STICKING TO A BUDGET

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budgeting

REGULAR READERS MAY HAVE SPOTTED THAT THE HIS & HERS TEAM WRITES TOO FREQUENTLY ABOUT FANCY CANDLES TO BE NATURAL BORN BUDGETERS.

However, over a lifetime spent attempting to fund our burgeoning candle addiction, we have learnt a few things about sticking to a budget. Here are our top tips…

Prioritise

Once your bills are taken care of, it’s worth thinking about which luxuries bring you lots of pleasure and which indulgences have just become a habit. Then prioritise accordingly. For example, if a haircut and colour gives you a confidence boost that lasts for weeks, it could well be worth saving up for, but if you barely notice the difference after a visit to the hairdressers, this could be an area where you could cut back without too much effort.

Make the most of free stuff

When you’re budgeting hard, it can be worth putting in a little extra planning to line up some free activities so that your social life doesn’t suffer. From free exhibitions at galleries to online freebies which you can snap up on sites like Free Stuff UK, which features items like free designer fragrance samples, you’ll find plenty of ways to treat yourself without opening your wallet.

Remember why you’re doing it

Whether you’re saving for a house, or working towards paying off all of your debts, or perhaps putting something away every month to go on that dream holiday you’ve been promising yourself, when the going gets tough, it’s worth setting aside a little time to sit down and remind yourself what you’re working towards. Visualise how you’ll feel when you achieve your goal and celebrate all of the small milestones along the way.

Enlist some help from your friends

In order to cut back, you usually need to change some of your daily and weekly habits. This could mean meeting your friends for coffees and snacks at your place, rather than at your favourite coffee shop, or cutting down on big nights out. If you tell your friends why you’re on a budget, they’re likely to offer encouragement and to support you in making slightly different plans to help to keep you on track.

We’re very proud to bring you this post in association with Free Stuff UK.

You may also enjoy our blog on the five things that will (probably) make you feel happier.

If you have any tips for saving money, we’d love to hear them. Please share them in the comments section below.

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