TIPS ON SAVING MONEY IN 2015

Christmas has come and gone & I think most of us over spend during the entire month of December. More hot chocolates, more dinner dates with friends & of course buying presents for loved ones. Its an expensive month isn't it? Today I'm going to share with you ways in which you can cut back & save this year,

1. Work out your outgoings V income. The biggest issue in over spending and being broke every month is spending more than what you have coming in. Work out exactly your income & then you can budget yourself with what you can spend each month. Phone bill, car insurance & food etc. If you need help in budgeting and calculating your outgoings V income, take a look at the Money Advice Service.

2. Stop living beyond your means. If you have £200 in your bank account, why are you about to buy  a £350 laptop, allowing yourself to go into your overdraft when it isn't an emergency? Stop pretending you have more money than you do.

3. Cut back on convenience food and eating out. When I look through my bank statements and see the amount of money I spend on eating out every month, I literally die a little inside. Eat at home with fresh, cheap produce, or cook and bring food out with you. Buying a £3.50 lunch meal everyday at work adds up to £24.50 a week, thats nearly £100 a month. Can you really afford that? Even if you can, do you really want to eat all that money? I didn't think so.

4. Sell unused/unwanted items on eBay or Depop. All that junk you have lying around is basically money. Sell it on and put the money you make to good use. De-cluttering is also a good way to see how much you spend on certain things that are unnecessary, shoes maybe? (Don't worry, I have about 10 pairs of black boots, ridiculous). 

5. Learn to say no. You don't need to buy that £100 face cream because its suddenly 25% off. You also don't need to go to Nobu tonight to celebrate your friends, aunties, cousins birthday - keep yo ass inside. Learn to say no if it benefits your finances. 

6. Cancel unused memberships. During 2014 I think I went to the gym twice - disgusting I know lol. Yet, I didn't cancel my membership until November. I literally wasted £400 because I was too lazy & unmotivated to a) go to the gym & b) cancel the damn membership. How many direct debits do you have leaving your account for stuff that you just don't use?

7. Pay with cash instead of card. If its in your hand, its physical and you can see just how much your spending. £30 in Topshop, £50 in Office & £15 in Nandos seems like nothing when you simply enter your pin or even worse - you pay contactless. Withdraw how much you want to spend whenever you leave the house so you can't over spend & go wild.

8. Check your bank balance each week. Whenever I check my balance, for some reason it stops me from splurging on stuff I don't need. If I can easily view how much money I have, it reminds me how hard I have worked. I don't want to play my hard earned cash on rubbish do I? I recommend internet banking for this. You can even have an app on your phone. I use Lloyds.

9. What do you want V what you actually need. Now do I need this £30 cleanser, or do I need £30 worth of food shopping? A girl gotta eat. Each time you pick up something you potentially want to buy, question whether it is in your 'want' list or you 'need' list. Be honest with yourself - it will benefit you in the long run,

10. Stop stressing. You're not the only one trying to cut back and save! Try and stick to these tips when you can and you will start to see reap the rewards.

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