M back on my blog and after a long time indeed.
Rising cost of living has certainly become a big challenge & is a big discussion topic in every household.Each one of us get pinched coz of this & I mostly see people feeling stressed, tired, helpless & they in turn resign from the situation and accept is as a part of life.But there are few who sit & come up with solution to fight against it.Before we get into the details we must ask ourselves that whether do we actually track our earnings and expenses and do we have a budget or some other model to look after? If the answer is yes then your are on the right track and if it is no then would advise it to start it now ..The moment you get into it you'll realise why am I saying this.
The options available with every individual to counter rising cost problem is
a)Increase your income
b)Cut your expenses
c)Increase your income & cut your expense ( The most difficult but the most advantageous)
It is for the individuals to decide what options they wanna choose.But i would like to highlight the point of managebale expenses and check whether these expenses can be tweaked? Some common MANAGEABLE ways to reduce cost of livings are:- ( The list may vary from family to family but have taken some very common ones)
1) Credit Card Expense - Its a plastic bomb!! if not managed properly.You need to display lot of discipline
Well there can be many more to list and whether they are manageable or not would depend from one family to another and also on the lifestyle they adopt.Identify your expenses and categorise them as can be tweak and cannot be tweaked and then take a call.. I know there are many big items in your list like rent or loan EMIs but if taken you can't alter them that easily ( unless you foreclose the loan or sell the asset) but the point is to manage your expenses which can be altered by bringing in discipline in our lifestyle..
Happy Earning & Saving !!
Rising cost of living has certainly become a big challenge & is a big discussion topic in every household.Each one of us get pinched coz of this & I mostly see people feeling stressed, tired, helpless & they in turn resign from the situation and accept is as a part of life.But there are few who sit & come up with solution to fight against it.Before we get into the details we must ask ourselves that whether do we actually track our earnings and expenses and do we have a budget or some other model to look after? If the answer is yes then your are on the right track and if it is no then would advise it to start it now ..The moment you get into it you'll realise why am I saying this.
The options available with every individual to counter rising cost problem is
a)Increase your income
b)Cut your expenses
c)Increase your income & cut your expense ( The most difficult but the most advantageous)
It is for the individuals to decide what options they wanna choose.But i would like to highlight the point of managebale expenses and check whether these expenses can be tweaked? Some common MANAGEABLE ways to reduce cost of livings are:- ( The list may vary from family to family but have taken some very common ones)
1) Credit Card Expense - Its a plastic bomb!! if not managed properly.You need to display lot of discipline
when you maintain it or else it will blast your wallet.How do you check it & yes am not going to press upon points of timely payments,limited usage etc( If you need to be told about these simple points then please stop using it immediately) but for something more like
a) Analyse your spends - Few credit card groups have spend analyser which can help you to analyse your spends and take judicious calls.e.g Citibank
b)Check your reward points and redeem them judiciously.They can be very helpful
c)Hold only one card coz we already have debit cards.Multiple cards and their statements can be killing. I have quite a few friends who don't use credit cards at all and they easily manage everything through debit cards.
a) Analyse your spends - Few credit card groups have spend analyser which can help you to analyse your spends and take judicious calls.e.g Citibank
b)Check your reward points and redeem them judiciously.They can be very helpful
c)Hold only one card coz we already have debit cards.Multiple cards and their statements can be killing. I have quite a few friends who don't use credit cards at all and they easily manage everything through debit cards.
2) Check your shopping bills - I know few females would literally use the choicest of words for me but the fact is unnecessary shopping adds a lot of burden on the monthly budget.The problem is when these one time or rare expenses become a part of your monthly expense sheet. 
3) Check your cell phone bills - Well if you don't have a company paid or reimbursed phone ( where the choice of plan is not in your hand) then you must cherry pick your bill plan very smartly.Check your calling pattern and you may see that you can end up saving at least 20% on phone bills
4) Petrol Expenses - Only for those who feel the pinch of petrol expenses.Pooling is 'in' and it is a smart way of reducing cost.Also check out other modes of commutation if you can.
5)Chuck out useless grocery items - Just check your last 3 months grocery bills and you may find that there are some items which are just not required to be bought regularly.
6)Weekend outings - Well they are required..one needs to go out with family, friends and enjoy..But does that mean every time we go out and spend 250-500-1000 Rs per person for food ( depending upon the city u live in) or can we look at some alternate ways..( Please note that I don't oppose people going to lavish restaurants or outing places..They are good and people enjoy it)..The entire point is that we need to see that can this expense be manageable with some alteration.Can I bring it down to 2 dinner instead of 5-6 dinner to a lavish restaurant?? The call is for you to take.
3) Check your cell phone bills - Well if you don't have a company paid or reimbursed phone ( where the choice of plan is not in your hand) then you must cherry pick your bill plan very smartly.Check your calling pattern and you may see that you can end up saving at least 20% on phone bills
4) Petrol Expenses - Only for those who feel the pinch of petrol expenses.Pooling is 'in' and it is a smart way of reducing cost.Also check out other modes of commutation if you can.
5)Chuck out useless grocery items - Just check your last 3 months grocery bills and you may find that there are some items which are just not required to be bought regularly.
6)Weekend outings - Well they are required..one needs to go out with family, friends and enjoy..But does that mean every time we go out and spend 250-500-1000 Rs per person for food ( depending upon the city u live in) or can we look at some alternate ways..( Please note that I don't oppose people going to lavish restaurants or outing places..They are good and people enjoy it)..The entire point is that we need to see that can this expense be manageable with some alteration.Can I bring it down to 2 dinner instead of 5-6 dinner to a lavish restaurant?? The call is for you to take.
Well there can be many more to list and whether they are manageable or not would depend from one family to another and also on the lifestyle they adopt.Identify your expenses and categorise them as can be tweak and cannot be tweaked and then take a call.. I know there are many big items in your list like rent or loan EMIs but if taken you can't alter them that easily ( unless you foreclose the loan or sell the asset) but the point is to manage your expenses which can be altered by bringing in discipline in our lifestyle..
Happy Earning & Saving !!
Hi Saurabh
ReplyDeleteYou have come back after a long time on your blog and with another apt one.But I think you should also write on the option of earning higher :-) as that can be a big game changer.
But few of your points are indeed very apt..Liked them
Rahul
Saurabh..This is a very hot topic and deserbes lot many ideas.Thanks for sharing few but am sure therez a huge bunch still that can be used.like selecting brands that are good & economical..selecting cars etc
ReplyDeleteCheers!!
Saket