My friends know I aspire to be a do-it-myselfer. Everything I control I like to control, and everything I can do myself for less money than someone else will charge me puts money in my pocket. In this time of economic crisis, the ability to take control separates the survivors from the scared.
Since I'm still at least 30 years from retirement, I'm not terribly worried about the economy. I'm mostly worried about what other people will do politically that will affect the economy's ability to recover. Every time politicians meddle, they tip the scale too far and prohibit its ability to recover as quickly as would be preferable. I hear that the federal government intends to raise gasoline taxes to compensate for lost revenues with a decrease in total gallons sold. This comes as the price per gallon is once again on the rise. Smart, very smart.
While our politicians may not be smart, it doesn't mean we can't be. Here are a few things I found that other people suggested that put you in control and cut costs on things you may do anyway.
Since I'm still at least 30 years from retirement, I'm not terribly worried about the economy. I'm mostly worried about what other people will do politically that will affect the economy's ability to recover. Every time politicians meddle, they tip the scale too far and prohibit its ability to recover as quickly as would be preferable. I hear that the federal government intends to raise gasoline taxes to compensate for lost revenues with a decrease in total gallons sold. This comes as the price per gallon is once again on the rise. Smart, very smart.
While our politicians may not be smart, it doesn't mean we can't be. Here are a few things I found that other people suggested that put you in control and cut costs on things you may do anyway.
- Buy a bread maker. You can buy one for $55. If it saves you just $4 a week on store-bought bread, that's $208 a year. A 280% return.
- Get a credit card with a great sign-up bonus. Like the AirTran Visa card. Cost: The $40 annual fee. After your first purchase you get enough reward miles for a free flight, saving maybe $250. Then cancel the card. Return: 525%.
- Take out a local library card. Cost: Nothing. If it saves you $10 a month on books, that's $120 a year. Return: Infinite. Note: Some libraries now let you borrow electronic books over the Internet as well.
- Order a packet of seeds and plant them in a window box or garden. Growing your own herbs, spices, and even vegetables – depending on the amount of space you have – is a great investment. If you spent just $10 on seeds and saved a mere $50 in the year, that's a 400% ROI.
- Switch to a prepaid cellphone. Cost: $20 for the phone, and maybe $100 a year for minutes. Move the rest of your talk-time to free Internet calls, and stop hemorrhaging $60 a month on a cellular plan. ROI: 500%
- Start making your own coffee to take to work each morning. Cost: $20 for a Thermos, $10 for a filter and papers, and $60 a year for ground coffee. Then skip the $4 a day drive-thru. If that saves you $1,000 a year, the return is more than 1,000 %.
I have a friend whose parents pay exorbitant amounts of money for common car repairs because their passions and interests lie elsewhere. For things you do anyway, doesn't it make sense to shop around? I did when I bought my first home, and it saved me $200/month on the mortgage.
Take control of things you control. Then the things you don't control won't loom so large.
Take control of things you control. Then the things you don't control won't loom so large.
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