I saw a commercial on CNN about www.FeedthePig.org I and decided to check it out. It is a website with free resources as part of a National Public service campaign, sponsored by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Ad Council. The campaign is designed to help 25-34 year olds work towards long-term financial security. (Not sure why they say up to 34 because the information is helpful to everyone.)
You can sign up for a weekly newsletter with financial tips and free podcasts. I downloaded and listened Episode 15 "What to do with your Tax Refund." It was interesting.
Below are 10 tips from the home page:
- Save a raise. Weren't you living without it yesterday?
- Use your PDA or online calendar to create savings reminders for long-term goals.
- Prepare a larger meal on Sundays; enjoy leftovers through out the week.
- Dust off your library card and watch DVDs for free.
- Pay your credit card in full each month to avoid interest charges.
- Don't forget to check out your company's 401k plan.
- Stop racking up wasteful ATM chargers. Over time it adds up.
- Make your own morning joe at home.
- Kick the habit one and for all. Smoking is hard on the wallent and hard on your health.
- Cust costs by using in-store savings. Buy in bulk.
Have you seen the commercials or heard of this site?
How many of these do you do? I'll definitely keep number one in mind next time my husband or I get a raise. (In this economy that could be a while.)
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Comments: 12
Saving the raise would be nice, but it's not always realistic. Yes, we were living on less money a few months ago, before my husband's latest raise, but then gas was under $3.50 per gallon (it's well past $4 now), and groceries were cheaper, too. The raise he got doesn't cover the difference in what we are spending on gas and groceries.
Carla, I understand your point too. I was figuring up today how much groceries have increased, gas, utilities, and our mortgage (real estate taxes and insurance increases). My husband's raise didn't cover the increases in those this year. But he just got it and we've been coping with the increases, so I think we should at least try to increase his 401k contributions by 1%. My company froze salaries this year. If I'm lucky, I can put this into effect sometime next year for me.
Many of the things they suggest I did over the years. When I paid off a debt I keep writing that same check but put it in my savings or investment account. If not we could always find something to spend (or waste ) it on.
Thanks for sharing. Good stuff.