Four ways to help boost your finances
People the world over are living through difficult times right now.
Fuel, food, energy – the cost of living crisis has had huge impacts at home and overseas, pushing families closer to the breadline and forcing many to come up with novel ways to make their money stretch further than before.
If you’re looking for ways to protect your finances over the coming months, here are a few ideas that might help you keep costs down and protect against future developments.
Start an emergency fund
Many indications suggest that things could even get more difficult before they start to get better, with energy prices in the UK set to rise again after April 2022’s hike.
If you have any spare cash month to month, now is the time to think about putting some aside and building a pot of reserves that you can draw from at a later date.
Life often gets in the way and unforeseen expenses can have dramatic effects right now, so make sure you’re as covered as you can be for the future.
Have additional sources of income
If you have the time and the talents, you might be able to boost your bank balance by adding a side hustle to your normal job.
Perhaps your field of work is set up for freelancing, or you have secondary skills that you can help others with.
If you’re particularly handy and own a few basic tools like drill bit sets, screwdrivers and more you may be able to offer DIY services to those less confident.
Make money-saving swaps
The first step here is to look at each and every one of your outgoings every month and see what can be cut altogether or swapped for a cheaper option.
Whether it’s swapping out premium groceries, cutting down on subscriptions or trading a gym membership for home workouts, these incremental changes can soon add up and help out.
This regular budgeting will also give you an idea of when things start to get better, by which time you can prioritise which things you might want to bring back into your life.
Pay off any debt asap
Utilising credit cards and overdrafts can help ease the strain at times like these, but it’s important not to go too far and put yourself into trouble.
These products should only be used in emergencies, not to pay for luxuries that you could not afford otherwise.
If you do use credit to make things go further, be sure to pay it off as soon as possible – in full if you can. This stops interest payments from adding an extra burden to your budget.
How are you beating the pinch in the current climate? Share your money-saving and money-making tips in the comment section.
