you’re exposed to often shapes your mindset about money and spending. Some societies identify money as evil and spending wastefully. All these notions instill different attitudes and beliefs about money in an individual.
When it comes to comfort, everyone must decide and choose what they categorise as comfortable in their lives. It may be in the form of living in a gated community, eating at the top luxurious restaurants, having a litter of cats or a room full of gaming computers; anything you choose must matter to you.
For instance, having a tropical vacation home can be a great way to spice up your life, plus the benefits of having your own property. The investment will save you the expensive cost of hotels every time you go on vacation and provide easy access to beautiful beaches and island paradises where you can do activities like swimming and surfing.
In picking any category of items, ask yourself what happiness means to you. Does it mean more gadgets or more executive suite rooms? If your answer is on a high-priced side of the scale you have to ensure that you possess the earning power for their purchase without you having to sacrifice other financial commitments and investments such as education or family home; we must learn the art of having a balance between items of comfort and necessity.
Travel More at a Lesser Price
There are many ways to travel for less, especially during the summer holidays. For instance, instead of taking extremely long vacations, you could opt for taking shorter trips more often. For example, you could include full weekend getaways in your schedule as it’ll be easier for you to have a break from work without actually being away.
In some instances, traveling abroad can be less expensive than being a local tourist. One of the places famous for budget travelers is Southern Spain. Here, the cost of living is quite cheap, especially if you live like a local, so it works in your favour thus giving you more value for your money. If you do, however, run out of money, you can also apply for creditos in Spain.
When it comes to travel accommodation, you must know that hotels aren't the only option. Airbnb's and home exchange are other alternatives that will save you a lot of money. They're highly cost-effective and most often provide you with a better vacation experience.
Consciously Avoid Budget Burnout
Popularly known as frugal fatigue, budget burnout is one thing most individuals are slowly getting familiar with. It refers to the mental and emotional stress one feels in having to weigh options before making a purchase carefully and is likely to attack people who are very strict about limiting impulse expenditure.
After a while, when frugal fatigue sets in, you begin to get tired of always having to be intentional about spending your money. This often results in unnecessary splurging, either as a one-time thing or as a full-blown continuous activity which will begin to damage the depth of your savings.
There are minor traits that can make you aware of this impending burnout and you should be able to identify them before it's too late. One significant sign is when you begin to feel bored with budgeting; don't give in to the temptation. Turn the urge to spend in your favour. Splurge on yourself and the family, but do it wisely. The best way to do this is to schedule your leisure periods around such times. This way, there's no excess dent in your savings that you'll regret later.
Quality Beats Quantity
When making a purchase, be it for groceries or clothes, the variety of items must outweigh the quantity when you're purchasing. Shopping less frequently can give you the chance to save up for even more significant pieces of a higher quality; more excellent items provide you with even better experiences plus, they will be more cost-effective in the long run.
Employ Budgeting Tools
Individuals, just like business organisations can fail if they have no form of planning concerning their finances. Financial failure can be avoided with the development of a budget. A well-planned budget is a bright line between living a life of immense comfort as opposed to ransacking your entire wardrobe for money to pay that pizza delivery man. With the existence of budgeting apps and tools, and top finance apps like NerdWallet, drawing up a long-term expenditure plan can turn out to be a lot of fun.
Get A Roommate
It's perfectly reasonable to have trust issues when it comes to sharing your house keys with another individual but think of the savings you could make from sharing your space with another. With a roommate, you get to split the costs of utilities and rent, no matter the size or class of the area. The critical thing to do is to be intentional when selecting your roommate. When it comes to payments, do consider paying automatically. This will prevent you (or your roommate) from having to pay the others share of the rent when the time is due.
Customise Your Furniture
Setting up your home can be done at minimal costs if you opt for used but functional items instead of brand new ones. You can also make some things yourself with low costing materials thus equipping yourself with necessary life skills while having a sentimental attachment to all items made. Maintenance can also be a DIY affair. You need a great YouTube video to sort out that dishwasher problem, and you're good to go.
Eat Good Food For Less
It's easy to find a quick fix meal for any time of the day, but you would probably faint after calculating how much you spend a week on them. Eating healthy and eating well while on a budget is possible. You need to identify a farmers’ market near you. These markets are great for buying more for less as farmers tend to offer discounts on their remaining produce. You can then create healthy recipes to get you through each month.
Now that you have these tips as a guide, and have a little more knowledge on budgeting, be creative and map out your schedule, according to your needs. Having a budget doesn't mean you can't have fun in life.