10 Incredibly Stupid Ways To Spend Your Money

Does anyone enjoy wasting their money when they don't have to? Of course not, but people do it all the time. Wasting money can have a huge negative effect on your finances and make it much more difficult to save and invest for your future. The first step to stop wasting money is to know the most common wasys money is wasted.

1. Avoidable Fees
People pay fees they don't always have to out of laziness and negligence. This doesn't make a whole lot of sense, but happens more often than you think. These fees include interest fees, overdraft fees, late fees, and finance charges. If your checking/credit/loan service is taking a lot of your money, try to find out the reasons why and try to stop paying them. These fees have a way of snowballing, which can take a bigger bite out of your income. Banks usually have overdraft fees, and negative balance fees that can work together to rob you if you're not careful.

2. Gourmet Coffee
Gourmet coffee drinks are a big waste of money. The coffee is good, but the price is not. People will make a big fuss over four dollar / gallon gas, but don't blink at the sight of a five dollar cup of gourmet coffee. Buying expensive gourmet coffee drinks has become more fashionable recently, but that doesn't mean it makes a good financial choice.

3. Unused Memberships And Services
Unused memberships and services are a complete waste of money. Sometimes memberships and services are unused but still paid for because of billing contracts. Whether it's your cell phone, TV, internet, or health club, you should always be careful before agreeing to a billing contract. There are companies that provide these services on a month to month basis too, which is something to consider.

4. Alcoholic Drinks
Some of the highest profit margins in the restaurant/club business is on alcoholic beverages. If you buy a beer at a restaurant or club, it is not uncommon to pay 5 to 10 times as much as the retail price. And that's just for beer. If you buy a mixed drink drink, the price can be even higher. A jag bomb typically calls for a half can of red bull and a shot of Jager Meister and can cost about 10 dollars. If you buy a can of red bull for 2$ and a liter of Jager Meister for $20, the retail cost of a jag bomb comes out to 2$.

5. Small Convenient Purchases
People know they can buy a 2 liter (67.62 oz) soft drink at a grocery store for a dollar, but won't hesitate to pay the same price for a 20 oz soft drink at a gas station or vending machine. Soft drink manufacturers have convinced us that paying a dollar for a 20 oz soft drink is a fair deal, but this isn't the case. Other small and conveniently packaged items like chips and candy are also typically overpriced. Keep snacks in the car to avoid buying these things at gas stations and convenience stores.

6. Brand Name Clothing
It's ok to buy brand name clothing to look and feel your best, but sometimes it doesn't make sense. People buy brand name clothing to associate themselves with particular brands and images. The problem is that most people aren't able to identify what brand clothing you wear and usually don�t even care. This is especially true for pants, underwear, socks, and ties. So limit the amount of brand name clothing you have in your wardrobe so you're not paying brand name prices for everything. A nice top from a fashionable retailer and a cheap pair of pants from a big box store is a smart way to limit your brand name clothing.

7. Cigarettes
Smoking is bad for your health and your finances. If you smoke, consider quitting for your financial and physical well being. Think about how many packs you smoke each day and calculate how much it costs over a month. You might be surprised how much those small cigarette purchases add up.

8. Gas / Fuel
Energy prices always seem to be going higher and higher. If you're driving a car that has poor gas mileage, you may want to consider buying something more fuel efficient. It will help save you money at the pump and help improve the environment.

9. Bottled Water
It's ok if you don't like the taste of tap water. In many cases, it doesn't taste pleasant and can even be unsafe to drink. So wanting higher quality water is definitely a valid desire, but bottled water is not the most financially savvy choice. Bottled water, even the generics, costs more than gas. This is a problem because you can get the same quality of many bottled waters in your own kitchen using a filtration system. Brita and Pur both sell different types of filters that will make your tap water taste as clean and pure as bottled water. Plus, it's fresh from your tap and doesn't stay on a grocery shelf for months.

10. Full Price Goods
Paying full price for anything is something that can easily be avoided. Every week, there are grocery sales. Every season, there are clothing sales. Every year, there are holiday sales. If you hold off purchases, or buy early, you can save yourself a lot of money and get more of the things you want. Look out for Sunday coupons for grocery stores, end of season sales at your favorite clothing retailers, and black Friday sales for anything.

