I recently received an email from a reader with a link to an excellent graphic she created about big money wasters. Although the data is based on how Australians spend (and waste) their money, it is safe to say that Canadians and Americans also waste their money on the same things. Some of the numbers may be really surprising, and by sharing this information, hopefully it will help us all to make more informed decisions and lower our wasteful spending.
Does your old and weak body no longer allow you to earn a living? Is your life long savings not sufficient for life after retirement? Do you find difficulties in finding enough spending money due to expensive medicine? Are your successors avoiding you just to deny their responsibilities towards you?
I recently skimmed Suze Orman’s book entitled The 9 Steps to Financial Freedom
Respecting your money means taking care of it properly. To quote Suze: “Your money is governed by how you treat it: it’s that simple. It thrives when you are being responsible, respectful, and doing honorable things with it.”
In other words, don’t abuse it and it will actually take care of you. Spend money within your means rather than spending more than you earn. Be honest with what you have rather than pretending you are rich.
Do you find yourself living for the weekend? Are you just going through the motions week by week and counting down the days and hours until the weekend? If so, you may need to consider looking at other employment options.
So many Canadians find themselves stuck in a rut where they simply look forward to Friday. Have you ever caught yourself on a Monday morning saying to a colleague: “Is it Friday yet?” If you have, then it might be the right time to do some serious thinking about what you are doing with your life. If you do not feel fulfilled with your current job situation, perhaps you need to do something new.
My husband and I enjoy taking at least one road trip every summer. We have found that we end up saving money if we buy a travel guide for the places we are planning to go. That way we can study our destinations in advance as well as find the amenities we need while we are on the road.
We have saved money by being educated about the least expensive places to visit, sleep, camp, etc. One of our guide books helped us save a lot of money as it informed us that we can buy an annual pass for visiting parks in the United States. For $80 US we can go to as many parks as we want without having to pay each time. Without this knowledge we would have had no clue and would have ended up spending a lot more than just $80.