*********
Copyright 2008 T. Sheil & A. Sheil All Rights Reserved
Signs of economic troubles have increased in the past few months. There was already serious economical trouble before this downturn. Most people are using the special tax rebate to pay bills rather than buy new things. The high prices of fuel have led to price increases for food and other necessities. Add the mortgage crunch and the epidemic of foreclosures, and it is obvious that the economy is close to bottoming. We can safely say that Naud typifies the times.
Signs of the trouble were visible over this year’s Memorial Day weekend. One thing that startled us was the local mall. Normally on Memorial Day weekend, it is teeming with people. This year it was quiet. Many of the people were not shopping. It was eerie to see stores so quiet on one of the biggest sale weekend of the year. Another sign of trouble was the annual antique fair on Main Street. This is usually packed with people, but today’s turnout was much smaller. You could feel it in the air. People are not spending this year. Living a few minutes from the Jersey Shore, which relies on tourism, we have to wonder. Is it that bad?
1) Shop for effect. You can cut costs by taking advantage of sales, discounts and store brands. There is a trick to sales: only buy it if you need it. A sale is not a sale if you buy something you will not use. Ask yourself: “Do I need it”?
2) Vacation at home. This year, use vacation time to work on the house. For entertainment, make day trips to various things close to home. The money you save on travel and lodging will tale a lot of financial pressure off you. This goes doubly if you have children.
3) Vacation close to home. If you wish to go away, don’t go too far. Most places have vacation spots within a few hours of home. You can make a weekend trip rather than spend a whole week. Even if you do a week’s stay, there are other ways to economize. For instance if the room has a refrigerator, go to a nearby market and buy enough bread and cold cuts for the week.. There is your lunch, right at your room. You save over what you would pay for lunch at a diner. Little things add up to big savings.
4) Use fans instead of air conditioning. You do not have to use air conditioning all the time. A few well-placed fans can keep you cool on all but the hottest days. There are fans available that use less power, and so save more money. You can easily cut your costs by as much as two-thirds.
5) Cook your own food. Instead of buying microwave meals, do your own cooking. You control the ingredients and portion size, too. This makes for healthier meals that costs less and use less energy. It is also cheaper than eating at diners, going to fast food joints, and ordering take-out food.
5) Cut back extravagances. This is a good tome to cut back on the fluff. For instance. the domestic brand might not be as posh as its imported counterpart, but it will be much less expensive. This is a good time to stop smoking, cut back on the booze and put the brakes to gambling. When funds are low, gambling will only make them lower. When it comes to shopping, the best policy is that if you do not need it, do not buy it. You can go back to all your little perks after the economic tide turns. For now, spend less.
6) Remember that the economy will turn around eventually. The belt-tightening
measures you need now will not have to be there forever. On the other hand, the
key to riding out this economic tide is to cut your expenses. Living frugally
will make it easier to wait out the economy. Living extravagantly will only make
it harder to endure. The added expanse could cause serious problems. It is
better to live frugally for now, knowing that the time will eventually come when
you can spend freely. As it is said, “Go with the flow.”
*********
If you are interested in enjoying more prosperity, try The Pagan Prosperity Manual. This book gives you practical ways to enjoy greater prosperity and quality of life. Practice of these simple techniques is a sure fire way to improve the quality of your life. You can find learn more about it here:
