I was supposed to meet my girlfriend for coffee this morning. I messaged her late last night and got her reply this morning that she was on her way to another coffee morning.
Oh, never mind, I’ll go crawl the mall on my own. Lately I’ve become incredibly conscious of my spending. With the bad economy and all, most of us are affected in one way or another unless you have millions stashed away. Personally I’m getting down to some serious penny-pinching.
Thought I’d share some tips I came up with as I was browsing at the mall (my pupils dilating at every price tag).
1. Compare brands, compare prices. I usually buy a certain brand of rice noodles. Whenever I need to top up my supply, I automatically reach for it. Lately I’ve been looking around and noticed it’s more expensive than some others. I wonder if the other brands would taste as good.
Then I remembered my neighbor had brought over a plate of fried rice noodles for me recently (she knows I love fried noodles, bless her 
. And she’d mentioned that she uses a house brand of rice noodles. Mmm, I remember that plate of noodles had tasted pretty good.
See, it doesn’t mean that if you’ve always been using one brand, you must stick with it forever. Don’t prejudge other brands, give them a try. You never know, it could turn out to be equal or better quality for less money.
2. Wait for the sale. Unless you’re in dire need for an item, don’t rush to buy. Forget the misconception that sales are for the poor folks. I know for a fact that it’s the rich folks that make a dash for the sales (that’s how they got rich!).
I’ve had my eye on a new pair of shoes. I’ve tried it on and love it, but I’m procrastinating. Why pay more when you can pay less?
3. Do it yourself. Eating out can get costly. For the same amount of money or less, you could cook more meals or feed more people.
I love the roast chicken at this place called Dave’s. I thought they made the yummiest chicken and had many a fulfilling lunch there during work break. The price seemed pretty reasonable at the time.
One night, I took the whole family there and the price multiplied by x family members burned a hole in my pocket. Ouch! Since then, I figured there had to be a better way. And there is. Now I make the best darned roast chicken in town!
Okay, that’s all I have for now. Are you a newly-inspired penny pincher too? Great, let’s pool our resources. Drop your penny-pinching tips into the comments box and let’s work on it together . What do you say?
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by minutechaser - 6 Comments →
. Initially some stores were kind enough to give out free recyclable bags with purchases exceeding a certain amount. But not any more!
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