Today we are going to talk about new tips and methods to save on energy, transportation, utilities and just save money in general. You should save not only because it’s fashionable, but because it is a healthy approach to life.

Here are some important tips:

1. Saving is not just for “poor people”

You always thought that saving was just for the poor? Maybe that saving isn’t for people who are already comfortable? Well, things are not at all so…

Saving money is a real philosophy of life, whether you consider yourself rich or poor. In fact, try to imagine the benefits of savings:

• Greater stability for your financial situation
• Benefiting the environment
• A healthy independence from the many and insidious marketing strategies that aim to make us spend on things we do not need.

In this regard, I would like to make a brief aside: did you know that shopping centers are designed and built specifically as “non-places” to make you lose your sense of time, get bored, and get you to spend more money in there? And then, did you know that more and more frequently the products you buy are designed with a “planned obsolescence”?

What is “planned obsolescence” you ask? It simply means that when you are about to buy your new mobile phone it is already designed to wear out and break down within a certain time frame: in short, become old (outdated, hence the term obsolescence) in a couple of years, for example (programmed!).

By learning to save and stop spending, you will begin to understand how to go for a walk in the park rather than in a mall and start saving real time and money.

It is therefore evident that saving money is not just the stuff of the poor, if anything, it is clever stuff!

Therefore, all those who could get the wrong idea about you as a saver in reality are simply “ignorant” about the world of consumption, the life of things, and the benefits arising from the healthy habit of understanding economics. I strongly urge you to share this and enlighten all your friends and acquaintances on the subject savings.

2. You can save on everything

The goal is not to unconditionally save on everything, with the result of living a life of sacrifice and hardship and feel frustrated. It is important to have a strategy in life.

The goal is to be effective: save where it is needed, enjoying the lifestyle that you want!

Sure, there may be times in which you’ll have to tighten your belt, but these will be exceptions to the rule.

And how, then, to make cuts only where it is needed? You’ll have to take a few minutes to fill out your Family Budget. This will help you to better understand what you are currently spending vs. what you should be spending.

Making these simple calculations, revenue and expenditure, will let you know at all times how you use your money and above what you can afford to spend without running into financial problems. If you already have one, great!

3. Saving is a lifestyle

So far, you understand that saving also means “Do not Waste!” And “not to waste” means giving the right value to things and strategically managing the resources we already have.

These are approaches that should be part of our way of life and should not be perceived as a remedy only in emergencies. Instead, they should be habits.

Habits are something that characterizes our daily lives, things we do almost without thinking, automatically. Think, for example, about recycling. It is a good habit to get into. Once you practice recycling for a while, it becomes a habit and you stop thinking about it. It just becomes a way of being.

This is the heart of saving: developing saving into a way of being, a habit.

HOW TO SAVE ON ENERGY AND UTILITIES

SAVE ON ELECTRICITY

Light is one of the items that can have the greatest impact on household expenses, as well as one of the most common domestic wastes.

Start with saving electricity by making sure to turn off the light in the rooms of your house that you’re not using. Considering benefiting from energy-saving LED technology and buy as many of your appliances in their Energy Star version.

Another way to save on electricity is to take advantage of light from the sun. By utilizing windows and skylights, you can significantly reduce the amount of electric lighting that you need. Instead of using electric lights, you will be using sunlight, which is free and good for the environment. To learn more about how you can take advantage of passive lighting options in the form of windows and skylights, check out some of the articles on http://www.roofingcontractorsoh.com.

SAVE WATER

Let us remember that the human being is made ​​for about 70% of water. Would you waste yourself? Of course not! So the first fundamental good habit is to use (only) the water we need.

Use tap water, purified if necessary. Do it even when you’re out at a restaurant. Don’t order a water bottle, just get a pitcher.

Do not waste the water flowing from the shower, waiting for it to warm up. Instead, collect it and use it to flush the toilet.

HOW TO SAVE ON TRANSPORTATION

HOW TO SAVE ON A CAR

We have become slaves of cars: we already know. Therefore, we came up with this compromise: if you cannot help but use a car, try to use it with greater responsibility and intelligence.

For example, when you go to work or out with friends, trying to organize groups of two or three people, and so pollute less.

Try to fill up every time and, before leaving, check the average prices on the internet. Remember, some supermarkets have begun selling gas, as well.

Besides fuel consumption and insurance, you can always save by paying attention to what kind of driver you are. Pay attention to the paths; if you have some errands to run, think before you leave home, note on a piece of paper and imagine the best route for the road and save time, and therefore money. And, if you’re in a position to do it, drive during non-peak times, so as to avoid the traffic and use less gas in start and stop traffic.

SAVE BY USING PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION

Public transit should always be preferred to private: It is better for the environment and people, because there is less traffic, less pollution, and less stress.

HOW TO SAVE ON NUTRITION

Spending is no joke. However, when it comes to food the talk of savings becomes much more delicate, because we have to be careful not to give any reason to decrease the quality of food we choose. There are some smart strategies that you can put into practice and not affect the quality of your food.

One of the most useful is to gather a large group of friends, or two or three families, and agree to buy groceries together. In short, create a buying group to obtain significant discounts on materials purchased in large quantities.

Also, writing a shopping list is always a great way to save money and stay focused: bringing the list with you will make it easier to buy only what you really need.These days, technology comes in handy: you can put your grocery list on your phone.

Do not throw anything away unless you have completely consumed it. In many cases, you can make it last longer by using half the dose for that product. For example, shampoo can safely be diluted.

SAVE ON PHONES

Communication is a primary need of man. We always have a phone nearby, or we’re attached to the computer, or we’re looking for an internet connection!

Perhaps, the first suggestion to cut your phone bill, is to “give it a rest” with all this obsessive need to communicate.

There are a few practical ways to spend less on phone service though. You can use a prepaid card or a subscription, so you actually monitor outgoing traffic. Also many phone companies offer affordable rates to new customers. Take advantage of this by changing phone providers.

Delete your home phone if you already have a cellphone.

Use the internet instead of your phone. You can take advantage of Skype to talk about what you want at no additional cost to that of your basic internet.

If you have a Smartphone, use the WiFi or free texting for internal communication.

SAVE MONEY BY REDUCING

If you got to the bottom of this article and it seems like you’ll never be able to remember all the information, don’t worry. You don’t need to memorize the information; you can read this post each time you need a refresher on the subject of savings and find any information divided into sections (as you may have noticed) to help you on your path to building a new habit of saving, not wasting.

Some of our advice will seem like strict rules, others are simple measures resulting from the use of common sense. Some are generally easy to apply, while others might be impossible to incorporate into your daily routine.

Relax: It is not breaking the law! You have complete freedom to choose what advice to take.

Remember the practice of saving will give effective results only if you are able to balance your family budget. Without this, you won’t be able to make the most of your dedication to saving and you’ll continue wasting hard earned money.

If you already have your own way, keep it up! But if you do not know where to start, then you should evaluate right now your method of Family Budget. Discover an approach that makes it quick and easy to manage your inputs / outputs with the aim of living a life that is more safe and happy!

At the end of this post, we hope to have been helpful and to have satisfied the many readers who have written to us over the years to get more tips and information on the subject of saving.