Living within your means and “trimming the fat”

Are you constantly looking for ways to trim the fat on your finances and have more money at the end of the month? If you’re living paycheck to paycheck, you’re not alone! According to CareerBuilder, 78% of American workers are living paycheck to paycheck and more than 50% said they save less than $100 per month.

As Americans, we’ve become dependent on credit to bail us out when times get tough compared to older generations to had more of a “rainy day” fund. Depending on Credit Cards and loans to bail you out of a tough situation is never a good idea as unsecured loans are costly.

The key to living within your means is to make a budget and “trim the fat”, if you will. Print out at least 30 days of bank statement history and see where you might be able to trim. There could be memberships that you forgot about or no longer use that you could cancel. If you have cable, think about alternative options and you could cut your bill significantly. Also, shop around for the best rate on your insurance policies, the savings could be hundreds of dollars a year.

If you still find yourself in a tight spot financially, even after cutting some things out, you might consider adding extra income until you can get some things paid off. The first step to getting out of debt is to plan so you can get back on track!