Personal finance and personal fitness share a lot of similarities. They’re both things that most of us struggle with. However there’s also an upside to this. Because they are similar, some of the habits and principles we need to learn in order to manage an obstacle in one are transferrable to the other.
Check out these 11 money saving tips that will improve both your physical and financial fitness.
Always do your research before investing in anything
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In fitness, it’s always a good idea to research the class, exercise, or gym that you’re planning to try. You’re going to be paying for it so it just makes sense that you make sure it’s actually going to work for you.
When investing in something like a condo for example, it’s the same thing. It’s very important that you do your research first. Don’t just trust advertising or even recommendations from friends. You need to really look at whatever data is available and decide for yourself if you really NEED to buy one or if it’s ok to just rent. It’s hard enough trying to save money while paying rent; can you really afford a large upfront fee and monthly installments? This is on top of the association dues and utility bills that you’ll naturally have to pay every month as well, regardless of what you decide to do.
Same thing with investing in a business. It’s very easy to become overly enthusiastic when it comes to the idea of “owning” a business. But do you really know how to manage one? How well do you know the industry that your business is in? Just because someone comes to you and tells you the potential earnings that you could make by investing in his idea, keep in mind that the word is “potential.” Between you giving money and the business actually earning something, there are a whole host of things that could happen.
So do your research always. Never jump into a massive investment that can drain your savings or financially stifle you for years without being sure that you’re getting something of equal worth.
It’s going to be a lifestyle change
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Best we get it out early. You’ll have to accept that in order to resolve any bad habits or problems you have in the financial and physical aspects of your life, you need to implement long term changes.
So crash diets aren’t going to work for you. Saving for a month or two then going back to your credit card shopping spree isn’t going to help either. Short-term goals aren’t going to cut it no matter how extreme they are. You’ll just bounce back and could even become worse afterwards.
Lifestyle changes, even just small ones, are the way to go if you really want lasting change. What kind of changes exactly? Read on to learn about money saving tips that you can implement to meet your financial goals.
Prioritize utility over aesthetics
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In fitness terms the advice would be “work with what you’ve got”. You don’t need fancy equipment to get fit. You can use chairs, ledges, stairs, jump ropes, and anything else available to you. Your body weight is all the resistance you need. It’s all about being creative and really wanting to reach your goals.
Now in personal finance, the advice can be translated to “pick the cheapest that has the most utility” when shopping. If you’re buying appliances or necessary electronics for your home or work, you don’t need the expensive stuff. With a little bit of research and canvassing, you’re bound to find something that’ll meet all of your needs without breaking the bank.
If you’re reading this article you’re obviously in a point of your life where you can’t afford luxury items yet. So don’t even think about it. Keep your financial goals in mind, don’t stray, and keep yourself motivated.
Whenever you feel like you need to buy something… WAIT
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We’ve all had that moment when we successfully convince ourselves that we need something. An example would be deciding to buy a new laptop instead of getting an older one fixed. We tell ourselves it’s for work so it’s easier to pull out the wallet and shell a couple of hundred or even thousand bucks for it.
But ask yourself; do you really need a new one? Can’t you just have the old one fixed? If you can’t get your old laptop fixed quickly enough, can’t you get a cheaper model that’ll still do everything you need it do for work?
Maybe what you’re experiencing is just a craving. Kind of like how we sometimes crave for chips or some other snack when we know that we just had a full meal an hour ago. You don’t really NEED to eat, you just WANT to.
Maybe what’s happening is that you just saw the latest high-specs laptop and used your old laptop’s defects as an excuse to convince yourself that you need to get it.
So when you get these kinds of urges, don’t immediately give in to your impulses. Stop and really think about it. Give yourself the necessary time to really assess your situation so you can pick the most cost-effective solution.
Save now, not later
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Working out as early as you can is ideal because it allows you get the exercise out of your way and you won’t have to think about it as you go through your day. The same principle applies to saving money. Once you get your salary, pull out the allocated amount you have for your monthly savings and deposit it already before you do anything else.
This way you’re always guaranteed to meet your monthly savings budget. If you’re in the habit of saving only whatever is left of your salary, you’ll quickly realize that you either have nothing left or too little at the end of the month.
This is probably one of the best habits to adopt especially if you’re just getting started.
When shopping, write a list and stick to it
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In both dieting and finance, it’s best that you stick to the plan. So whenever you need to go shopping for necessary items or even when you’re just doing your groceries, write a list and stick to it. If you don’t have a list, you’re more likely to buy things that you might not really need. Even small items can add up. So avoid impulse buys and keep a tight budget by sticking to your list.
Keep yourself healthy
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Ever heard the saying “health is wealth?” It’s not just symbolic, it’s actually quite literal. If you’re healthy, you’re able to work or do whatever it is that you do to bring in the bacon. So it’s always in your best interest financially to keep the body that brings in the money in tip-top condition.
Keeping healthy can also save you a ton of money in doctor’s visits and medication. An unhealthy lifestyle will force you to dip into your savings more often that you’d want.
Hangout with like-minded people
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A support group isn’t just great for achieving your fitness goals, it’s also ideal for people who are trying to save money. Saving money is hard and having people around you who understand you because they’re either going through or have gone through the same experience is a blessing. They’ll keep you motivated.
Hanging out with like-minded people will also prevent you from succumbing to the negative kind of peer pressure. Your “thrifty” group is definitely not going to ask you to go with them to expensive bars or to eat at overpriced “hip” restaurants.
Give up a costly but unnecessary habit
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We all have one. It’ll be seemingly ordinary habits that you won’t really notice because they don’t cost that much like daily coffee at starbucks or weekly movie screenings with your friends. They might not seem like a lot at first, but when you compute how much you actually spend in one month for these things, you might be surprised.
Even just giving up soda for water can lower your monthly expenses and it’s good for your health as well. Drinking alcohol and smoking are two other habits that you could give up or at least reduce to save both money and your health.
So try making a journal or list of the things that you spend on daily for over a week or a month. Then decide which item you can cut out without going crazy. Don’t take them all away though, you still need a life. Some people can live in the most frugal of ways but it takes a lot of motivation to stick to something like that for a long time.
It’s usually better to leave yourself some small luxuries. You need small things you can look forward to in the short term after all. You’re less likely to burn out this way.
Start cooking your own food
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This is a more specific example of what you can do to meet the advice given above. Eating at home can save you a good bit of cash. Cooking your own food might feel like a hassle but it’s easily cheaper than ordering out or eating at restos. Another upside to cooking your own meals is you get the chance to pick healthier ingredients and methods of cooking. So you not only save money by cooking at home, you’re also given the chance to eat healthy.
Of course you will have to learn how to cook if you don’t know yet. But it’s not that difficult anymore. There are tons of easy to do healthy recipes online that don’t require you to be a chef to follow. Video recipes are even very common now as well so learning how to cook has become much, much easier.
Walk, bike, or use the public transportation system
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Walking and biking is a healthy and financially friendly alternative to driving or riding a taxi. Try to make a habit out of it. If you really must ride because of time or distance constraints, take the public transportation system. The bus or the train can get you to where you need to go just fine and they’re both cheap. If you’re used to driving a car or taking the cab all the time, you’ll be amazed at how much you can save doing these.
There you go, 11 things to consider in meeting your financial goals that you can also use to become a little healthier.
The important thing to remember for all of these is that you need to have the proper mindset. If you don’t want something hard enough, it’s easier to stray and do things that will compromise your goals. So keep yourself motivated and keep your financial goals in sight.
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