Many people know how important it is to save money, but there is also the perception that saving money means having to deprive oneself of the nicer things in life. This couldn’t be further from the truth, as these unobtrusive tips will show.

Make Your Home Energy Efficient

Mom would say, “Switch that light off!” Well, our elders were ahead of their time when it came to conserving energy in the home way before it became fashionable to do so. It was based on simple economics too – the less you use, the less you pay, which means more money in the bank. And yet, how many of us actually do it?

The savings may seem minuscule when you switch the TV off when no one’s watching. Over time though, this can add up to annual savings of $200 or more! Also, no one has ever ruined their clothes by washing them in cold water (and eliminating heating fees). Likewise, judicious thermostat control can save up to $180 yearly. Switching to energy efficient lighting and shutting down computers at night also means you’ll pay less for electricity. Here are some tools to determine how energy efficient your home is – http://www1.eere.energy.gov/calculators/.

Keep Money Out of Sight (and Out of Mind)

The easiest way to save money is to just save it. That means thinking less about what you could get with that extra $20 and just deposit it in your savings account. Money that is out of reach eliminates the temptation to shop frivolously.

On a grander scale, this means arranging things so that earnings are immediately and directly channeled into your 401(k), individual retirement account or money market account (http://www.vanguard.com/). Again, if you don’t see it, you’d feel less inclined to spend it.

Make a Game Out of Saving

As a follow-up to saving “big”, you can also put away small amounts from time to time. What first appears as petty cash or small change eventually adds up to quite a substantial sum if, and only if, you stick to it.

If you’ve never had a piggy bank, you could start with the way my dad goes about it – at the end of each day, he goes around the house gathering up any and all small change (whether it’s his or not) and deposits it in a jar. He has now amassed a nest egg of a respectable size, which he says will go towards buying his retirement home.

Eat Out Less

Can’t think of a reason to justify spending $20 for a dinner that would cost only $5 to prepare? Neither can I. Not only that, you can save up to $25 weekly by implementing 3 meat-free days. Keep an eye out for clearance prices, which are usually applied to slightly damaged, but perfectly edible food items. Pay attention to the expiry dates though!

Cooking at home can be difficult if everyone in the household works, but each person can take turns to prepare something quick and simple each night. You can start slowly and cook once a week until you can balance work-work and kitchen-work without feeling murderous. You can save a decent sum by simply cutting out the middleman, i.e. restaurants, and probably get more value for what you do buy.

Bring Your Own (Food & Beverage)

I know, the food at the deli is absolutely amazing, but how does it benefit your waistline, or wallet? A sandwich or two is one of those little things that gradually add up. Most people who’ve decided to bring lunch from home are surprised at the difference made when they tally their food expenses at the end of the month.

Few of us can make it through the morning without our favorite cuppa. If going cold turkey on takeout coffee is too big a step, try skipping it every other day and make your own at home. It costs much less to brew your own cup from gourmet beans than it does to buy it from a coffee house.

By a similar token, eschew the bottled drinking water in favor of tap. Nothing says that bottled water is healthier than tap water (http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2006/02/0224_060224_bottled_water.html), and the latter doesn’t have to be bottled at the source and transported hundreds of miles to the nearest grocery store, saving you the cost of packaging and transport. This also means you have a smaller carbon footprint to worry about.

Avoid Paying More Than Needed

If your bank imposes fees for ATM usage, you might want to consider making direct withdrawals or, more drastically, switch banks. Such small fees tend to add up over the year, so make it a point to return movies or books before they’re due to avoid late fees.

Consolidating and paying off debts as early as possible allows you to avoid paying too much in interest fees. Maintaining a decent bank balance prevents you from falling into the overdraft pit, and raising insurance deductibles allows you to pay lower premiums, which leaves you more money at the end of the month/year. More information on insurance coverage can be found here – http://www.statecoverage.org/.

As you can see, reducing expenses doesn’t mean living a spartan life. You can have all, or at least, most of the things you enjoy and still have enough to invest for retirement. The key is to be aware of what you’re spending, and why.

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