Best Ways To Save More Money From Home By Keeping Track Of Your Expenses

 

     Do you often wonder why you run short of money despite your careful planning and increased income stream? If so, you are not alone, there are items we spend money on without thinking because we have been doing so for a long time. We consider these items essential and a must-have and even though those items are not part of our budget, we let go of the items we budgeted for and put them first.

If you keep track of your spending, you will get to know the items you have a weakness for because they will keep reoccurring in your expense list. It may surprise you how much unnecessary expenses amount to if you look at how much it adds up to yearly.

There are many ways you can keep track of your spending and save more money at home. It can be as simple as journaling your daily spending habits, using a money app, cash book, or statement of account from your bank and going through your weekly or monthly budget (if you stuck to it, that is).

Why bother to keep track of your expenses?

Because the devil is in the details, it is as simple as that. If you want to know why you run short of cash before the stipulated period the money is supposed to last or why your family's needs are not met, you have to go through your expenses with a fine tooth comb. You will discover items you keep spending money on over and over again while overlooking the most needed ones.

Whether you are looking for how to save money as a low-income earner or a high-income earner we could all benefit from saving money tips and our families will be the better for it. The idea is to save more money than you spend.

Why do I need to save more money?

Being a mom has taught me that parenting costs money, a lot of money and knowing how to budget and save money is a necessity. You need to find out clever ways to save money because:

• It will come in handy during emergencies which are sure to occur especially when you have kids.
• Because the cost of living is increasingly expensive.
• To buy or build your home if you don't have one already.
• Taking care of your kids is your responsibility, at least until they become adults.
• It will not be a bad idea to leave an inheritance for your grandkids, it will give them a headstart in life.
• To afford your present lifestyle or a better one.
• You can invest in your children's dreams, you are their biggest cheerleader after all.

Daily expenses eating away at your savings 

There are expenses we undertake that were not budgeted for that silently eat away at our money because the amount we spend on them seems small until we look at how much we spend on them monthly or yearly. They include:

• Data subscription: the need to stay connected to our Facebook, Twitter, and WhatsApp especially when we have an online business demands that we keep renewing our subscription. For the life of me, I can't figure out why our data drains out so fast. Is a village connected to my hotspot? 
• Cable subscription: see those Nollywood dramas we love to relax with at the end of a long day? It's doing a long thing to our pockets
• Fuel: if you have your car, you can attest to the fact that using your car is more expensive than taking the bus but you can't deny that it is super convenient, especially during the rainy season.
• Braids: your hair and those of your kids need to be kept neat and trendy right?
• Airtime: this one is unavoidable right? The is gist to be related over the phone to mom and bestie.
• Clothes and footwear: some of us have a weakness for clothes and shoes that we cannot help buying them when they catch our attention even to the extent of blowing our budget.
• Fabric: see those strips of fabric we keep buying and downloading pictures of styles to sew? Do they eventually make it to the tailor?
• Asoebi: this one is hard to say no to. When you get married who will wear your Asoebi if you don't wear those of others? For our non-Nigerian readers, Asoebi is a uniform attire worn by friends and family of the couple at a wedding. They usually consist of a head wrap, dress and shoes to match.
• Takeouts: opting to eat out or order in is more expensive than cooking your food.
• Food: satisfying your every food craving can cause your savings to tank.
• Hangouts: those fun activities we like to engage in during the weekend with our friends and family are not pocket friendly.
• Phones: gadgets freak cannot stop salivating over the latest features of the newer models.
• Love and friendship: yes, this too. We sometimes keep unnecessary people around us because of how much we are ready to dole out to keep their attention.
• Wigs: we have to go out looking for fans, hence the need for different wigs to suit the occasion.
• Jewellery: brings are a must-have, you have to accessorise.
• Soda drinks: inordinate thirst for soft drinks as we like to call them can drain our pockets faster than we know it.
• Snacks: that yummy goodness we can't seem to get enough of is digging a hole in our savings.
• Make-up: how can I forget this one? We keep clamouring to get new and 'better' products that are being shoved in our faces on our social media.
• Travelling: are Christmas, Easter and school holiday travels really necessary?
• Borrowing money: especially the ones we borrow from our savings and telling ourselves we will pay back.
• Going shopping with your kids: our kids will find a way to make us buy a toy or snacks that we did not plan for.

Saving money ideas

Now that we are aware of the pitfalls that hinder our savings, here are a few money-saving tips you can adapt to get you started on your journey to save more money.

• Go on the low cut, it's trending too and will save you the cost of buying expensive braids you cannot reuse or wigs.
• Live frugally, you don't owe everyone an explanation and you are the one paying your bills.
• Limit your cable tv subscription to when the kids are home for holidays. Keeping early nights will do wonders for your health.
• Leave your kids at home when you go out grocery shopping or at the least have an agreement with them and stick to it.
• Draft a savings plan for yourself or talk to your account officer about it.
• Use a savings jar or piggy bank. This one can be very useful to save little amounts and will save you the trouble of going to the bank often.
• Go on a savings challenge and see how much control you have over your habits.
• Have a savings goal, it could be weekly, monthly or yearly.
• Save for a short-term or long-term goal and when you accomplish it, it will give your confidence a boost to save more money.
• Stay at home more, and skip those weddings that you feel you must buy Asoebi for or use the clothes that you have in your closet.
• Use public transport sometimes.
• Control your appetite for food, snacks and soda drinks. You should aim at eating healthy and not satisfying every craving.
• Stop borrowing, it just keeps setting you back on your savings goal.
• Buy only items you need not things you want. Those clothes, shoes, jewellery, make-up and wigs are stuff that you can live without.
• Be determined, you must have the desire to succeed at saving more money and you will discover ways of saving money that is unique to your situation.
• Teach your kids money matters, they can help keep you on track.

Q&A

How much savings should I have?

It depends on several factors. Are you saving for a short-term or long-term project? Are you saving money for retirement? Are you putting money aside for emergencies or to invest in a mini-business from home? What you are saving for will determine how much money you should have in your savings.