Bonus: Eating Out Too Often
It's perfectly normal to eat out every once in a while to celebrate a special occasion with friends and family. But if you find that you get most of your food from restaurants and delis, instead of grocery stores you're making a poor financial choice. If you eat out for lunch every day at work, consider the costs over a month. If the average lunch costs 7$, that comes out to 140$ a month. Most people cringe at the thought of paying 140$ for anything on a monthly basis, but you can easily spend that amount and more by just eating out. So try to find foods that will fill you up and satisfy you at home so you won't break the bank by eating out all the time. And if you really must go out, do your best to save money oneach meal. 

Common Problems Involving Friends And Money

Do you value your friends? Do you value them more than money? We hope you can answer yes to these two questions, but even if you can, there still is a chance you might lose friends because of money. This happens from time to time and can ruin even the strongest friendships. To help keep all of your friendships intact, learn these five common problems involving friends and money and try to avoid them.

Starting A Business
Starting a business with a friend might seem like a wonderful idea for several reasons. You'll be working with someone you trust, you'll be doing something you enjoy, and you'll be making lots of money. These are all good and valid reasons to start a business with a friend, right?
The fact is that a good friend doesn't always make a good business partner. Just because your friend is fun, and shares similar interests to you does not mean he or she can run or manage a business successfully. Another important thing to remember is that most businesses end up failing. A failed business can be a huge financial burden that can haunt you for years. And even if your business is successful, you and your friend must consider several important questions to avoid even bigger problems. How will the profits be split up? What position within the business will you and your friend take? Who has more power over the business? Does either friend have the option to buy out the other friend? If you can't thoroughly answer each of these questions before getting started, it is very likely things will go awry.
The best thing to do is to find business partners outside your circle of friends.

Lending And Borrowing Money
When money is lent and borrowed between friends, the trouble starts when the money is never paid back. This happens for two main reasons. The first reason is that the borrower assumes the lender won't mind a delayed repayment, because of the friendship. The second reason is the lender doesn't feel comfortable enforcing the repayment, again, because of the friendship. These two reasons illustrate how lending and borrowing money between friends just isn't a good idea.
To avoid this problem yourself, consider adopting a policy to never lend or borrow money with your friends. There are a few exceptions to this rule, however. For example, if your friend forgot his or her wallet at home, and wants a beer, go ahead and pay for it. But if your friend needs a $10,000 business loan, be firm and just say no.

Hiring A Friend
Maybe you're looking for a photographer, caterer, or editor and want to hire a friend for the position. It might seem like a good idea and is more convenient than going through the process of finding and hiring a freelancer. But as you might guess, there are some problems that can pop up if you hire a friend. The biggest problem occurs when your friend ends up performing below your expectations. When this happens, it puts you in a very difficult position. You will feel bad for wasting your money on a poor quality job, and you might have to hire someone else later. Now, getting poor quality results is not uncommon in the freelance world, but there is less conflict between the client and freelancer because they usually never see each other after the job is complete. But when the freelancer is your friend, this just isn't the case.
To prevent this problem from happening to you, avoid talking about things that your friends would be interested in working on. And if a friend ever offers their services to you, say no, but be polite and respectful. If you are a freelancer yourself, simply resist the urge to offer your services to your friends, and find clients outside your circle of friends.

Gift Giving
Gift giving is a healthy and fun activity to do between friends over holidays and other special occasions. But there are a few problems that can arise when gifts are exchanged. The first problem occurs when one friend gives another friend a gift that is overly expensive or extravagant. Gifts like these are often given with the best intentions but are usually both inappropriate and unnecessary. To avoid this problem yourself, don't spend a fortune when buying gifts for your friends. Use your best judgment and remember the old saying, it's the thought that counts. And if you are ever the recipient of an overly expensive gift, be gracious and simply accept what is given to you.
The second problem occurs when one friend gives another friend a gift that he or she will never use. When this happens, the recipient might feel uncomfortable and pressured to use something he or she might not want to. And if the gift isn't used, or not used often, the gift giver might feel offended or hurt. To make your gift giving experiences more pleasant, put more time and effort into your gift decisions. If you are ever the recipient of a gift that is unwanted, be honest if confronted about it. Tell the gift giver that you do appreciate the gift but it doesn't quite fit into your life. If the gift giver is more of a social acquaintance and not a close friend, it may be acceptable to tell a white lie in this situation.

