Creative Finances

Among my circle of close friends, I am somewhat known for my creative finances.  One of the main areas of creative finances that people have asked about is my grocery bill.  For a family of 4, we spend on average about $200 a month.  Yes, you read that right – $200 a month, not a week!

I am creative with my finances because I choose to be, so that I can save and spend money elsewhere, and contribute to leaving a legacy for my children.  Now, this is not a post about groceries, but the thought occurred to me that I apply the same basic principles to finance, whether it is for my business or for my household budget.

So, on that note, I’ll share with you some of the things I do to save on groceries and on business expenses.  Look for the underlying creativity to help inspire you get creative with some of your finances.  It’s time to think “outside the box”.  By the way, a great resource is the Complete Tightwad Gazette by Amy Dacyczyn.

To save on groceries and other household goods:

• Buy in bulk
• Cook from scratch
• Buy basic ingredients
• Plan a menu for a month, and then only go grocery shopping once a month (less times in the store = less money spent)
• Stick to your grocery list
• Shop for the sales, and stock up accordingly (especially on non-perishable items)
• Look for recipes that use inexpensive ingredients
• Purchase meat and chicken close to the expiration date (it’s usually discounted then) – then I brown the meat or cook the chicken and package it in 1-2 lb bags and put in the freezer
• Practice cooking more than what you would eat and freezing the surplus
• Avoid processed food – you are paying for the processing
• Experiment with recipes and keep only the recipes that are good, that your family enjoys and that are easy on the budget

Okay, a few business tips:

• Use free resources when possible – I use Paypal for some of my reoccurring transactions, which has a “business account” that you can get free.  This allows you to create buttons, etc.
• Shop around for the best prices for a service – I switched from Paypal Pro (which has a $30 monthly fee) to a merchant account with Propay (which has an annual fee of $59) – the ability is the same, as well as the per transaction fees.  I also used this concept for my autoresponder and switched from Aweber (because they up your fee at small increments) to IncomeBuddy (because their fee increase is much less and more spread out) for my autoresponder (not to mention the fact that I know the owner of IncomeBuddy and I trust him).
• Only go to the store once a month for supplies – plan ahead so that you don’t need to take an emergency run to the store because you ran out of printer ink.  Remember the more times in the store, the more money you spend.
• Participate in savings programs.  We have the Staples rewards program here locally, and I get money back to use toward more Staples purchases.  It’s free to participate, and I already purchase the supplies anyway, so why not get some cash back?
• Use one credit/debit card for your business – this helps when separating business expenses and also helps you track your expenses better.  We use a credit card that has the best rewards program we have found (the Travelocity Mastercard) and then put everything on it.  But, remember to pay it off every month (or use a debit card).
• Before making any major purchase, think about why you “need” this product, and what value the product will give you for your business.  Also, do research to pick out the best brand for the price (use Consumer Reports, etc.).  This was the case with my purchase of the Flip camera, which has ended up to be worth it’s weight in gold for my business.  Not only was it easy to use, I have recorded hours and hours of videos for my two video training series to date (www.YouNeedMoreTime.com and www.SimpleDirectSalesSuccess.com), plus we have also enjoyed using it for personal videos, so it was a great investment.
• Think minimum for your business – what’s the minimum you need?  Shop around for those basic needs (internet service, phone (we use Vonage for the business line, and are in the process of switching cell phones to Straight Talk for their lower rates), autoresponder, web hosting, etc.) and compare prices.
• Take time to get organized in your business – you will be more efficient and this will also keep you on top of what you need for your business so that you can plan ahead before it becomes an emergency trip/purchase.

At this point, it’s fun to see how creative I can be with my finances.  I love to see the small totals for expenses at the end of the month, and weigh all of my decisions to purchase or subscribe to something based on my return for investment.  How will this improve my “bottom line”?  Will this purchase allow me to increase my profit?  Will this purchase allow me to increase my time?  When you view creative finances as a game, it can become a very fun and profitable experience.

To your success,

Dr. Laura

P.S.  Obviously, another way to get creative with your finances is to increase your income.  If you are in a direct sales company, pick up my free CD: 7 Simple Secrets to Creating a Wildly Successful Direct Sales Business, where I will help you increase your income with your direct sales business.  Or, pick up the entire 28 week video training series!