Do you have a shopping and spending problem?

1. You are constantly trying to justify what you have spent on the most recent spending sprees with new excuses..

2. You hide things such as bank statements, credit card statements, purchase receipts.

3. You have clothes in our cupboard that still have prices tags on them. Some are even in the shopping bag they came in.

4. You are always redecorating your house in order to justify shopping sprees and spending money.

5. You were always an honest person, until someone started to get curious about you spending money, and you had to lie.

6. You remove price tags and say you got the item on sale.

7. You see things when you are shopping, then decide you desperately need it? There was no plan to spend money on something you actually need.

8. You juggle your families finances to hide the fact that you have spent so much money shopping.

9. You buy things for other people and then convince them that they need it.

10. You are the happiest when you are shopping and spending money.

Here’s some ideas to help you stop spending money.

1. Stop the secrets. Tell people you have a problem and they will help you.

2. Find out why you feel the need to go spending money even though you cannot afford it.

3. Get your spouse or a friend to do your shopping for you. Don’t go to the shops until you can control yourself.

4. Cut up your credit cards. Do not carry cash in your pockets.

5. Write a list of all your purchases so you can see clearly what you have spent.

6. Stop and think about it. Do you want to end up in debt up to your ears, risking everything you have.

7. Get some self control. Do not let yourself get into financial trouble.

Having $100 in your pocket always will make you feel better than just having spent it on something you really didn’t want? Curve your shopping habits and stop spending money. If you can’t possibly stop spending money and going shopping then you should probably seek professional help.

People cringe at the thought of buying food that is packaged with a generic brand such as Black and gold. They have this predetermined idea that the food in these packets is somehow sub-standard and is uncool to be seen buying. Even though it is so much cheaper than the regular branded foods, it is still avoided like the plague, unless of course you really are can’t afford anything else.

Just to have a bit of fun I invited some rather snobby friends to dinner, cooked 90% of the meal with no mane goods, and then watched them eat it. They liked it.

Here they were raving about how nice the meal was and one guest even asked for the recipe. When I told them that it was all no-name food they would not believe me. Unfortunately I was not going to get the packaging out the the rubbish bin to prove my point. Their reaction really shocked me because it was like they had never had no-name food. I hate to see them actually end up poor one day and have to eat this stuff.

Anyway, as far as experiments go, it was a success. I really never had a problem with using no-name foods before, and this just reinforced my views.

Reason why people do not buy Black and Gold or No-name food

1. People might see them buying it and think they are poor Well that’s all about their personal image. If they care what other people think of them, then that is their problem. Rich people did not get rich by wasting money.
2. They think the food is of substandard quality It’s like anything you buy. There are good things and bad things in every product range.
3. It is too cheap Sometimes people think that you get what you pay for. But I also know that if you shop around you can always save money.
4. It might be imported It may well be imported but how do you know the brand name items are not also imported. The companies have sneaky techniques when labelling the products origin.

My children absolutely love two minute noodles in a cup which cost anywhere from $1.00 up to 1.50. This doesn’t sound like much, however when you buy a bulk pack of no-name two minute noodles they are around $1.40 for 6 times as much food, minus the fancy cups. There is an easy saving of $5.00 just on two minute noodles. For the basic ingredients of cooking, you cannot go wrong with the cheaper no-name brands. For example, baking a cake needs flour, eggs, sugar, and milk. As far as I am concerned these ingredients are all the same. Milk, cream, and cheese all come from a cow, and the taste is irrelevant when using these ingredients for cooking.

Everyone at one time or another will find something they like and will buy in the no-name range. Here are some of my ideas on what to buy or what not to buy.

Things you shouldn’t buy in the no-name product range

1. Easter Eggs or boxed chocolates The no-name or cheaper chocolates or Easter eggs taste like sugar and sometimes have granules in them. For the chocolate lovers you could never have an un-branded chocolate in your mouth.
2. Toothpaste For some reason they always taste funny and leave a chalky film on your teeth. I consider my teeth to be very important and therefore will not compromise on toothpaste.
3. Shampoo and Conditioner Correct me if I am wrong, however the no-name shampoos and conditioners do not do anything! Maybe if you are bald they might work for you. 
4. Baked beans and Spaghetti All the no-name branded baked beans and spaghetti I have had was filled with a lot of sauce. Once you drain this out you might be left with half a can of the actual food.
5. Some biscuits Some biscuits taste like cardboard and others are fine. It’s trial an error for the biscuit section. I usually buy crackers that will be used with dip but will not buy fake tim tams covered with fake chocolate.