Difference In Salary
How often do you see CEOs and factory workers spending time with each other after work? Probably never. We tend to associate ourselves with people in our own socioeconomic class because of social pressures and our own discomfort with people different from ourselves. It is perfectly natural to feel this way, but what happens when our old friends become much more or much less wealthy than we do? Should we keep these friends or lose them? It might be difficult to answer that question. A more important question to ask is: are friendships worth losing over differences in wealth? Try to remember that we're all still human no matter how much money we have or don't have. Reach out to your old friends regardless of their wealth. And if you're ever snubbed, take comfort in knowing you at least tried, and that you don't value money and status over friendship.

Money Saving Sites

There are many free websites online today that can help you find bargains and save money. A lot of these sites are run by companies, passionate deal hunters, or both. If you're looking to find the best prices online, or connect with other deal hunting fanatics, these sites are for you. These seven sites were selected from hundreds of similar sites and are either the best of their kind, or offer a unique or special service.


1. Fat Wallet ( fatwallet.com )
If you should know about any one deal site, you should know about Fat Wallet. The reason why Fat Wallet is better than most other deal sites is because of its community. The Fat Wallet forum is populated by over 500,000 of the most savvy and passionate deal hunters around. You won't find a community of that size and quality very easily online. So check out the Fat Wallet forum's hot deal section and browse around. Fat Wallet also has a coupon / cash back section which has some deals, but the forum is really where all of the best deals are.

2. Deals Plus ( dealspl.us )
Deals Plus is another great community driven money saving site that has an unusual but memorable domain name. Each of the deals on Deals Plus are submitted by its users. The interesting thing about Deals Plus is that it has a lot of features similar to a social network. You can add friends to your profile, send messages to other users, and comment on different products with other members. These features can't be found on many deal sites, making Deals Plus a unique social network for deal hunters. The good news though is that you don't have to be an active participant in the social networking aspect of the site to take advantage of the deals. All of the deals on Deals Plus are accessible to anyone that visits the site.

3. Deal News ( dealnews.com )
Deal News' main strength is the sheer volume of deals posted on their site. There are many sites like Deal News, but none come close to Deal News in terms of size. Each day, Deal News posts hundreds of deals to their site which you can keep track of by subscribing to their RSS feed or newsletter. Deal news also has a forum, but it isn't quite as large or active as other deal sites. Again, the main benefit of Deal News is the large number of deals they post every day.

4. Woot ( woot.com )
Woot is an online store with a business model different than most. It only sells one product per day at a reduced price. Each day, a new product is offered until it is sold out. Some days, Woot sells mystery bags for $5 dollars a piece which can contain just about anything. Woot also has two subsites: Woot Wine ( wine.woot.com ) and Woot Shirt ( shirt.woot.com ).

5. Slick Deals ( slickdeals.net )
Slick Deals is a site very similar to Fat Wallet, where there is a large emphasis on the community forums. The forum on Slick Deals has over 300,000 members and over 11,000,000 posts. The forum is very actively updated with hot deals, freebie deals, coupon deals, and contests by some of the internet's most passionate deal hunters. One advantage of the Slick Deals forum over the Fat Wallet forum is that each Slick Deals thread is categorized, making deal browsing a lot easier.

6. Mint ( mint.com )
Mint is a free financial tracking service that can help beginners and personal finance geeks handle their finances more easily. After signing up for a Mint account, you can add the checking, credit, investing, and savings accounts you want to keep track of. Mint allows you to see where your money goes in real time and makes budgeting a breeze. Mint also makes use of simple graphs and charts to make it easier for you to visualize where your money goes. Some of Mint's newer features include local spending comparisons where you can compare your spending habits to others in your area. It's a wonder they offer this service for free and is certainly something to check out.

7. Dealighted ( dealighted.com )
Dealighted is a website that aggregates the best deals from many different deal sites. Dealighted also allows users to submit deals, which increases the number of deals on their site. The reason why Dealighted is a useful site is because it puts the best deals in one place so you don't have to scrounge around on multiple sites.

