Money Savers

Dave Ramsey and FPU (Financial Peace University) have inspired me to investigate my spending habits. I decided to choose five areas where I can save money. I have calculated how much money, by sacrificing certain things, I can save every year. Then, I calculated how much I will have saved by the time I retire (at age 60, in 36 years). It's pretty bind-blowing!

1. buying a soda (we call it "pop" here ;-)) everyday at work.

This costs $.50 a day, and $2.50 per week. Multiply that by 36 weeks of the school year, and I save $90 a year! That might not seem like much, but by the time I retire, I could save $3,240! Just by bringing a water bottle filled from my Brita filter instead of buying a pop (oops! a SODA) for lunch.

2. Diet Coke

I adore Diet Coke. I only treat myself to a 2-liter or 12 pack a few times per month, but the money sure adds up! I estimated that I spend about $10 per month on DC. This gives me a yearly savings of $120, and a savings by retirement of $4,320!

3. Blockbuster Online

Luke and I recently downgraded to the cheapest Blockbuster Online plan. In doing this, we are saving $7 per month. That's $84 per year, and $3,024 by retirement!

4. Check-Out Buys

Whether it's gum, a candy bar, a magazine, or a useless gadget, I somehow always get sucked in by the check-out line merchandise. I'm going to take a guess and say I probably spend about $5 per week on these absolutely unnecessary items. If I cut out these buys, my yearly savings would be $260. Savings by retirement would be $9,360.

5. Fast Food

This is the kicker. Luke eats out a lot for lunch at work, and we both probably eat fast food for a convenient meal at least once a week. So in all, I bet we spend $15 per week on fast food. That's a whopping $780 per year! If we totally nixed fast food, we would save $28,080 by retirement! I could buy a nice, brand new car for that! When you look at it that way, fast food's not so convenient. Plus, it's disgustingly bad for you.

Now for some grand totals: Just by working on these 5 areas, I could potentially save $1,334 per year, and $48,024 by retirement!

What would happen if I kept putting that extra money in an account where it would earn interest? I would certainly be saving/making a pretty penny! Is there an easier way to earn $50,000 or more? I don't think so. It takes time, but will be worth it in the end.

Do any of you have good, creative money saving/earning tips? Please feel free to share, and know that your suggestions are much-appreciated!

Random Ramsey-ism of the day for you to consider:
30 days is NOT the same as cash!