The fastest and easiest way to get a raise and have more money is to identify quick and easy ways to cut your monthly expenses.

The number one thing that stops people from saving money is not their inability to make more money, but it’s their expenses.

And the interesting thing is, your expenses are the thing you have the most control over.

So I’ve identified 9 quick and easy ways to cut your monthly expenses.

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Most people’s income isn’t growing at the same rate that their expenses are growing. So this means stop spending so much.

Stop focusing so much about how much money you bring in and start focusing on how much money goes out.

These 9 quick and easy ways to cut your monthly expenses are things you can do with just a little bit of discipline and planning.

1. Unsubscribe

Unsubscribe to some of the frivolous apps and internet services that you no longer use or need. Everyone is paying $3.99 or $9.99 or $29.99 for something they absolutely haven’t needed in a year.

Take inventory of those hidden services that are coming directly out of your PayPal or checking account and cut them off ASAP. If you don’t use it, get rid of it.

2. Budget Discipline

Focus on your budget and hit it.

Do a UNIQUE monthly budget each and every single month. DON”T miss. This will simplify your money and put you squarely in control of it.

This way you know exactly what’s going out in the expense column. When you focus on something, you have a better chance of achieving it.

A unique budget, with discipline, means you are accounting for the baby shower, the best friends upcoming birthday gift, or the extra gas for the 2 unexpected trips you have to make this month.

3. Cancel the Gym

Yes, I said it. Cancel your gym membership. COVID-19 has shown a lot of folks that you simply don’t need a gym membership.

Unless you want to swim in the winter, play indoor basketball with friends, or do a group cardio class, a gym membership is just not as necessary as we once believed it to be. The only equipment you really need, is YOU!

Check out one of my favorite YouTubers to get a great workout without equipment.

4. Go Plant-Based

One of the quick and easy ways to cut your expenses, is to cut back on the amount of money you spend by changing your diet.

By not buying meat, and replacing it with more fruits, more vegetables, more nuts, more seeds, and more cruciferous greens, it will balance out your checkbook.

Cut out, or cut down significantly, on some of those staples of the good olé’ American diet like milk, eggs, cheese, bread, chicken, pork, and beef. If you do this, you will be shocked at your grocery budget.

5. Cook at home

Being lazy when it comes to food preparation and not cooking at home, costs you more than you think. Or said another way, eating out is costing you a lot!

Check out the chart below.

Yes, it’s time consuming to prepare and cook meals at home. Yes, it takes some planning and diligence on your part. And yes it will take some getting used to.

But it’s worth it. It’s better for your health and better for your wallet!

6. Personal Grooming

Do your own hair, nails, toes, and all of the other things you believe you need to do to pamper yourself. If you spend an average of $60 a week on grooming yourself, that is about $240 per month.

That is not as far-fetched as it sounds. I know people who don’t consider themselves “high maintenance”, who that amount, or more, each month.

7. Delay Pleasure

Every time you want something, wait 2 weeks to get it.

One of the reasons we spend so much is our inability to delay pleasure, because of our now now now culture. Everything is microwaved, fast, super high speed, and at our fingertips.

Slow Down! When you practice delaying pleasure, you learn discipline. When you learn discipline with money, you learn to manage yourself and your money, better. And in the end, you have more of it.

Click here to learn about research into the psychology of instant gratification and it’s intersection with human behavior and the marketing world

Marketers spend billions of dollars a year studying human behavior and buying patterns, and they rely heavily on your inability to delay pleasure! so stop falling prey to their tactics and wait a few weeks!

8. Shop around for Car Insurance

If your situation changes, or even if it doesn’t, shop around to see if your car insurance can be reduced. Many times as you age, as your cars get older, and as your situations change, auto insurance becomes less expensive.

And often, we just simply don’t even think about it! Click here to do some research and your homework!

This one simple thing could save your hundreds of dollars a year. It’s makes more of a difference than you think.

9. Window Coverings

If you live in an area that has 4 seasons, this is one of the quick and easy ways to cut your monthly expenses many people overlook. When it’s hot, keep the blinds and window coverings down or closed so the sun stays out.

When it’s cold, raise the window covering, or open the blinds, and let the sun in. When it’s spring or fall, open the windows accordingly.

I’m not telling you that this will save you tons of money and turn you into a wealth building machine. But I am saying any little bit helps.

The bottom line for quick and easy ways to cut your monthly expenses:

Pay close attention to the “expense” side of your money. Your expenses matter even MORE than the income side of the equation, because you 100% control your expenses.

Be sure to resist the urge to spend more as you earn more.

The key to getting along with a little bit less, is to do it in easy-to-do ways that don’t take a lot of effort, but at the same time, allow you to invest more, save more, and keep more money in your pocket.

Click HERE for 1-on-1 help with getting focused

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Eric is the founder of Smart Money Bro, a blog about empowering people and discussing practical ways ordinary people can be extraordinary with their money. He only writes about things that he has done, and that actually work.

He’s made mistakes and has turned his financial future around, and is now in the position to help others do what he’s done. Read More