Extreme Ways To Save Money

Not having enough money is a common problem for many people. It is very easy to overspend and over borrow which can lead to large and daunting debts. Sometimes the only way to pay off these debts is to take extreme measures to save money. Most of the things described in this article are extreme and not recommended for everyone. Always consider your health and safety before attempting any of the following.

1. Live In Your Car
If you're paying too much for rent, you do have the option of living in your car. If you live with your girlfriend, or live in an unforgiving climate, you definitely should not try this. It is certainly one of the most extreme ways to save money on this list, and requires a strong will and a very desperate financial situation. You can get a gym membership to shower, groom, and change your clothes and go to a laundromat to wash your clothes. With a gym membership, you can spend your time exercising and working out instead of going out and spending more money. A gym membership and laundromat will cost anywhere from 50-150 dollars a month which is likely a fraction of what you pay for rent.

2. Eat More Rice, Beans, And Pasta
If you're spending too much money on food, consider adding more rice, beans, and pasta to your diet. These foods all are extremely inexpensive and can fill you up quickly. The only drawback is that each of these foods are extremely bland. To fix this, try using simple sauces to make eating them more tolerable and less boring. If you make rice, beans, and pasta regular staples of your diet, you'll be saving yourself a lot of money.

3. Cancel Your Cable And Internet
This is one of the most practical ways to save money on this list. Canceling your cable TV and internet will save you a good chunk of money each month and will make it possible for you to do more productive things with your time. Instead of sitting around at home watching TV or surfing the internet, you can start exercise, volunteer, or learn a new hobby.

4. Buy Everything Used Or Barter
The biggest advantage of buying things used is cost. You may get something with a little bit of wear and tear, but the savings are usually worth it. This is especially true for cars, clothing, and furniture where you can easily save 50% or more off of the retail price when you buy used. In addition to buying everything used, you can also try bartering for things you want and need. This will help you get rid of things you don't need and help offset the costs of getting new things.

5. Cut Your Own Hair
Cutting your hair can save you a lot of money in the long run. If you have a simple buzz cut, there's no reason why you shouldn't cut your own hair. All you need is an adjustable trimmer and a mirror. If you have a more complex hair style, it can be more difficult to learn how to cut your hair, but it is definitely doable.

Bonus: Plan Your Diet Around The Sunday Coupons
Most grocery stores have discounted items they sell at a loss. If you only buy and eat these foods, you're basically paying less money for food than the grocery store. This can make it difficult to eat exactly what you want, but it can save you a lot of money.

5 Things You Should Always Buy Online

The internet's speed, convenience, and sheer enormity makes it a great place to shop and save money on many different things. If you're looking to save a few bucks here and there, in a fast and convenient way, you should make an effort to buy the things on this list online instead of at the local store.

1. Books
The internet has revolutionized book shopping and has made it possible for book stores to run more efficiently and offer better prices than ever before. Online book stores usually have lower overhead costs than traditional brick and mortar stores, which means lower prices for consumers. Online book stores also offer much wider selection of books to choose from. Additionally, the market for used books is huge online. This is especially beneficial for students who don't want to empty their wallets to pay for text books.

2. Electronics
Consumer electronics is another product category that benefits from the cost efficiencies of running a business online. An added benefit of buying consumer electronics online is that many of the bigger ticket items like TVs are bundled with free shipping offers which lowers costs even more. Much like books, there is a much vaster selection of consumer electronics online than in big box retail stores. If you walk into a Best Buy or Wal Mart looking for a mouse, you may only have a few to choose from. This obviously isn't the case if you're shopping online.

3. Computers, Hardware, Accessories
If you're looking to upgrade your computer, the best place to find and buy the parts you're looking for are online. Much like the other types of products on this list, computer hardware is both cheaper and in greater selection online than in traditional brick and mortar stores.

4. Plane Tickets, Hotels, Car Rental
Thanks to the wonders of modern technology, it is possible for average consumers to find great deals on plane tickets, hotels, and car rentals without the assistance of a travel agent. More and more tech savvy consumers are choosing to plan and book their own vacations online to get the most choice and lowest cost vacations available. If you're planning to go on a trip in the near future, head over to your computer and find some deals online.
 
