Sometimes saving money just takes time. Time to think about the purchase, the value of your time, and time saved. In part three of tips to save money, we discuss time and its worth. Check out these tips to make the most of your time.
Think of cost in terms of time
If you have ever seen the movie “In Time” with Justin Timberlake, you will know that the characters pay for things with time. When they run out of that precious time, they die. While we don’t directly barter with time, we trade our time to earn money.
If you think of your purchases in terms of how much time you are trading, it can change your perspective. For example, the average American spends $1,000 a year on coffee. If you make $20 an hour, you use 50 hours or a little over six workdays to pay for that coffee. Is it worth it? You decide.
24-hour rule
Who has witnessed the child in the department store throwing a fit because their parent wouldn’t let them buy the toy they just saw? Unfortunately, when you become an adult, no one stops you from buying that item you just saw. It is called impulsive buying, and it is one of the easiest ways to hemorrhage money.
A trick to controlling your impulses is to follow the 24-hour rule. If you are about to buy an item you didn’t prepare for, stop yourself and think about it for 24-hours. Once you have reached the time limit, you can decide whether to purchase the item.
Quality before price
It is easy to buy many items at a discount store, but what are you sacrificing in quality? If you seek to improve your long-term spending habits, then going quality over quantity is best. Would you rather spend $5 on a t-shirt that will last a few washes or $50 on a shirt you can wear for years? Cheaper isn’t always better, so be intentional about what you buy, and the amount of time it will last.
Time spent commuting
What could you do with an hour more a day? Imagine a new mom waking up early for work and hurriedly dropping her baby off at daycare before commuting an hour into the office. Then she has to fight traffic for an hour, pick up her child, get dinner ready, clean the house, exercise, and play with the baby before going to sleep and repeating the cycle.
Imagine if she found a job closer to home. Suddenly that two-hour round trip becomes thirty minutes, and she has an extra 90 minutes each day. Even with a cut in salary, the job closer to home saves money. How? Her time is worth something, and when you add up that monetary value along with gas and car maintenance, fewer hours at daycare, and fewer coffees consumed to keep her going, she saves money by working closer.
If you are looking to make the most of your time and save money doing it, consider moving closer to your place of work. Or change jobs to find something closer to you, with the ideal situation being working from home. It involves a nonexistent commute, and the only temptation is too many visits to the pantry.
Unsubscribe from retailer emails
What is the best way to save money? Don’t go shopping. This includes online shopping. So if you are looking to save yourself the temptation of buying things you don’t need, unsubscribing from retailer emails is an excellent first step. Remember, if you don’t see it, you won’t want to buy it. Time is money; spend it wisely, or not at all!
Check back in to read the next part of Tips To Save Money.
