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Our culture is so focused on having everything immediately. Delayed gratification is no more. Everything is about on-demand, delivered right to your door, made to order, etc. On the one hand, convenience is increased and time is saved. On the other hand, its costing us all a lot of extra money. Some services are worth the additional cost for the value they add to our lives, but a lot of them aren’t. Paying for convenience is almost always more expensive.
I’ve written before about how “Frugal Living is a New Mindset“. My overall point in that post was about how it’s often easier to just throw money at a problem, or buy the first item that comes to mind, but that always comes at an additional cost. Less significant short term pleasures can be deterrents to long-term goals. By changing our mindset and thinking in a more resourceful manner we can gain significant savings. Simply planning ahead before making purchases can avoid a lot of wasted money, which can be used to build wealth more quickly.
Here are ways that planning ahead can save you money:
Avoid impulse buys
By taking your time before making a purchase, many times the desire to buy something will fade away on its own. You’ll also no longer get that feeling of “buyer’s remorse,” since you’ve taken the time to think through the purchase decision carefully. Rather than just trying to rely on willpower, the general rule of thumb is to wait at least 2-3 days before purchasing a non-necessity. This way, you won’t just be purchasing something as a reaction to being caught in the moment, it will be a well thought out decision.
Avoid poor value products
By taking the time to research your options, you’ll find the best item in terms of it’s overall value. It may not be the cheapest cost upfront, but by taking the time to read reviews and compare prices you’ll end up with a quality item that will last for a longer amount of time.
Ideally you want to purchase the item that will have the lowest “cost per use.” For items you use often, it’s better to spend a little more on an item that will last much longer, than buy the cheapest item that quickly breaks down.
Meal prepping & cooking at home
In last week’s post I detailed 9 ways to lower food costs. One of the main ways that we’ve been able to keep our food costs so low is by cooking nearly all our meals at home. Planning ahead is a key component to making this successful. From planning what meals you’re going to eat throughout the week, to planning what items to purchase at the grocery store, the additional preparation can save you a lot of money.
Plan ahead and pack lunches/snacks/water bottles before going on outings such as the beach, hiking, road trips, etc. This helps prevent stopping for fast food or paying more at convenience stores.
This extends to buying pre-packaged foods as well. Pre-packaged foods are always marked up significantly. From prepared frozen meals, pre-cut trays of fruits and vegetables, and pre-mixed salads, all these can be made a lot cheaper (and often healthier) if you buy your own ingredients and prepare them yourself.
Coupons, promo codes, and timing sales
There are a lot of methods for obtaining a better price when you don’t have a specific timeline for needing a particular product. You can check sites like DealsPlus to find promo codes for online shopping, printable coupons for in stores, and up to date sales for thousands of stores. A few minutes of searching can lead to big savings on your shopping trips.
Additionally, many stores have big holiday sales and price markdowns at the end of each season. For example, you can find huge savings on winter jackets during the first few weeks of spring. Halloween and Christmas decorations will see their prices slashed up to 50-75% the day after the holiday. Stock up on them while they’re cheap and store them away for the next year.
Avoiding last minute holiday rushes and price hikes
Similar to the above point, you ideally want to try to shop at the opposite time of everyone else. This means that waiting until December 23rd to complete your Christmas shopping is a horrible idea for your wallet. Plan ahead by picking up gifts throughout the Fall months when you can take your time and actually find quality deals. You’ll also avoid having to pay for expedited shipping for your gifts to arrive in time.
The biggest culprit for price hikes is from airlines. Studies show that the prime timeframe for purchasing a domestic flight is around 57 days prior to departure. You’ll see prices start to trend up as the date gets closer, with the biggest price hikes occurring a few weeks before the flight. By planning your travel ahead of time rather than procrastinating, you can normally save hundreds of dollars on plane tickets depending on your destination.
Staying Within Budget
One of the biggest hang-ups people have about budgets is that they’re “hard to stick to.” The average person writes out a basic budget, ends up overspending in a few categories, tells themselves they’ll “try harder next month,” and repeats this cycle until giving up. Sound familiar? Don’t simply rely on willpower, get out of your comfort zone and think differently. Allow yourself some wiggle room with a small “Misc Expenses” category as a buffer.
Also, by planning ahead, you can incorporate upcoming expenses into your monthly budget. Instead of birthday gifts, social events, or the bi-annual car insurance bill being complete surprises, you’ll already be covered if you’ve planned ahead and allocated the money accordingly. Be patient, budgeting is a process that take time to refine over time. It took us about 3-4 months before we finally found a budget that worked out well.
Plan what you’ll do with windfalls
There’s a good chance that at some point you’ll receive some sort of windfall of money. Whether it be a new job with a higher salary, a raise at your current job, bonuses, gifts, inheritance, etc. Avoid blowing through it all by having a plan for what you’ll do with the additional money ahead of time. Take some time to craft this plan, and then also take some time as a “cooling off” period right after you receive the windfall. This way you’ll ensure that you’re being wise with your newfound cash.
What other ways have you planned ahead to save money?
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