Money’s tight right now. For some of us, money has BEEN tight. So, what do we do? Get practical and real. Consumer spending helps the economy. The more people spend, the more people make money. But what about the individual? Spend less, invest smarter.
Take a look at your spending habits. Where can you cut some fat? In some places, maybe that’s literally. Spend less on food. The average person today eats WAY too much. Sometimes, we buy food that we never even eat. That’s a lot of wasted money right there.
Do you really need to go to the movies this weekend? How about staying in for the night? Break out an old movie you haven’t seen in awhile. Other options are watching movies on hulu.com or on fancast.com. Free movies are everywhere for us to watch!
Cut back on electricity. Right now, at least where I live, is a perfect time to open up the windows and let the “fresh” air in. Use fans instead of air conditioning. In the winter, dress warmer and/or use a blanket instead of turning on the heat. Turn off the lights in rooms you’re not using. Unplug electricity vampires. Those chargers you’re not using right now ARE costing you money if they’re plugged in!
Not enough? The reality of it is, maybe you DO need a second job! You’d be surprised how much easier it can be to pay the bills and get by with just a few extra hours of work a week at a second job! There are plenty of night and weekend jobs out there, and you don’t need them to pay the same amount as your fulltime job! That extra income will help pay off credit cards, saving you money that would be wasted on interest.
The stock market… Oh yeah… Get more conservative with your investing. Penny stocks are risky in a healthy market, let alone a falling market. Some stocks may spike up and earn someone some nice cash, but are you in on that end, or on the losing one.
Stocks are sexy, mutual funds aren’t as sexy, bonds… eh… datable, savings accounts? They’re like a family member. It seems the more money you COULD make, the greater the risk of losing it all is. And sexy is a risk. Is someone still making money off of sexy? You bet! Are you? Maybe not. In hard times, stick with family. It might not fix the world’s economy, hell, it might even hurt it more, but who’s looking after you? The world, or you? And who are you really responsible for looking after? The world, or yourself and maybe your family? Look after yourself and your family for a bit. You worked for it, you deserve it.
- I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, I’ve got an E_Trade savings account and it’s pulling in at 3.30% interest right now. 3.30% is good enough for me right now.
- Bonds should be pretty good right now from what I understand. They should be cheap enough right now and have a decent enough payout once they mature.
- Now could even be a good enough time to get in low on a nice mutual. Be sure it’s a conservative mutual for the long term investment.
- Be CAREFUL what BANK you even use now! Even banks are changing left and right these days!
- If you can help it, make sure your money is FDIC insured! The market is pretty unstable right now. Keep your money safe!
- Investing, even in a stable market has its risks! ALWAYS DO YOUR RESEARCH!
By ehow.com
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