5. Used Goods
The internet is a great place to connect buyers and sellers of used goods of all kinds. You can find a vast array of used cars, houses, clothing, athletic equipment, electronics, movies, and books online at very low prices. The internet is the biggest garage sale in the world and doesn't require you to drive anywhere. Used goods are nice and cheap online because they involve person to person interaction. Connecting two people in this way minimizes the middleman to your computer, instead of a store. When you buy from a business, the cost of labor, parts, shipping, and other expenses are included in the price. When you buy from another person, the only real additional price is shipping.

Tips To Balance Your Money And Happiness

Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness are three of our inalienable rights as stated in the US Declaration of Independence. This article will focus on the pursuit of happiness and its relationship to money. Balancing your money and happiness isn't always an easy task. If you spend too little, you can miss out on many life experiences, but if you spend too much, you can easily fall deeply into debt. This is why it's so important to strike a balance between your money and happiness. Here are a few tips to help you out.


1. Don't Be Too Frugal
Frugality is generally a good thing, but if it's overdone, it can do more harm than good. If you live too frugally, you might miss out on opportunities to live your life to the fullest. To avoid this mistake, evaluate your financial situation and determine whether you're being too frugal.
If you're not spending enough money on yourself and your own enjoyment, you might want to change your habits. Instead of putting all of your money into untouchable savings, you may want to start a vacation, or rainy day fund. This will help you continue your healthy saving habits, while putting some of your money into your own enjoyment.

2. Find Out What Gives You The Most Happiness Per Dollar
Using the metric of happiness per dollar can help you save money and pursue what makes you happiest. Determining the happiness per dollar of your favorite activities can also help you track your hobby related spending. If you don't track and budget your spending, you can easily squander away a lot of your money.
To determine what yields the highest happiness per dollar, start off by firing up your favorite spreadsheet program. List all of the activities and hobbies you enjoy and rate how much relative happiness they each give you on a 1 to 10 scale (10 being the most). In another column, write down the annual costs related to each particular activity and hobby. In the third column, put the two values into a happiness per dollar ratio. The next step is to sort the results by happiness per dollar.
The information won't be perfect. Even if, say, cars bring in a 10 on your happiness scale, it may have a low happiness per dollar ratio because of the high costs of car ownership and maintenance. Although there may be some abnormalities in your results, putting together a spreadsheet like this can put things into perspective and set you on your way to having a more satisfying life while spending less.

3. Don't Fall Into The Debt Trap
Falling deeply into dept can be one of the costliest mistakes you could ever make. Because of the way interest works, debt can snowball very quickly and can become virtually impossible to pay off. Being financially trapped by debt can make it very difficult to enjoy the activities and hobbies that bring you the most satisfaction. They say the best things in life are free, but not having money is certainly no walk in the park.
To avoid falling into the debt trap, practice frugality, and spend within your means. This can take a lot of discipline but can benefit you tremendously in the future. By keeping your personal debt under control, you'll have more time and money to enjoy your life.

4. Volunteer And Donate To Charity
One of the most satisfying things you can do is to give your time and money to a worthy cause. Volunteering and donating can have many positive effects on both you and your community. If you've never volunteered or given to a charity, it's never too late to start. You can search online for local non-profit organizations to give your time and money to. 
One important side effect of giving your time and money to others is that money will have less of a hold on you. If you live frugally and pinch all of your pennies, you can easily become a miser. Being able to share what you have may not have immediate monetary benefits, but will help you keep your life more balanced.

5. Turn A Passion Into A Second Job Or Business
Everyone has at least one thing they're very passionate about. Typically if you're passionate about something, you probably have a high level of expertise in the area which can lead to a second job or successful business. This can help you spend more time doing what you love while making some extra money on the side.
If you do have a particular passion you'd like to turn into a second job or business, the first thing to do is to see what's out there. If there are many businesses in the area you're interested in, it might be a better idea to find employment instead of starting your own business. A crowded market is never easy to break into, but if your passion lies in a small niche, you might have what it takes to start and run a successful business.