9 Ways I Plan on Saving in 2010

[bmpennington11]

I wrote a huge blog tonight on the ways that I plan on saving money in 2010... I felt like I could also share this information on a forum all about saving money too!

Here are the nine tips:

9 Personal habits to change:

1: Leave the debit and credit cards back in the dorm/room. Take only the amount of money that you need plus maybe another five or ten dollars to cover any costs that may incur sporadically. Regardless, this means planning efficiently in what you and your posse intend to do for the evening.

2: Instead of going out with your friends to organizations which cost money then stay in and watch a movie or some TV. Play board games. Stay in. You can have the same philosophical discussion over scrabble as you could at Qdoba or Ice-Skating.

3: Use your vehicle as little as possible. Gas = money. If you are in a location which is surrounded by businesses, parks, and other establishments, walk there. You also don’t lose your parking spot that way.

4: Keep up with how much money you actually have in the bank. Knowing how much money you have can actually inhibit some impulsive spending. Plus… you are more conscious of the $$.

5: Do not disregard the power of change. Pocket change, change in the car, change you find on the street.

6: Use your meal plan wisely. Obviously, you won’t have to spend that extra money if you eat the school’s cafeteria rather than the McDonald’s down the street. If you don’t want to spend a lot of money, yet, you still don’t want to eat the caf, try cheap food like ramen, popcorn, and oatmeal.

7: Try to save laundry for the home, unless it’s absolutely necessary.

8: You don’t have to have that new cd, that new shirt, etc. You can save that.

9: No drinking. If you have to, try to be cheap about it at least. Although I say that I’m not going to make a list of things to change, well, this is also on my list. Try to not drink. Every year, college students spend $5.5 billion on alcohol.

I really hope that this methods will help me save money but also help my readers too.

Thanks! And I hope it helped!

[bmpennington11]

Tell me what you all think and how I could add to this!

[happygirl]

These are ideas all young people could benefit from. Being a mom to college students myself, I especially like the last idea! With this attitude, I'm sure you'll go far in life.

[Joan.of.the.Arch]

Well I have a maybe weird question for you. Will your cards be safe left in your dorm room? Does the dorm provide something like a safe deposit box where valuables can be kept--sort of like hotels do at the front desk?

My one idea for you is that you might want to create an actual separate savings account so that when you have saved a little bit you can put it where it will seem even more not to be touched and less accessible anyway....If your are disciplined you can simply create sub-accountsof your checking account on paper. You could keep all your money in one bank account but in your mind only a certain portion of it is for any spending at all, while another portion of it is not to be touched so that you can save for longer term goals.

Does your campus issue debit cards for use on campus only? Do you find yourself having to buy more value on the debit card? If so, is there any way to be more careful with that?

[mom-from-missouri]

About #9--no drinking--other things go along with that--such as higher grades which could result in more scholarships. I had 3 suite mates in college. 2 were partiers and flunked out. I and the other "straight-laced" gal wern't, and although we weren't always the brightest bulb in the pack, we made it to class, no hangovers, no missed classes...and I got a second scholarship the 2nd semester of my freshman year based on my first semester grades.

[bmpennington11]

Well I have a maybe weird question for you. Will your cards be safe left in your dorm room? Does the dorm provide something like a safe deposit box where valuables can be kept--sort of like hotels do at the front desk?

My one idea for you is that you might want to create an actual separate savings account so that when you have saved a little bit you can put it where it will seem even more not to be touched and less accessible anyway....If your are disciplined you can simply create sub-accountsof your checking account on paper. You could keep all your money in one bank account but in your mind only a certain portion of it is for any spending at all, while another portion of it is not to be touched so that you can save for longer term goals.

Does your campus issue debit cards for use on campus only? Do you find yourself having to buy more value on the debit card? If so, is there any way to be more careful with that?

Thanks for the ideas and the input. I will most definitely have to try out some of these ideas especially concerning my accounts. As for being safe in the dorm room... that's a very valid point to bring up and I could kick myself for not thinking about that. My dorm room locks which provides me with enough comfort to leave them in the dorm. However, it might be a good idea to get a lock box or even suggest the idea of security boxes that we could rent out in our campus center.

I should definitely elaborate a little more on that subject in my blog... thanks!

[bmpennington11]

I know what you mean. My first year of college proved to me that I couldn't handle being a devoted partier. In fact, it reflected in my grades and I was actually uncertain of the reasons I chose to party. After re-evaluating my stance on it...I chose to almost give it up entirely. Now I party only a few times a year... and my grades are soaring. In fact, I've received a few scholarships myself from altering my poor choices.

Thanks for your input!

[Beppington]

9: No drinking. If you have to, try to be cheap about it at least. Although I say that I’m not going to make a list of things to change, well, this is also on my list. Try to not drink. Every year, college students spend $5.5 billion on alcohol.

HAHA! I like this one ... "If you have to ..."!!!

Of course, if you "have to", you may need to join AA.

[swanson719]

Savings

While the debit card idea is good, it's not always practical. I'm a huge Dave Ramsey fan, and this is the one thing I think we have the most problem with. We tend to spend more with cash than with the card. We know more whats on the card, and are so used to using it as opposed to cash. To us, cash represents extra money, and gets spent fast. If you use the debit/credit card a lot, then leaving it at home is good, so long as you can accurately figure out how much it will cost to fill up your gas tank.

[Saving_spree]

Nice tips for saving money.. I agree with 9th & 7th..

[Mike75]

No Stupid Gifts

When in college, I wasted a lot of money in giving stupid gifts and surprises to the girls I dated. I later realized what a huge waste of money that was. So, don't act like a love stuck puppy and don't waste your money.

[SoCalifrugal]

For the cards, consider investing in a small lock box. We have a plastic box that you can loop around something such as a bed post (but try to find something bolted down). My husband already had it when we got married, so I don't know how much it costs. You can also put some cash in there and force yourself to forget about it. That way you can have cash on hand in case of an emergency.