We have all heard of 'Get rich quick' schemes, and I say with great certainty that 99% of them either do not work or pass into the realm of the illegal. In my experience the best way to make money is getting a full time job and using the money very carefully. This year I have a steady amount of bills coming through and decided to look into the best ways to make and save money.
SAVING MONEY
1. Bargain Hunting
This is probably the easiest thing to do but it can take some footwork, haggling and research. In the days leading up to my last holiday I decided it would be worth while to buy a camera to capture some of the memories. Anyone can pick up a simple point and shoot camera for about $90.00, but I wanted something a little more serious and spent the morning traveling between all the electrical goods stores in town. Most decent wide lens cameras with a fair optical zoom were priced around $290-400.00 depending on store specials. The best deal was found at Dick Smith where they were dropping the price of a particular nice camera from $300.00 to just $199.00. After asking a few more questions I was told that only the display model was left, and asked to buy it. As the packaging had been opened and the camera handled another $101.00 was sliced off the price. In exchange for $98.00 (the price of most point and shoot cameras) I was able to walk away with a Fuji Film FINEPIX S4500 Camera, 14 Megapixels, 9 shooting modes and HD video and a 30X optical zoom. The lesson here is that it never hurts to ask and to shop around. Be flexible with your choices and a clever shopper can find a bargain anywhere. |
| Fuji Film FINEPIX S4500 - $98.00 |
2. Buy Used
One of my favorite places to shop are thrift shops. I can spend hours exploring these places if I am given the chance. Just because something is already used doesnt mean its not worth having. Most of the donated goods in thrift shops find their way there because they aren't worn anymore, or are donated by family member's of the recently deceased. Don't let that put you off. I have a wonderful suede jacket I have been wearing for 3 winters now. It has great deep pockets to keep the hands warm, a good collar and its semi waterproof yet breathable fabric means I'm not super concerned of having to walk in the rain anymore. This was purchased for the low price of $2.50. Some of my better finds include leather combat boots that looked to be worn once for $9.99, A pile of thick wool blankets for $5.00 and various $1.00 leather belts I altered into handy leg sheathes for my knives. |
| Do not overlook your local op shops when looking for clothing |
3. Buy Quality, and Buy once
Despite entry number two I am a firm believer in the saying 'you get what you pay for' 90% of the time. My first car is a perfect example of such a thing. I was ready to learn to drive, but as my parents both had relatively new cars they were somewhat hesitant to let me drive their vehicles. Eventually I caught wind of a cheap car for sale on the side of the road near my house. At this time I was into older cars and fell in love with it immediately. Somehow, I convinced my parents to buy it that night and we headed home in the dark. The next day the problems began... Besides massive electrical problems, the car also had a bad fault in its back tyre, no working aircon, no working radio (or tape deck) no interior light, a faulty alternator, faulty odometer etc etc. I bought this for $1600.00. Skip 12 months ahead and the engine has just blown up while driving to my first aid course. I was taught many things by this experience in regards to buying cars, but most of all it drove home the point that you really do get what you pay for.I see a similar thing in some of my equipment. Back when I first started adventuring I would buy up all kinds of rubbish simply because it was cheap. I went through several bags, knives and electronics before I started to seriously invest in some rugged, reliable brand name equipment. 18 months after making this switch I am still using the majority of the equipment I bought instead of buying new products after each trip.
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| Picture I found on knifetest.com to demonstrate my point. |
4. Maintenance, Maintenance, Maintenance
Maintenance sounds irrelevant at first, but generally things that are not well looked after are needed to be replaced more often.Replacement costs money.
Spending results in loss.
Simple concept.
It doesn't matter what the equipment is. Your car might be due for a service, but things are busy and you really cant be bothered taking it in for another few 1000 kilometers. A few weeks later you are driving to work and the check engine light comes on. Before you reach your destination thick white smoke is belching from your engine bay. The radiator is out of coolant and now your engine is cooked. In hindsight that engine service isn't looking so bothersome... A little work now can mean much less later.
5. Create a Budget
Budgeting is a great was to limit expenditure and maximize savings. In its simplest form a budget is a pre-set spending limit and can help to identify where money is being wasted and work out how much is being saved. Once sufficient information is gained the figures can be plotted on graphs, recorded in charts or written down to help plan for the coming months. Once the areas of greatest expenditure are identified a person can take steps to reduce the amount of money being spent. For example, if $200.00 a week is being spent on food and the budget allows only $150.00 to this area a person knows that food is one of the weak points in their budget. They can then take steps to bring down the amount being spent and add the money saved to their savings account, or move the money to be used on additional projects.
6. Avoid product 2.0
I will admit I was quite bad at this when I was younger. I would buy the latest gadget and within 6 months a new model would be released and I would have to have it. This can be applied to all things, vehicles, computers, phones, TVs, consoles etc etc. The lesson here is to think before you buy. Do you really need the latest equipment when your existing equipment is doing just fine? |
| Chances are you need none of these products. |
MAKING MONEY
Most full time workers still find that at certain times in the year money can be quite tight. Working side jobs can help take some of the strain off. Remember while you are working you can't be spending and that extra cash can go a long way. This list with display some of the more credible side jobs I have come across recently
1. Garage Sales
Garage sales are one of the best ways to get rid of clutter and make a few dollars in the process. You can enhance your productivity by doing a little advertising to draw in potential customers, placing an ad in the local paper and putting up flyers on the noticeboards around town. These are some of the simplest ways to bring attention to your sale. If you are a member of your local Buy and Sell Facebook page a quick post with the details is also a great way to reach a lot of people with minimum effort. Feel you don't quite have enough stuff for a good sale? Chase up your friends, chances are that between the lot of you there will be more than enough junk to pawn off to the masses. Do you live on a block along a main street, or an area frequently traveled by pedestrians? You could always try hosting garage sales for strangers for a percentage of their profits in return for providing a more accessible public sale location.
2. Furniture restoration
Old furniture is everywhere. With minimal tools and some practice even the most hideous whitewashed hardwood table can be sanded back and varnished to display stunning wood grain. A little bit of premixed putty can be used to fill dents and scratches while broken sections can be replaced all together. The possibilities are endless. The local tip, garage sales and thrift shops are all areas to consider when hunting for preloved and abused furniture. You might be surprised at just how much people are willing to pay for old furniture in good condition. |
| Picture from furniturerescue.net |
3. Help out the resident old folk
Thanks to our ancestors breeding out of control in the last century we now have a massive population of people aged over 65. Due to medical advances the human life span is increasing. Although longer lives are a good thing we still know little about combating the aging process, thus a good deal of the population now struggle with basic day to day tasks. A fair example of this would be my Grandmother. She switched off her old chest freezer one night and forgot to turn it back on. It wasn't until 4 days later she noticed and set about cleaning out the spoiled food and semi melted ice. Not being the tallest of people she found she couldn't reach into the bottom to do the job properly and soon enough I found myself heading over to help Grandma out. It was easy enough for me, reach in, scrub the base of the freezer and give it a good toweling. All said I was finished in under 15 minutes, as i made to leave the crafty old lady slipped $20.00 into my hand and refused to take it back.The lesson here isn't to go about taking advantage of the elderly, but instead don't pass up a chance to introduce yourself to them. Besides the fact they can't get on as well as they used to, most of them are very generous and quite lonely. You would be surprised at how sharp they are in their old age, and by the quality of advice they can give in times of need. In conclusion the prospective money really is just a bonus to meeting some great people and getting the chance to help out in the community.
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