Welcome to the ABCs of Savings! Each day we’ll be discussing another money saving topic, each beginning with a different letter of the alphabet. Be sure to subscribe via RSS or email so you don’t miss any steps along the way. You can read the full alphabet of posts here (updated as they are posted).
T: Time
Let’s face it. Saving money does take some time. Between clipping coupons, watching blogs, and checking store ads, you could invest more time than necessary. Here are a few tips to save money without spending too much time.
Prioritize
Where is it you’d like to save the most money? If it’s your grocery bill, then why not focus on that for the time being? Retraining yourself to plan meals from what you have and remembering which stores double coupons is a job. If you’re trying to slash costs in every area right off the bat, you may spread yourself too thin. It might be wise to choose one area and focus on saving as much as possible in that area.
Balance
I’ve found it WAY too easy to get wrapped up in saving money. If saving money becomes more important than spending time with friends and family, that may be a signal that something is out of balance. Sure, some weeks may require a bit more time than others, but keeping an eye on the big picture of balance will help us all make sure we’re not neglecting what’s most important.
What’s Your Time Worth?
I also like to look at how much I’m making per hour when I’m saving money. If it took me 30 minutes to make my grocery list, check the sales, and gather my coupons and I saved $50, that’s not a bad hourly wage! If I spent 3 hours doing all of that and saved $10, then my time is not being spent wisely.
Time is something I’m sure we all wish we had a bit more of. Let’s work together to make sure that we’re using our time wisely.