6 Reconsider how you spend your time
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1. Destroy Expenses
Every month, ruthlessly go through your budget to determine what other expenses / non-essential spending you can obliterate.
Aside from adding the outlays, I analyze to see what I can cut out; by doing this, I continually find opportunities to cut until I’m questioning things I deemed essential.
“Hmmmm….maybe I can cut that, too.”
When you keep revisiting an expense, you may find it no longer needs a space in your budget.
2. Build Multiple Income Sources
If 2020 (and other economic crises) taught us anything, it is to diversify our income pool.
Always have more than one primary source of income. By doing this, you relieve yourself of financial anxiety.
But you also do something else: delay and mitigate your dependence on your emergency fund.
Now, this doesn’t mean you can get away with not having an emergency fund, but if you lose one source of income, it sure is nice not to have to dip into your emergency funds to cover our asses because we lost our primary source of income.
3. Seek Counsel
Notice I said implement their sound advice. Not all advice is viable.
I’ve been thinking a lot about foresight lately; one of my closest confidants continues to discuss the subject.
Foresight is meaningless without action. We can get all of the advice and education, but if we don’t implement and act on the knowledge, what is the point of attaining it in the first place?
My mentors encouraged me to educate myself on non-traditional investments and taxes. Hence, I started reading books and articles, and it’s been a game-changer for my finances.
4. Delay Purchases
My sister makes fun of me because she says I take too long to make financial purchases (sometimes years).
You don’t need to take years to decide on a purchase, but you could probably use 48–72 hours before jumping the gun. I follow this rule with 90% of my large purchases.
It’s critical to consider whether the investment you are about to make with your money is genuinely worth it. Is it? It may not be after 72 hours of pondering the purchase.
Think thrice before buying, and you’ll probably save thousands of dollars. Not a bad result for merely thinking things through.
5. Eat In More
There are phases when I will not eat out for an entire month. It’s a discipline exercise in two parts: one for health and one for finances.
You can easily spend hundreds of dollars eating out, but at what cost?
Eating out is easy, convenient, and saves time. But eating out also decreases disposable income, slows down energy levels, clouds thinking, and adds stuff to your body that doesn’t need to be there.
6. Reconsider How You Spend Your Time
I work a lot and have many irons in the fire. At times, it’s overwhelming. I often ask myself: “What is it all for?” Asking myself the question helps me to keep everything in perspective.
But there are also some other questions I need to think about continually:
- Am I setting healthy boundaries with work?
- Am I spending time with family and friends?
- Am I taking care of myself?
It’s easy to trade our time for money. A more intelligent decision is to learn how to create more time for yourself. Sometimes you will work more than other times, but be careful.
Remember, everything you’re working for can all disappear instantly, just like your life.
Keep your priorities in check by asking yourself, “What is it all for?”
7. Save In Advance
Maybe you’re into Christmas or holiday gifts. Instead of waiting until the last minute to scrape together resources to buy all of those gifts, save a portion every month so that when the holidays come around, you already have an allotted amount of resources to spend.
Maybe you want to be extra kind this holiday; if you start saving now, you’ll put a lot of friendly smiles on people’s faces later this year.
Each month, I allocate some of my resources to generosity. This works well for me. Do what works well for you so you can give how you desire.
8. Adopt Minimalism
Minimalism isn’t about spending less. It’s about spending more intentionally. It’s about living intentionally. It’s about consuming intentionally.
Look around you. How much of the stuff that surrounds you do you use? How much of your spending would be considered meaningful and thoughtful purchases?
If you adopted minimalism, how might this change positively elevate your finances?
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This content is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not financial, investment, tax, legal, or professional advice. Always consult a licensed financial advisor before making financial decisions.