Items you should buy in the no-name product range

1. Noodles Surely a noodle is a noodle. Do I need to say more? Save your money and buy the cheaper noodles because they will all end up the same way.
2. Rice I have tried both branded and no-name rice and have find the cheaper one to turn out just the same. If you overcook the rice it will turn to mush anyway.
3. Toilet Paper This is something we are going to flush down the toilet. Don’t be too fussy about what brand you get. Add up your savings when you buy a cheap brand.. It is amazing..
4. Medicines and tablets Now days when you get a prescription the chemist or pharmacy assistant may ask if you would like to try a generic brand of medicine. I have done this a few times as most of the time they contain identical ingredients and do the same job. You can save between 5 and $10 sometimes.
5. Flours, sugar, Salt, pepper These items are usually used as an ingredient in cooking. Who cares what brand they are. If you are a bad cook anyway, the food will still taste bad.
6. Bread I don’t know about the quality of the individual store brands, however there is no problem using this bread for making toast. I am a little bit fussier with a fresh salad sandwich, it has to nice bread for that.
7. Milk, cream, and cheese Any of these dairy products are great to buy, especially if used in cooking. However, if you wanted cheese for a platter you may need to buy a more ma 

ture cheese, which will cost more.

Generally I go for the cheaper brands that have proved to be up to the same standard of the branded items. I also try to buy local products if possible. However in the end it is a personal choice, and I know that you can make drastic savings on your grocery bill by using even a few no-name food items.

Have you ever stopped and thought about all of these needless possessions and conjured up a genuine reason why you have them? My theory is if you associate the word need with an item, it justifies the copious amount of money you just spent on it. I am constantly reminded about my spending’s and possessions as my mother was born in 1934 when these items were not available. She always says “We never had that when I was young. And we survived.” It would be great to be able to go in the back yard and gather your vegies, kill Betsy the chook, and cook dinner. Not me though. The very thought of killing something to eat makes me cringe with horror. I couldn’t eat that, but will happily buy one from the local butcher. And I do not want to know the details of how he got it to look that way. 

Mums generation learnt to be careful with money, whereas my generation throws it away. Some of my nephews and nieces are travelling down the fast lane quicker than I ever did. They are in the under 30 bracket, but have the Flat screen LCD TV, the flash car, and the fancy mobile phone. Sometimes I wonder if they are keeping up with the Joneses or is it just in their blood. They have been bought up with having everything and now its turned into a necessity. Can they even live without a gadget in their pocket or at least in close range. What happened to working your way up to all of this. 

Keeping up with the Joneses isn’t always as easy as it used to be. Everyone already has everything. Now its just a matter of how big or fast yours goes. My simple word of advice, and I am sure my mother would agree, is to hold onto your pennies because you may need them for that rainy day. Forget about the Joneses, and trying to keep up with them, because they are probably in debt up to their ears…

Think about things before you buy them. Ask yourself a few questions first. Why am I buying this product? Do I need it and why? Can I make do without it? Learn to distinguish between your needs and wants and do not buy something because your neighbour, Mr Jones has it. Even though you may be jealous about the new 30ft swimming pool or the mini home cinema, remember that these posessions will not bring you happiness. 

Comic By Gary Varvel
From the Cartoonist Group.

Having no money at all:

Money could buy you happiness if you won lotto just before you were about to declare bankruptcy. If you have bills to pay then money to pay them is going to put a smile on your face. That is true in anyone’s language. But what about the people that have nothing as in possessions and worldly goods but have all they need. If you do not need money to survive, then you do not need it to make you happy in life. If you need food to survive then food will make you happy. That is enough.

Having loads of money:

People with loads of money usually end up not appreciating what they have in life…the flowers, their family and friends. The small things are not important and they miss the essence of life. This is not always true of course. We look at rich people and wonder why they are not happy? What is wrong with them? The ones that have money and are happy, we are seriously jealous of.

Enough money does buy happiness:

This is my theory. If you need $20 a week for your expenses and you can easily earn that, being happy that you are getting through life can be enough for you. Even people that need $900 a week to pay bills and household expenses can be happy if they can handle that. Its when you can’t get enough of what you need. That’s when your life becomes stressful. If you need money to buy food then you will be happy to get money to buy food.

The money you HAD doesn’t buy happiness, its the money you HAVE right now that can make you happy. It is depressing when you have wasted your money and it is a great ahcievement when you have saved it.

How do we get to the stage where we are content with the money we have?

Start home cooking your meals!

