As much as we’d all love to live worry-free, there’s this little thing called money that we need to make. And when you know that you’re cutting it close where your finances are concerned, it can start to really stress you out. As much as people say that money doesn’t matter, it does. Because we all need money to be able to pay the bills. And it’s nice to be able to live comfortably too. However, money doesn’t make itself. Well, technically that’s a lie, because it can – but you need to know how. And that’s what this post is all about. Right now, you need money. You’re either struggling to get by or you’re doing okay but you could do with a top up. The problem is, you have no idea what you need to do.

When you know you want to increase the amount of money that you have available each month, you often just need to know where to start. If you’re committed to doing this, and you want to live financially well, you’re in the right place. But, you just need the knowledge to make it happen. First of all, you need to know that you’re going to take two approaches to doing this – saving money and making money. Because you need to often cut down on the money that you spend and increase the money that you earn in order to get maximum results. And here are ten ideas to help you to do that.

1. Track Your Spending

The most important thing for you to do when you want to be able to save money each month, is to start actually tracking what you spend. Because you probably think you know how much you spend and what on, but until you do actually start to track it, you’ll never know. And you will be surprised when you see where your money goes. When you do this for a month and then reflect back, you can often identify areas in which you can instantly make a change.

2. Set A Budget

So from here, you’re next step is to create a budget for yourself. And this can actually be a lot of fun. Now that you’ve tracked everything that you spend, you can let it feed into a budget that you set. Create a personal budget spreadsheet and set amounts for every area of your financial life from your monthly bills to your coffee habit. When you do this and keep track of it, you then get instant control over what you spend.

3. Slash Your Bills

From here, you’re then going to want to break down your monthly bills and slash them. Because there are always savings that you can make. From getting a better deal on your personal bills to cutting the cost of your household bills, you will be able to bring down everything. And when you make those key reductions, you’ll be reducing this section of your budget, which then allows you to increase others or even start to save some money aside.

4. Remove The Unnecessaries

At the same time, you will identify costs that you can just remove altogether. Because you don’t always need to spend on the things that you have been spending on in the past. And when you want to save money each month, you will find that there are things that you’ll happily stop paying for or buying.

5. Spend Consciously

Then, when it comes to your spending in everyday life, you should start to be a bit more conscious. While you won’t always want to stop spending altogether (because you still have to live), you should think more carefully every time you pick something up to buy or swipe your card. If you can save on bits here and there, it will add up in the long run.

6. Sell Your Stuff

Now, you’re going to want to think about making some more money. The very first thing to do is to start selling. Because this is often going to be something that you can only do once. Go around the house and dig out things that you no longer need. When you sell old clothes or household items that are worth something, you’ll instantly get cash to top up your money with.

7. Cash In On Creditors

Next, it’s time to go to those companies that owe you money and get it back. And there are many ways of doing this, all that you can get help from. Sometimes, if you were injured on the job at work, you’ll be able to get a payout. Or maybe you were mis sold insurance that you didn’t need? You could also get money back for that too. Exhaust these options next, and see what you can get back.

8. Create A Promotion Plan

Then it’s time to create a plan for your career. Because if you can get yourself a promotion, it’s time to work for it. This won’t happen overnight. But when you think about the steps you need to take to earn more and then work on them, you’ll find that you can easily top up your income over time.

9. Increase Your Income Streams

From here, you’re then going to want to look into ways to increase the amount of income that you get each month. You have your paycheck, of course, but this doesn’t have to be the only method you make money from. Whether you choose to invest, start a side hustle, or get a second job, you can easily increase your monthly earnings if you’re willing to work for it.

10. Rent Out Your Home

And finally, you might also like to think about making money from your home. Because if you have a spare room, a spare garage, or any other extra room, you could rent it out to make money each month. And this is something that shouldn’t cost you any time or money to actually get started with!