7 Ways To Save Money Immediately, According To A Budget Expert Who Was Once $130K In Debt While Making $12 An Hour
If you need money fast, there are things you can do to help you save.
Miljan Zivkovic | Shutterstock Saving money is a great thing to do. It sets you up for the future and gives you a safety net in case anything unexpected happens. The only downside is that saving up a significant amount of money takes quite a bit of time. So, what do you do when you’re in a situation where you need money right now but don’t have enough saved?
A man named Bradley, known as Bradley on a Budget on TikTok, claimed to have once been $130,000 in debt while he was only making $12 an hour. He shared his ultimate tips for saving money immediately so that other people would know what to do when they were stuck in bad financial situations that meant they needed money as soon as possible.
Here are 7 ways to save money immediately:
1. Track your spending
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“If you are not tracking your spending, you have no idea what your money is doing, and you’re not in control of your money,” Bradley stated. “Your money is in control of you.” While this may sound overwhelming, he shared a simple strategy for starting your spending-tracking journey. He said to look at the previous month’s expenses and sort them into categories like “going out to eat” and “going shopping.” “And then you can see where you can start cutting back,” he explained.
Writing for Experian, Evelyn Waugh said that there are a lot of reasons to track your expenses, like finding where you can cut back and avoiding debt. “When you know where each dollar is going, you’re more empowered to make changes to your cash flow,” she said. “You’ll also have a good understanding of how much you’re able to save toward new financial goals.” Tracking your spending is essential so you can get a handle on how you’re actually handling your money.
2. Don’t eat out
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“You’re not going out to eat,” Bradley insisted. “You’re not gonna go get coffees. You’re cooking all your food at home.” He asserted that eating out or ordering takeout is one the easiest ways to get rid of money you desperately need. “And if you tell me you don’t have time to cook your own food, you need to start finding time,” he added. “Excuses don’t pay your bills.”
Michelle Singletary, a personal finance columnist, shared just how much money you can save by cutting out eating out on the Motley Fool Money podcast. She said that most people saved $500 to $600 a month, with some saving $1,000 or more. No matter which end of the spectrum you fall on, you can save a pretty good chunk of money by not eating out. It may not be ideal or your favorite thing to do, but it will be worth it.
3. Get rid of TV or cable
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Bradley was under the impression that this wouldn’t apply to most people. “I don’t even know who has TV or cable anymore,” he admitted. “But if you do, it’s stupid. And if money’s tight, that is not what you need. That is not what’s gonna keep a roof over your head.”
He shared the story of a friend who used to pay $250 each month for her cable. If she had canceled her service, she would have had over $2,500 she didn’t have before.
Allconnect, a website that allows consumers to compare service providers, estimated that the average monthly cost for cable was $217.42, which U.S. News and World Report said was more than the combined $205.50 people typically spend on their utilities each month. Saving that kind of money every month could do wonders for someone’s financial situation.
4. End all your subscriptions
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“Your bills and your well-being matter more than the next episode of that series you’re watching,” Bradley argued. “You need to take care of your finances and put yourself first.” He also pointed out that perusing past credit card statements could alert you to subscriptions you don’t even remember having, which he called “a huge waste of money.”
Basically, as Bradley said, subscriptions aren’t worth sacrificing your financial health or going into debt over. However, many people do. A CNET survey found that adults in the U.S. typically spend about $91 on subscription services each month. Approximately $100 a month may not seem like a lot to some people, but it would certainly add up over time, giving you over $1,000 in extra money a year.
5. Negotiate your internet or cell phone bills
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“The fifth thing you could do is to call your internet provider or your cell phone provider and try to get a better deal,” Bradley said. “A few months ago, my internet was $80 a month, and after a quick 15-minute phone call, I now pay $46 a month.”
He provided a disclaimer, saying this wasn’t bound to work in every situation. “But it’s worth a try,” he said. “And if money is tight, you have to do every single thing you can do to save money.”
According to NerdWallet writer Stephen Layton, “Many bills are negotiable, if you have the time and make an effort to contact your different service providers. And even if you aren’t able to negotiate a better deal, there’s nothing to lose by trying — you just might have some luck getting your service providers to lower your bills.”
The only downside to this, he shared, is that it can become quite time-consuming. After all, who hasn’t been left on hold with their phone provider for long enough to watch a whole show? But, if you need the money, it’s worth it.
6. Stop shopping
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Bradley acknowledged that “this is gonna be hard for a lot of you,” but he insisted you’ll be better off if you “stop giving into instant gratification” and “learn to be grateful for what you have.” To look at it from another perspective, he suggested thinking about what it really is that you need now. “What you need is financial stability, not another pair of shoes,” he said.
NPR writer Stacey Vanek Smith shared that one way to approach this goal could be to participate in the “no-buy challenge,” a trend that has taken social media by storm, in which you only buy the essentials. This doesn’t mean purchasing nothing but food and toilet paper for a year, though. Instead, you make a list of items you will stop buying based on where you personally slip up. Things that “enrich your life,” like workout classes, are still okay, but a new purse … not so much.
7. Change your mindset
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Bradley said this is possibly the most important tip he could give. “Nothing changes if nothing changes,” he argued. “When you change your mindset, and you realize treating yourself is saving your money, treating yourself is putting money in your own pocket, treating yourself is paying yourself first, then that allows you to catch up on bills. That allows you to save your money. That allows you to build an emergency fund, and then that allows you to become financially stable.”
Finance expert Rachel Cruze said that having a positive money mindset is the one thing that can ensure you’re successful with your money. She explained, “Your money mindset shapes the way you feel about debt, your attitude toward people who make more or less money than you, how easily you can give, your ability to invest with confidence and more.” If you want to save money, you’ve got to change your mindset and tell yourself that’s where the real treat is, like Bradley said.
Mary-Faith Martinez is a writer with a bachelor’s degree in English and Journalism who covers news, psychology, lifestyle, and human interest topics.