When did America become ‘fast food country’? Many of today’s moms (and dads) don’t even buy whole chickens now because of all the ‘work’ involved in cutting and preparing them. If they even know how to cut a whole chicken!

The point is, when it comes to food, it’s all about ‘instant’ and ‘ready-made’ meals that get served on dinner tables today. As such, start home cooking your meals! Get back to basics and enjoy REALY food. Not only will this be healthier for your family, it will be way more cost-effective too. 

Shop wisely.

First of all, don’t go shopping on an empty stomach. Next, make a grocery list of things you do NEED and intend to use over the week. This will prevent over buying and throwing away spoiled food at the end of the week.

Tone down the cleaning products at home.

Do you really need every type of cleaner under the sun for your home? Actually, a few years ago, I already switched to good old fashioned VINEGAR to clean my kitchen and bathroom because I was getting headaches each time I used those power cleaners. 

Just buy a bottle of cheap vinegar, transfer it to a container with a spray nozzle and add some water to it. Others prefer more water than vinegar in the mix but I prefer a ratio on 3 parts vinegar, 1 part water. 

Other au naturel products I use for cleaning are salt and baking soda! I also use leftover orange peel to freshen up my home, instead of buying expensive deodorizers.

Cut down laundry detergent use.

A couple of weeks ago I read some articles (here and here) about how we use WAY TOO MUCH laundry detergent in our wash cycles. Well, I heeded the advice and for the past month, I’ve cut my laundry detergent use by 50% and yes, I have NOT seen any negative results on my wash!

Live healthier.

It costs a lot to get sick nowadays… so all the more reason to start living healthier.

Stay away from junk food and start cooking and eating real food as mentioned above. Instead of chugging down liters of soda, invest in a juicer and start drinking freshly squeezed orange juice every morning. Start exercising even if long walks are all your time can afford. Start to live healthier and you’ll spend less on ‘maintenance’.

Credit card debt consolidation is about bringing together any existing credit card debts or store card debts onto a new credit card. This a good idea for anyone who has debts on these other cards that they are finding difficult to pay off, and are being made worse by the higher regular rates of interest they are being charged. Consolidating debts to a credit card with a lower rate of interest leaves more of your cash available to be directed towards reducing the debt. The provisos are that none of the debts are on a card issued by the new provider, and that the amount falls within the credit limit you are allocated (in fact, 95% of the new credit limit).

The best approach is to use a credit card comparison website and research the best low-interest credit card balance transfer offers, then go ahead an make an application. You should also make sure that you make your request for a credit card debt consolidation as you are completing the application form. There is a special page for this purpose. This is because the offer period starts from the date the account is opened, so you don’t want to lose any of those precious days at the special rate.

Choosing the best credit card debt consolidation option:

You must analyse the state of your finances to know which balance transfer offer will suit you best. There are four options with credit card debt consolidation:

• The introductory 0% offer – This is normally for a period of six months.
• The introductory low-rate offer – This is usually for twelve months, but you will also find them for six and nine months. Rates vary between 1% and around 6%, depending on the card’s other features.
• The ongoing low-rate offer – This is a great debt consolidation card if it also has an introductory deal included, because you won’t have to worry about a huge jump in the interest rate once the offer ends. The Bankwest Lite MasterCard has such a deal at the moment.
• The life-of-the-debt offer – This allows for a credit card debt consolidation that offers a fixed low rate on the balance transfer until the debt is fully repaid. These are more usually found on Platinum level cards.

Points to keep in mind:

Budget carefully to make sure your debt can be fully repaid before the interest rate reverts to the regular one. You should also pay as much as you can each month and not just the minimum amount.

Last, but not least don’t make purchases on the card you are using for your credit card debt consolidation. You will find that your purchases at the higher rate will not be touched by your repayments until your transfer is fully repaid.

This is a guest post written by Timothy a personal finance writer for Balance Transfer Card.

