Make Money and Save Money

I have learned a few things about all the claims that you can make money fast, easy and with no out of pocket expenses; usually this is a ploy just to get your attention and the expenses add up as soon as you say “I am in!”.

Does that mean you can not find that niche that will make you money, no it just means that in order to successfully make money in this world you need to spend a little to get the ball rolling. For instance, most every buisness needs exposure and that costs money, but if you spend wisely and keep an eye out for what really brings in the highest leads you can eliminate what does not work and focus on what does. Advertising is a pain sometimes in the end it is completely worth all of the effort and money you put into it.

Having a few options available to you is your best bet, make sure you only use two or three different avenues at a time until you know what will bring you the results your looking for. Get rid of the adevertisements that cost you more than they make you and focus on the avenues that have a higher traffic rate.

Well we all have out little quirks and tricks to save on our energy consumtion and utility bills, here are a few of mine.

Heating

Weatherstrip your doors and use a draft stopper, if you do not want to purchase one you can gain the same effect by rolling a decorative blanket and laying it against your door. Limit your entries and exits to one door  unless it is an emergency, repeated opening and closing of multiple doors causes your air/heat to be lost rapidly.

Use your storm windows during the winter months and if you do not have any apply heavy duty weather plastic to all but one window per level (you want to maintain some type of airflow throughout your home). One more thing, alot of people sugest you turn your heat up during the day and down during the night but I suggest the opposite(especially if you have little ones in the home). Instead set your heat to 68 degrees during the day, keep all doors to the bedrooms closed as well as the bathroom. Limit your activities to the rest of the house during this time to help the heat build-up in these rooms. When you go to bed your rooms are nice and toasty and there was no need to change your heat setting at all, I do suggest lowering your heat to 65 degrees if you will be gone from home for a significant amount of time.

Water

Wash your dishes and laundry only when you have a full load, avoid your dishwasher if you do not use a large amount of dishes. Follow the recommended settings for both of these appliances, they are recommended for a reason. During the winter turn off the valve to your outside water faucet, this will help eliminate any water loss and possible freezing damage.

Electric

Replace all the bulbs in your house with flourescent ones, they last longer and use less energy to use. Leave lights in high traffic rooms on, it takes more energy to turn a light on than to stay on for a few hours at a time. If you will not use a room often then turn the light off while you are out of it. Unplug any electrical appliance you are not using, a great way to do this with little to no fuss or forethought is using power strips. One flip of a switch and you eliminate power usage of multiple appliances. Reduce your water heater temperature by 10 degrees. Purchase and use appliances that have the green Energy Star, they are proven to reduce your utility bills.

I want to share a few money saving cleaning methods and tricks that I have come across over the years. Some are great if you are trying to be more enviroment consious or “going green” as I have heard it called. There are many things in our kitchens that are great natural cleaners and some will even get rid of small drain clogs.

One thing I use often is salt, I use it to clean my cast iron skillets and as a scouring powder. It takes up burnt on crud like no other cleaner I have used and if you mix a little baking soda to the mixture it helps clear the scent from the room.

If you have a clogged drain and you know its nothing major then vinegar and baking soda is perfect for the job. Pour the baking soda in and around the drainhole and then pour the vinegar on in, use enough to actually se the foam come out of the hole. Once you have loosened the clog start pouring pots of boiling water down the drain to help wash everything down.

If you have jewelry that needs cleaning then take out an old soft bristled toothbrush and some flouride free gel toothpaste and they will sparkle like new. The toothpaste is also great for slightly tarnished silver, if its been too long since their last cleaning toothpaste does not work as well. Think of it as an in between spot cleaner.

Rubbing alcohol poured into a spray bottle is an excellent streak free glass cleaner, plus it disinfects as you go. It is also a great addition to use while dusting, spray a little onto the rag and dust your non-wood surfaces(it will dry out your wood over time).

Raising six young children has taught me the value of saving every penny you can. Over the years I have learned that there are needs and then there are wants for every person, and for each person it will vary. For me a need is something that you must have in order to be healthy like water, food, a place to live and utilities, prescriptions and gas for your auotmobile. Wants are things that you can do without and not suffer because you do not have it.

I know many are thinking that I left a few off there like car payments, credit cards and loan payments. I commonly refer to this category of obligations as a self-inflicted need; we make a consious decision to add it to our list of obligations. While they are valid and should be payed as you agreed, I believe they should be avoided if it is reasonably possible.

I have a saying that I try to live by, “Why use credit when you can pay cash and own it outright?” I have learned my lesson of purchasing an automobile on credit, all it took was having to pay for a car that had been totaled in an accident four years after it was rendered useless. I owned one credit card as an adult and although I payed more than the minimum monthly payment for years one ilness that cost me four months of work meant having to pay an additional $1000 of interest and penalties.

Even though I purchased their protection plan that covered missed payments due to medical illness, I was denied the benefits because the plan was not valid unless you worked a certain number of hours per week and I fell short by three. I have since cancelled that credit card and vow never to own one again, for me the uncertainty of life is too much of a gamble to justify using them.

Just wanted to share a few of my personal views and opinions about buying on credit and share with you my experiences which have led me to vigilantly save every chance I can.