Member-only story
Money Saving Tips in Times of Crisis
In times of crisis and great uncertainty it is easy to panic and to focus on the short term and to forget about the long term. The current economic situation is scary, but for most of us it will pass. How do I know this? Because in 2008 I faced the same thing. I was laid off from my job right as I was starting to develop my career in the face of a slow recovery. Despite that, I was able to meet financial goals — I paid off my student loans and bought a house. I do not want to pretend I did not have some advantages. I was lucky enough to have gone to college. I was married so we had a two-income household. However, these hints helped me, and I hope that they can help you too.
1) Have a plan. It is too easy to go from paycheck to paycheck and shuffle what you’re paying and then to splurge when you have a little bit more if all you’re doing is focusing on the next paycheck. By having concrete financial goals, you are saving FOR something and not just nebulously putting money away. This mental accounting means that if you decide to splurge you are taking something away from your future self that you have already decided you want. This goal can be something small like those Riotfest tickets or something bigger like a house. As the saying goes, if you fail to plan, you are planning to fail.
