Everyone will experience tough times. There will be unexpected events that will create tough times for you. We are going through one now with the government shutdown, rising healthcare costs, unemployment, inflation, and international trade, and tariffs which can all have a financial impact on you. Tough times are expected and getting through tough times will depend on you.

Right now, times are tough for many of us including myself. What can you do to help lower any financial impact enough to get through these times? Here are a few things that are helping me.

Stay In

Stay home instead of going out. Cook your meals at home. It’s much cheaper than eating out. Entertain yourself at home. Have friends over. It’s much cheaper than going out.

Find Freebies

Going out doesn’t mean you have to pay a lot. There are things you can do that are free. See if museums are free admissions. Go to a park. Find out if there are places that are free on specific days and schedule around that.

Look For Discounts

BOGO is my favorite. Buy one get one free is a great deal because you are essentially getting the second item for free. Wait for sales. The holidays are coming up and vendors are sure to offer deals. Clip coupons. I happen to find a BOGO burrito coupon in the mail and fed my family with that.

Take Public Transportation

Public transportation is typically cheaper. You don’t have to pay as much for gas or pay for parking if you are driving into a city.

Ask For A Lower Rate

Ask for a lower rate on your various bills. Call your car and home insurances and see if your rate can be lowered or if a discount can be applied. Call your internet provider and see how you can lower your rate.  Call your credit card company and see if a lower rate can be given especially if you are carrying a balance.

Analyze Your Expenses

Look at what you are spending on and see where you can stop spending. Instead of food delivery service, go pick it up yourself. Instead of gym membership, workout at home. Instead of going to the theaters, stream a movie at home.

Ultimately, it comes down to reducing your expenses. There are creative ways to reduce your expenses. You just need to look for them and you need to accept change. Change was hard for me in the beginning but once you start it becomes part of your life. Similar to exercising. If you haven’t worked out in a long time, after the first workout you will be sore but after a week or so the soreness goes away.

Getting through tough times will have its difficult moments but there are things you can do to make it easier. If you are interested in following my journey, email subscribe here to get alerts of latest posts or follow me on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest.