I have posted a couple of times about ways to save money.. here was a couple, and here was a couple more.

It’s time for us to talk about putting money back in our pockets. You know…ways to save. I have a couple that are good ideas, and a couple that just sounds a little nutty. But hey, if it works…
First off, think about where you spend a LOT of money each month and try to tackle those places first.

Most of you will instantly think of credit cards, and that may well be true. But what about your cell phone bill? What are you getting for all that money anyway?

SAVE ON CELL BILLS!

I recently had to make changes to my cell plan because well, you all know, I am in a tight spot financially. So, first, I went online and checked out what we were getting in our bill. You know, you get charged a whole lot of money for stupid stuff like government fees and surcharges. Sigh. Then I just got on the phone and called to ask questions. I mean what could hurt, right?

So here is what happened:

I contacted my phone co. and asked what they could do to help me out. I found out through that conversation that they offered discounts for employees of certain companies – one of which my hubby works for. CHA-CHING! 15.00 a month off. Then we found out that in six more months we were dropping off the payment plan and would be losing 27.00 more dollars a month. Well, as it turns out, we don’t need to do much else to our cell plan to make it more affordable. But you MIGHT! So get on the phone and call your cell provider and see what they can do for you. Most of them offer a senior citizen discount!

Now, another way to save would be by taking the money you are currently saving on things and PLUNK it into a jar. Yes, that sounds pretty dang radical, but all my suggestions are for a month (unless you love it so much you do it from now on and that’s okay too!)

SAVE YOUR SAVINGS!

I asked for cash when I used coupons. Back in the day, you never got it off your bill, you always got it back in cash. They stopped doing that I guess when debit cards came into vogue. Now, ask for CASH. Take those quarters and dollars from coupon clipping and plunk it into a jar, I have one called my MID LIFE CRISIS jar. And it is, isn’t it??

You should also be shaking down the couch cushions for loose change and stuff it off in there too. Any change you get, put it in your jar. Once a month, take those weird things called coins, and roll them up and take them to the bank. I put them in my SAVINGS account because, well, that’s what it is, right?

I also use my Kroger store card to make grocery purchases and I get $$ off my gas bill when I fill up my car. That’s a great help when it comes to as much as 30 cents off a gallon!

Now for a nutty idea…cut your dog’s toenails at home, cut your own hair, cut your own grass, and you can CUT down on money going out of your bank account because you are too dependent on others to do things you can do yourself. Pretty crazy, huh?

Just start today looking for ways to get more money back into your pocket and I promise you will find them.