Why Should You Save Money?
Although people always seem to be in need of money, saving money as an option however seems to be a far away solution to the need of liquid cash, and of course saving seems t be considered as a luxury and meant for people who have money more than they could spend.
Well, this is not so. Saving is very important not only because it gives you safety of future cash in hand but also gives you an assurance of a happy future too.
Reasons for Saving
Many of my friends keep asking me to one good reason when I ask them to save money well, here are two good reasons.
Feel Good Factor
image freedigitalphotos.net
I do not want to go to any negative factors such as what would happen if you lose your job suddenly or what if you were to incur a sudden high amount as hospital chargers, and hence here is the feel good factor.
You are sure to feel very happy when suddenly your fixed deposit matures or you seem to have more money that you had expected. This not only acts as a mood booster but also gives you the freedom to spend on things that you usually would not be spending on such as a lavish holiday of a dinner in an expensive resturant.
A habit to Last
Saving is one habit that is going to stick to you once you cultivate it. All you have to do is follow these simple tips and just sit back to enjoy the fruits.
Tips to save Money
Make A Budget
this is the first and the most important step to any saving money plan. Take some time from your busy hours and sit down to make a budget that is both feasible as well as practical. I usually do it as the monthly provisions, childrens’ fees, medical expenses, personal care products, clothing, guest expenses and some extra for sudden requirements.
This would cover almost everything, set this amount apart. Now the remaining amount of your income has to be carefully planned and saved.
Plan Before You Enter Super Market
Make a list of things you are going to buy before entering supermarket. In fact I would advise you not to buy your monthly provisions from a super market. You would end up buying so many extra provisions which might not be of any immediate use to you. Always buy what you need and not the opposite.
This saves a lot of money.
Plan A Monthly Menu
Planning menu beforehand gives you the choice to prepare more variety as well as shows you exactly what is required for the whole month as far as cooking provisions are considered. All you have to do is buy what is required to prepare the dishes on the menu.
Buy And Store
There are certain agricultural products such as pulses that are available at cheaper rates during their harvest periods. These can be bought in bulk and if stored carefully can be used for the whole year. During the harvest season they would cost almost half their regular price. this would be a huge savings in the long run.
Save Money as Fixed Deposit
This is one simple but very useful form of saving. A fixed deposit of even a meager amount works wonders. If you use your internet banking facilities you can give a standing instruction and begin your fixed deposit easily. You would not even know about the money that is being deposited every month. I usually have two different FD accounts, one for yearly trip and another to spend on my husbands birthday. So I time them exactly to match to the month I want the cash.
You also have a tax exemption on FD.
National Savings Certificate
Image courtesy freedigitalphotos.net
Well, when I first heard about this I thought maybe NSC was not as effective as a savings plan as I had thought it to be, but the plan which I chose seemed good. I usually ask my children to have separate piggy banks. When we go out shopping I give them all the coins I receive as change while shopping.
This I ask them to save in their piggy banks, I too keep aside the small amounts of tens and twenties that are left after I break 100 rupees and 500 rupees notes. These are money that we don’t even know that exist in our purse.
However when you save them in piggy banks you would get a minimum of Rupees 500 per month. This I buy as a National Savings Ceritificate. The amount is so negligible that you would have any sort of difference with its existence however, after 5 years just imagine you would be able to give your double the amount every month, you could even save it in a similar fashion (adding extra amount) for another five years.
You have tax advantages here too.
There are other Money Saving methods such as the LIC policies and Mutual funds which we shall discuss every week from now on. Share your ideas about saving money and give your tips as comments to our readers.
