Saving money seems like a marathon, perhaps the most difficult task that you ever face in your life. Many of you do not take kindly to rainy-day funds, but without them, your finances may not be organised at all. Your income is less, you have a debt to pay off, budgeting is boring, and so on; you may have a lot of excuses, but you cannot wash your hands of building an emergency cushion.
Whether you earn a lot of income or living paycheque to paycheque, you are supposed to have some emergency cushion. This will help tide you over when you run out of money. Most of the people do not bother about saving money as they can easily take out loans for bad credit with no guarantor but do not forget that these loans are expensive as you are to pay interest on top of what you borrow.
After realising the actual cost of the debt, people have understood loans are not a permanent solution, and therefore, they have begun to adopt unusual things to stash away money.
The weirdest things that people do to save money
You will be surprised to know that there are many people doing these weird things to set aside money for a rainy day.
-
Sell empty toilet paper rolls
You will literally laugh your head off when you know about selling empty toilet paper rolls, but the fact is that there are many people who are already doing so. Instead of tossing them away, you should pack them in a box and sell them on eBay. These empty toilet paper rolls are used to make crafts and related items. Undoubtedly, you can make some bucks by selling them.
-
Become a sperm or egg donor
Yes, you can become a sperm or egg donor, and that is the best way to have extra cash coming in that you can pop into your emergency cushion. You can dip into these funds when emergency expenses crop up.
However, donating your sperms and eggs is not easy as you will have to go through a medical condition. If you are completely fine fettle, you can go ahead; otherwise, you will be disqualified. Although you cannot earn a lot of money, it will be enough to meet unforeseen expenses.
-
Rent out your car
You can save money only when your monthly income allows for it. Most of the people are living paycheque to paycheque while others overspend. If you are not able to cover all of your expenses within a budget, you will have to focus on the ways to earn extra money. Renting out your car is the best way to earn extra bucks that you can save for a rainy day.
Find sites like Airbnb and put advertisements there. You can mention the quote, so everything is clear to people renting them. Of course, this could not be feasible if you are using your car for your own travelling purposes. However, if you work from home, you can rent out these cars, which is a perfect way to make some extra bucks.
-
Make Christmas celebration subtle
Christmas celebration can take a large chunk out of your budget. Even though you try to celebrate it in a subtle way, you will likely end up spending a lot of money. Therefore, many people skip the Christmas celebration entirely, and if they do celebrate, they do it in a very subtle way.
Cutting back on the Christmas celebration will undoubtedly save you a lot of money. You can avoid spending a ton of gifts. If you still want to celebrate it, just exchange gifts with very close friends and relatives. It is not a rule that you are to gift every one of your acquaintances. Buy budget-friendlier gifts and do not mind if someone looks a gift horse in the mouth.
-
Unplug appliances and keep switches off
You may not be aware, but there are some appliances that use energy even if they are not running. They can cost you a hundred pounds every year. You can save this money by unplugging them. Sometimes you do not use a device like your charger, but you let the switch on.
Even if you are not using a particular device, letting a switch on will pull energy, and this will add up to the electricity bill. Therefore, if you want to save on electricity bills, you should keep all switches off when they are not in use and try to unplug appliances.
You should look to invest in energy-efficient appliances. They will help save money as they use less energy. Do not forget to replace old appliances when needed.
-
Stop buying popcorn at the cinema
Yes, surprisingly, you can save money by stopping by buying popcorn at the cinema. They can cost you £10 to £20. Instead of buying a large pack of popcorn, you should buy them from outside stores; They will be able to offer you refreshments at better prices.
-
Cut back cable subscriptions
You can save hundreds of pounds every year by cancelling cable subscriptions. The average cable bill is generally higher than other utility bills. You should instead use alternatives. OTT platforms are much cheaper than cable, and you can watch them on any device. Now, these platforms have whittled down their fees, so they have become more affordable.
-
Save on fuel/ gas
You will have to live strategically if you want to save on fuel or gas. For instance, make one trip for all your errands. Try to complete all of your jobs on the same day. This will truly help save you money. Use public transport when you are to cover a long distance and walk on foot to cover short distances.
Fuel prices have already been hiked, and they seem to continue to hike. The best way to save money on fuel is to use your vehicle less. The less you drive, the more money you will have to transfer to your savings account.
-
Refuse paper or plastic bags
When you go to a shopping mall, whether to buy apparel or footwear and when you go to a grocery store, you are charged for a paper or plastic bag. Just say no to these bags, as you can save a lot of money per annum. Instead, you should carry your own bag to pop stuff in it.
The bottom line
Saving is extremely crucial. You cannot live your life smoothly without an emergency cushion. There are various ways to save money, and you must have used them like budgeting, tracking expenses, cutting back on your discretionary expenses, buying second-hand clothes and groceries at a discount or in bulk, etc., but these ways may not be effective to stash away sufficient cash.
You will still be hinging on easy loans for bad credit to meet unforeseen expenses. Some people have used the aforementioned strange and weird ways to increase their contribution to savings. You will likely see improvement in your emergency cushion.