10 Things To Help Pass The Cash Poor Times
Whether you’re in college, just starting out as a young adult, or have had some kind of financial hardship come your way, here’s a list of ten things that can help you get to the other side of things without losing out. complete. your mind.
1. Change jar: It doesn’t matter what kind of jar it is. It can be an old pickle jar, a mayonnaise jar, a pitcher of cider… you name it. I prefer the glass ones. Something about the sound of the shift hitting the glass works for me. Make sure it’s really clean and dry before you dump all the change in it, ALL of it, and let it sit. Don’t ‘borrow’ from it because the money you borrow only reduces the amount that will be there later, when you really need it for gas, food, whatever.
2. Dollar Jar: At the end of each day, put everything you have in your wallet, pocket, wherever you keep your cash in this jar. Just like the jar of change, leave it alone. “Borrowing” from this jar only guarantees that it will be a $10 max spinner jar. Not something that’s going to be of much help when needed. Trust me. It took me a while to put this jar down because dollars are so much easier to handle than change, and so much easier to spend. Also, don’t deposit against the jar: “Oh! There’s $10 in the jar. I’ll use my debit card and then put the money in the jar into my bank account to cover this item.” Again, trust me. It never turns out that way, and if it does, your dollar jar is back to $0. There is not much of an emergency fund.
3. Buy the expensive shampoo – OK. I know this sounds ridiculous when money is tight, but be honest with me. I spent years buying cheap shampoos with very little criteria other than it was what I could afford and it would clean my hair. Once, when I was still doing the cleaning for the move, someone had left their shampoo and conditioner half full or better, more expensive: the jackpot! Do you know what I discovered? Expensive stuff was really the way to go. My hair looked better, healthier and needed much less shampoo to clean it, which means it would last longer, and it did. Much longer. In fact, months later, I am still using this shampoo and conditioner and there is still a ton left. I would have had to buy the cheap stuff a couple of times by now. Better quality = less money spent in the long run.
4. Buy organic and all-natural products: Organic products can be a bit expensive, but they are like expensive shampoo: they last longer and require less product. I had the opportunity to try a free organic body wash. I needed a body wash and thought why not give it a try. Worst case scenario I would hate it, go too fast and just go back to my regular body wash, whatever is on sale. From the first use, I realized the benefits of being organic. It took very little product to cleanse my entire body, about 1/10 the amount of cheap products. More money up front, sure, but less money overall.
5. Buy trial/travel sizes: Why buy trial/travel size items? As backup, of course. It really sucks when you go to grab your dish soap, shampoo, soap, toothpaste or whatever and find there’s none left, or not enough to do the job you need it to do. What can make this worse is when it happens a week before payday or when you’re not really sure when the next dollars are coming. Have a “trial size” location to store your trial size items so you can find them when you need them. If you use a full one, remember to replace it as soon as possible.
6. Make sure you get a haircut, at least every two months. I know you’re wondering how this helps you overcome poverty, but you’d be surprised. When you let your hair down, it shows and people notice it more than you think. You don’t have to go to the best salon, get the full shampoo and blow dryer/styling deal. Just go get ready, clean things up. Not only will you present yourself more positively to others, but it will make you feel good.
7. Get comfortable with thrift stores: Thrift stores are great! When an item of clothing has begun to show signs that it has reached the end of its acceptable life cycle, it is time to replace it. Clearance sales at regular stores are great and definitely worth checking out, but know that just like thrift stores, it will take some time to search through things to find the item(s) you’re looking for. at a price that is comfortable for you. disburse. I have taken the time over the years to find out which thrift stores near or close to me have the best selection and quality of donations. Replacing a worn t-shirt with another worn t-shirt isn’t going to make things any better. It’s definitely worth checking out the different thrift stores to find the one with the best quality second-hand items. Yes, these stores may cost a bit more than those with a lesser quality donation selection, but a dollar or two is worth it to look good, which results in feeling better.
8. Coupons – Yes, coupons. I’ve never been able to crack this like the coupon queens you hear about, but they can be valuable, even in small amounts. A friend of mine gave me a coupon the other day that he gave me 23.3 fl. free. oz. bottle of one of the best brands of olive oil. There are tons of coupon pins on Pinterest and a Google search will provide you with a ton of results if you want to discover the coupons. Even that single coupon is helping to stretch the dollar a little further.
9. Gift Card Budget: I think this one is a bit out of the ordinary. It was something I started doing when we were first stabilizing in our VR life. I would get paid and then spread the money out into a gift card to our regular grocery store, a Costco cash card for gas, and another to Papa Murphy’s Pizza (we love Tuesdays). This helped keep money going where it needed to go instead of the soda one of us had to buy at the convenience store, any impulse buys that came our way, or that one thing you really, really need (want ) that is on sale for what seems like a ridiculous price at the time. Yes, this means that if you need the money on these cards for an unexpected emergency, you don’t actually have access to it, which can be frustrating to say the least. If you happen upon one of those events, check out the jars of change and dollars.
10. Meditate. I know this may seem a bit out of place, but I assure you it is not. When money is tight, it can be extremely stressful. If you’re like me, that means you’re constantly doing calculations in your head, figuring out this and that, how and when, etc. I spend a lot of time in my head trying to solve the problems of the world (well, at least my world) and without stopping to meditate daily for at least 15 minutes it left me crazier than the Mad Hatter. I’m sure those 15 minutes a day have saved my life along with the lives of my husband and dogs.
Being broke, just starting out, or having cash-strapped issues can be really stressful. Be kind to yourself. Remember this is temporary (hopefully). Also remember that temporary time can sometimes be longer than you thought it would be.
When money is tight, personal care tends to fall by the wayside. Don’t leave him, even when you think you don’t care. If you can’t move on, how are you going to get your finances in order and move on? Don’t worry. You got it.