Money Tips To Help Improve Your Situation

I’ve been reading up a lot recently about how people my age (20s – 30s) are struggling to make ends meet and they live each month from pay day to pay day. I will be honest and admit that I also have recently got by this way, as I thought that was “the norm”. The cost of living is forever increasing, causing stress/money worries and it can be really hard for many to manage their money so I’ve put together this list of money tips, which some people may find useful.

Work on managing your debt

Create a list of your debts and begin by paying off the smallest debt, whilst making the minimum payments on the rest. Debts with high interests rates may be a good idea to put on your priority list, but you will find a method which works best for you and your financial situation. Websites such as Creditfix provide a debt solution finder tool which finds the best options to help people manage their debt.

Budget

Making a budget for your spending can be a really effective way of managing your spending. I switched over to using a Monzo account as they have an inbuilt budgeting tool where you can set limits of what you want to spend on each category per month. It also alerts you when you are reaching the limit you have set yourself for that category, e.g. bills or groceries.

Alter your spending habits

It may be a good idea to look at what you are spending your money on. Look for any patterns, such as do you get takeaway weekly or eat out often? Is there any way you can cut this down? Are you buying your lunches for work? An alternative idea for lunches could be to make everything at home in advance so you can save the money you would spend every day on your lunch. There is also plenty of information online available on topics such as how to save money on a family holiday.

Save an emergency fund

I personally think adulthood requires an emergency fund. We all need a fund we can dip into when those unexpected expenses occur, such as a broken down car, a faulty boiler, or even something small like a household appliance suddenly breaking. By saving a small amount regularly each week, or month, you can easily start to build an emergency fund to dip into in times of need.

Having more than one income

I think in this day and age, it’s normal for people to have more than one income. Whether this is via multiple part time jobs, agency work or a side hustle, these can be great ways of earning some extra cash. Personally, I have multiple income sources – I have my blog, I work part time as a medical receptionist and I also do agency work as I’m now a qualified teaching assistant. There is nothing wrong with having multiple incomes, I think it’s actually more common now than people realise.