How to Pinch Pennies when you're REALLY Strapped for Cash

Writers, like me (and others in "creative" fields) tend to have longer and leaner tight budgetary times than those in "practical" occupations, like engineers. Fortunately, there are ways to stretch those scarce bucks.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

Things You’ll Need:

• Piggy bank.
• Can/bottle recycling container
• Strong resolve to resist impulse buying.

1. Here piggy, piggy..... It may be time to break the bank. Long range budget strategies are well covered in financial articles: cutting down on credit card use and paying them off as quickly as possible, etc. But what about when you have to stretch a minimal number of "expendable" dollars until that next paycheck hits?
   Starting with your weekly budget, establish what's absolutely necessary -for instance, gas and groceries. I also pick up a newspaper every day and usually a mid-day snack.
   Hold off on discretionary or desired "luxury" items until you have the cash available rather than paying by credit.
2. Get your cans down to the recycling center to pick up a couple of extra dollars. Gas and fuel are major money gluttons - and all the more lately. Search for the cheapest gas station in town, often a pump-your-own. Some Internet sites will point you to the cheapest local gas. Keep discretionary traveling to a minimum. Plan and combine errands. Set up a carpool to work, if practical.
   Stave off home heating as long as possible, and keep it barely warm enough. Wear sweaters, etc. and turn heat down even lower at night and when you're out.
   Purchase inexpensive foods that can be used for multiple meals like hotdogs, peanut butter, sliced ham, etc. Individual serving pizzas for a buck apiece and even less expensive Ramen noodles are great options. Look for coupons and weekly savings. Purchase store brand, rather than commercially advertised products. Many store brands, in fact, ARE made by name brand companies but labeled as an in-store product. Buying sodas in 12 packs at the grocery store saves as much as 2/3 over buying individual cans/bottles at convenience stores.
3. Dining out is a surefire budget buster - although not always. Many fast food outlets have dollar, or budget, menus. Even better, take one of your pre-bought 12 pack sodas along to avoid shelling out extra for a drink.
   Those "anything for a buck" stores are great resources for staples like tools, office supplies and many other items. These savings add up.

Tips & Warnings

• If you have a piggy bank or container stuffed with pennies and random coins, now might be a good time to turn 'em in! Some of the larger grocery stores have machines that sort and count them, although they do take a small percentage of the proceeds. Otherwise, you'll probably need to get those paper rolls from your bank.
• Returning redeemable cans/bottles has gotten me through more than one lean cash flow week; so save 'em up if you live in a bottle bill state like mine (Massachusetts). Still, I see many local people throwing cans away. I'm often tempted to ask them if they throw their coins away as well.
• Bottled water is a total scam. As long as your tap water is reasonably potable it's virtually identical to the vast majority of what's sold as designer brand water.