1. Write down your expenses, day by day - If you could actually see what you are spending everyday then it might shock you into not wasting so much money. If all the expenses are written on a board on the wall it is even worse. This is a real eye opener that everyone needs to do.
2. Never go shopping on an empty stomach - If you go shopping  with starving stomach then you will end up collecting extra junk foods that you may not have bought if you were not hungry. Everything looks good when you are hungry. We all know what it feels like. Even if you are thirsty you start buying lots of drinks. Fill yourself up before you go shopping and you will save loads of money.
3. Make a list of errands before you leave the house – This is good because you will go by a planned path and save your petrol and travel expenses. If you have not decided where to go then you will end up going in circles and wasting your time and money. If you stick to a plan it will also stop you from making unshedualed visits where you could spend more money.
4. Limit the number of cleaning products you use – Many people use different types of cleaning products for different appliances and devices which is not a good idea but only waste of money. It is better to use natural cleaning products and save your money. Cleaning products are a rip off. We do not need them at all. Try vinegar and bi card soda for cleaning the toilet and bathroom, water, eucalyptus oil and dish washing liquid for spray and wipe, and more…
5. Look out for a free car wash – There are several service stations that provide free wash for cars if you spend a specified amount on petrol. This sounds a bit scabby but I pay for water where I live. Washing the car can take a lot of water and if its for free then why not use it. Just make sure the price of the petrol isn’t jacked up to compensate the free service.

I personally like writing down the expenses on a board on the wall for the whole family to see. My children will not ask for money if they see that I have already spent huge amounts of money that day. It works a treat! This method is also good for seeing those hidden expenses that you forget about and just pay. You will be able to see where to cut down and stop wasting money.

1. Primary needs first than the secondary needs

Begin with simple elements like opt for public transport for traveling instead of private vehicles to save money and petrol. All those who have lesser incomes must count on their really basic needs and avoid other expenses. See where you can cut down and do it.

2. Take merit of existing opportunities

Evaluate your hobbies and interests and look for the ways through which you can utilize your interests and skills into  making money projects. Think outside the box and try to earn extra money somehow. Maybe you could mow someone else’s lawn or even clean the neighbours house. There are always jobs around that we all have the skills to do. There is no excuse.

3. Clean up your debt

It is recommended to clean up your debts as soon as possible in the present financial crisis. Develop the priority scale, and one by one clear your debts. This is not the time to sign up for big loans or expensive credit cards either. And if you have extra money keep it safe for those little emergencies.

4. Apply the right strategy of saving 

At first set up a nice goal for saving money. This way you will feel motivated in establishing the financial plans and goals. The priority is for saving money then you can spend the rest of the money for your necessities. Discipline yourself in order to invest and save your funds. You can also consult a financial advisor.

We all know children are not born knowing how to handle money. We need to teach them. Everything we do and say is being recorded by a child’s brain. They are always watching their role models and pick up similar traits and habits. If you cannot manage your money, then how do you expect your children to be able to do it?

Here are some tips on ways to teach your child about money:

1. Allowing your child to earn money and then choose how to spend or save their money is a valuable lesson.
2. When dealing out an allowance it should meet your child’s needs plus a bit extra. That way they can learn to save this money.
3. If you decide to give an allowance, pretend it is for choirs around the house. Money is not free when you get older.
4. Earning money and spending it can show the value of money to a child.
5. When giving a child an allowance, treat it as a paid job. Some children might have a few household jobs to qualify for the allowance.
6. Set a goal for the child to work towards. For example you can show them how to buy a big item that you have scrimped and saved for. When you actually can buy this item it is a great achievement. Later they can move on to bigger items such as a car and house.
7. Make sure your child has a money box and knows the money is building up each time they add to it.
8. Open a bank account with the child’s own name on the account. Let them watch the money grow.
9. Before handing money over to your children, ask what they plan to do with it and discuss it further.
10. Don’t hide your child from poverty. Show them the other side of life and remind them that saving money is a vital part of life.

Here are some quick ways to be a good money role model to your children:

1. Let them see that you are in control of your money.
2. Let them know your goals and make sure they see you achieving them.
3. Advise them every step of the way and use your personal ecperiences as examples.
4. Don’t hide the families finance situation from them. They always know what going on and can learn from the truth.

Spending your money is ok if you are in control of your money. Some very rich families feel “out of control,” and some very poor families have this vital feeling of being “in control.” Help your children learn how to be “in control” of their spending.

Why buy expenisve mossie spray when you can make it yourself very cheaply. I make may own homemade mosquito repellant and it keeps the mossies, sand flies, and flies away.

I am one of those people that always get bitten by insects, when everyone else can’t feel a thing. Here I am scratching and slapping myself while other people are just standing there watching.

I seriously thought that this homemade recipe for mosquito spray would not work…But I am telling you that it really works.

Here is the recipe for the homemade mosquito spray:

1. 1 part Dettol
2. 3 parts Baby oil

Shake the bottle and away you go. I usually put mine in an empty pump spray bottle. Actualy an old aeroguard one. This stuff goes a long way too. It seems to last forever.

I will never go back to paying $5 or more for a chemical ridden can of mossie spray.