By Sera Wong
Summer time is saving time, and it’s time to prepare for next year’s inevitable expenses, maximize your savings plan within the next few months, and walk away with a little bit of extra cash. It’s never too early to start saving for the future. Here are some of our tips and tricks!
Build a budget
Use an Excel sheet to detail your expenses. It can be helpful to know how much your necessities cost, and how much entertainment funds you have left.
Try to build one for each month, that way you’ll be able to review your spending habits to see if there is anywhere you can cut down.
Every paycheque, put away a little bit of money
This way you’ll have an emergency fund. Even if it’s as little as $20 a week, in time it’ll add up, and one day it’ll certainly come in handy.
Take advantage of coupons and student discounts
Use your student email for a free Amazon Prime trial. With your student ID, a trip to The Royal Ontario Museum is free on Tuesdays. On Gould Street, Metro provides discounts on Tuesdays to Thursdays for students. Looking forward to snacking out for summer vacation? Bulk Barn offers a 10 per cent discount on Wednesdays if you show valid student ID. Shop for some sick new outfits at H&M for next school year, and show off your student ID for 15 per cent off in-store purchases.
Meal planning
Dedicate one day a week to cooking and planning out meals for busy weekdays. Cooking is cheaper than everyday fast food. Instead of spending $14 at Chipotle, make a simple sandwich at home. It’ll save you money for the future, and encourage you to eat healthier.
The 30-day rule
Online shopping is your wallet’s worst enemy. Instead of immediately splurging, add the item you want to your shopping cart and leave it there for 30 days. Over the time span of a month, you won’t want that cute jacket as much anymore.
Stay-in nights
Instead of inviting friends out, invite them in! Break out the board games, video games, and all that good stuff. Instead of killing your wallet over dinner, kill your friends over Monopoly. Even more fun for everyone.
Stop stress-spending
Life is stressful. Balancing school, work, extracurriculars and more can be a chore. You deserve nice things, but every time you want to blow your paycheque over that nice purse because of a hard day, you’re taking away from future funds.
Make coffee at home
A coffee-maker may cost more in the short-run, but in the long-run, it’ll save you hundreds. If you’re a fellow caffeine addict, think twice and make your coffee at home instead of visiting a Starbucks or Balzac’s.
Keep an end goal in mind
Pick a long-term goal and stick with it. Save to pay off your student loans, to buy a car, or for fun occasions. Keep these goals in mind every time you spend money.
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