IMPORTANCE OF SAVING MONEY AT AN EARLY AGE
Money is an essential commodity that helps you to run your life with ease. Exchanging goods for goods is an older practice, in today’s world without any money,you cannot buy anything you wish for anything that is important for your well-being. Money has gained its value because people are trying to save wealth for their future needs. Philosophically speaking, money cannot buy everything but practically money is the basic thing that is used for calculating the status of any person. Money is a very important asset in today’s world with a growing population and their needs, money plays a major factor. It is equally important to get into the habit of saving money at an early stage in life, as we all know money can buy us all the things that we depend on a daily basis but with the growing expenses it becomes hard to sustain a moderate lifestyle with a budget so it always advised to save beforehand and keep a check on your expenditure especially when youre a college student with the minimum pocket money. It is often said that money is not the most important thing in the world. For many people, however, it is right up there next to air in importance. These are not necessarily overly-materialistic people. Rather, they simply understand the true value of money. Money, in and of itself, is not very spectacular. What money can do for you is what is really important. Money gives you freedom of choices. You can decide where and how you want to live when you have a good income or financial resources. On the other hand, when you do not have much money, the choice may be something that you cannot afford. The choices available to you may not really be choices at all. MONEY SAVING TIPS AND TRICKS: Making and keeping a track on your budget: Making a monthly budget is the first step towards staying on top of your finances. Budgeting gives you a big-picture view of your money, so you can make informed spending and saving decisions. It can help you reduce the amount of debt you have once you graduate. Write down every purchase you make or use a budget app like Mint, Wally, or Mvelopes. Simply tracking what you spend can help you notice patterns, make you more aware of where your money is going, and help you identify if you need to make a change. While it seems like a simple distinction, you would be surprised at our ability to rationalize certain spending decisions. Saving money by buying only what you need gives you more flexibility in your budget in the long run. Making a budget is the easy part. Next, you need to put it into action. But remember, a budget is not a permanently fixed thing. On the contrary, it is meant to be dynamic. So update it when things change. Managing college expenses: University is expensive and the bills can add up, especially in the months, when tuition is due and you need to buy books for class. By making smart choices and putting in some extra work, you can reduce the impact of these big costs on your wallet. Apply for scholarships, awards, and bursaries. Many scholarships don’t receive very many applications, so it’s worth putting in the effort and going for it. Course textbooks can be expensive, but luckily theres no need to purchase every item on your reading lists. You can usually borrow set texts from the library whenever you need them. Only buy the most important books, and even then youll be able to find cheap second-hand copies online or through your university. Sell them on when youre finished with them to recoup some of the costs. Books arent the only course essential you can save on. Depending on how much your university charges for printing, it might be more cost-effective to buy your own printer. Many shops and food outlets offer student discounts. Even where they arent advertised, its worth asking as they are sometimes still available.If you have a favorite shop, you could try to get a part-time job there in order to take advantage of the staff discount. Saving in your food/grocery list: Besides rent, your biggest monthly expense is most likely going to be food.While eating out all the time seems to be the easiest option, it’s also the costliest. Adopting a do-it-yourself attitude to food consumption is a smart way to both save money and work on your cooking skills. Limiting the number of times you eat out each month can save you huge amounts of money. Cook big meals and put the rest in Tupperware containers. Bring the leftovers with you to school and heat them up to save money on meals. Buying in bulk helps you get the most value out of each purchase. Do grocery runs with friends and buy family packs. Separate food into plastic bags and put the extras in the freezer for later. By planning out your meals for the coming week, you know the exact ingredients you need to buy. Make a shopping list and shop strategically. Only buy what you need. This also helps reduce wasted food at the end of the week. Food will be one of your biggest costs, so its worth finding ways to reduce your bills. Buying supermarket value products rather than well-known brands, and shopping at the end of the day when many items are discounted, are some of the simplest ways to save money. Where its possible, you might look into cooking with your housemates or planning your meals in advance. Either way, youll be able to do a cost-effective big shop at the start of each week and avoid the need for too many expensive takeaways, working on your culinary skills at the same time. Youll also be saving money by making your own packed lunches rather than buying a sandwich or going to a coffee shop every day. Spending money on extracurricular activities: Extracurricular activities and a social life are necessary for making your university experience enjoyable. The tricky part is figuring out how to have fun without breaking the bank. Go hiking, cycling, sightseeing, or take a walk in the park. Activities that take advantage of Vancouver’s proximity to nature are best. Take part in college activities and clubs it will give you an amazing opportunity to meet people from different courses. Apply for an internship and that way you get a work experience and get paid and get to explore different spheres. Pay your bills on time: When youre living in halls of residence utility bills will usually be included in your rent, making budgeting a little easier. However, if youre sharing a student house youll normally be responsible for paying for your gas, electricity, water, and internet. Use comparison websites to ensure you get the best deal and keep costs down by saving energy. Put an extra jumper on instead of turning the heating up a notch, and dont use the tumble dryer every day if youve got one. Setting up direct debits for your regular bills, so that they are paid automatically each month, will make them easier to keep on top of. You may even receive a discount for doing so, and youll avoid any charges for late payment. Sharing bills among housemates can be effective (one pays the electricity, another pays the gas, etc.) as long as it is managed carefully. If you pay a bill on behalf of your housemates, make sure they give you their share promptly. Similarly, if a housemate pays a bill for you, repay them as quickly as possible. This way, youll avoid any unnecessary tensions developing should anybody consistently fail to pay their share.