I just received the new book by Lydia Teh. The good news is that I was given a few copies which are to be given to you!
Lydia is a talented writer. Her best-selling book Honk! If You’re Malaysian was voted the most popular non-fiction book in The Star-Popular Reader’s Choice Awards 2008.
More than 300 money-saving tips
There are really a lot of tricks to help you save every sen possible, discussed in details in the book.
The best way to save money is not to loose it!
Les Williams
I don’t expect you to follow all the tips and live your life to the maximum frugality. However, I believe that there are several tips which are practically useful no matter how much money you have.
You can save tax by having your spouse as a business partner.
One can also get great bargain if she is shopping at the right time of the day for specific stuff (think of bread and cake).
….. there are over 300 tips packed inside it!
Get a complimentary copy here
Interested to get an autographed copy for free? Just comment below. Tell us what’s your top money-saving method. I will choose one winner next week.
128 replies to "Stretching Your Dollar$ and $ense – New Book!!"
Where to buy the Stretching Your Dollar$ and $ense book & how much is the price?
It is available in the major bookstores.
I saw it once at Popular Gurney Plaza.
KC – I’ll buy you a Grande Mocha Latte no problem! Just let me know next time you’re in San Francisco. My site is buying out RB’s site at RichBy30RetireBy40.com.
Keiju,
Shogun
Here’s an article about average MBA salaries.. this EXCLUDES bonus.
All MBA average salaries is $108,000. Top 10 is at least 40-50% higher.
http://www.businessweek.com/bschools/blogs/mba_admissions/archives/2008/11/higher_salaries.html
This is funny stuff, I love it! 🙂 The fact of the matter is, there is so much more money out there than one can imagine. Just giving whoever is copying my address a heads up:
The average MBA graduate from went to a Top 10 school makes ON AVERAGE $140-165,000 one year out of school. Average age upon graduation? 28-29. Now, if a 28-29 year old kid can make US$150,000, what do you think the 35 year old guy in finance makes with 5-6 more years experience and one or two title’s higher? Exactly, 3-8X EASILY.
Guys age 35 in my old company would make $1-1.5 million USD easily during the good times.
Keigu,
Shogun
Boss,
I’m sorry. I won’t bluff again. Correction to above.. I only made US$12,000/yr and I don’t save much cause not able to. Sorry for that.
Hey Shogun, you are really a funny guy 🙂
buy me a starbucks
Shogun,
Get back to work and don’t bluff people that you made US$750,000/yr or you won’t get your paycheck end of this month. Sleep early tonight and dream, you might dream of that.
People, to save money, just follow the 50tips from KCLau’s book and you will save.
If possible, save over 50% of your income every year. It is the only way to get rich. When I was working, I made about US$750,000/yr. I would save about $600,000/yr gross or $3,800,000 after tax in 10 years. That’s all I needed and I was done.
Good luck everyone and come visit my site!
Shogun @ Financial Samurai
so, who won??
[…] gave me three autographed copies of Stretching Your Dollar$ and $ense to giveaway to you. The only requirement to take part is to share your opinion about saving money. […]
My best money saving method is delaying purchases on something that your really need to buy. If you wanna buy something expensive, try to sleep on it overnite…think if you really need it or not…then you decide…and another one is, full payment on credit card each month….you will save a lot of money……..hope these tips help you…!
Hi Mohd Husni,
It must be a struggle .. but nonetheless, save a lot!
I generally save about 10% of my base pay, and 100% of my bonus every year. Hence, that works out to me saving about 75% of my gross income a year i.e. if my base is $100,000, and bonus is $400,000, I save $410,000/yr.
Rgds,
RB
Rich By 30 Retire By 40
Most people love to spend their bonus on big items. You must have saved a lot!
My top saving tip is to predetermine an ambitious fixed percentage of saving (e.g. 20 – 30%) from my total monthly income and transfer the money to a different account than my normal spending account.
This way, no matter how much I spend; or not much left to spend anyway; will not impact my saving plan.
Once my saving reaches certain amount, I will use the money for investments. Any gains from investments will go back to saving again. The cycle repeats.
You are a disciplined saver!
Thanks for your insights.
a lot of advice for saving
Also, dont let your expenses ever catch up with your wage growth. Keep it real guys!
Rgds,
RB
Rich By 30 Retire By 40
Ahhh to be able to eat so much roti canai! I miss Malaysia! You guys have it good over there i tell ya. Good food, nice people, fun times.
Save money by simply being mindful of where ever dollar goes!
Best,
RB
Rich By 30 Retire By 40
Always follow the simple formula:-
Income – Saving = Expenses…
Expenses should never exceeded us income…Always practice Budget – Allocation-Spending
Do not spend too much on car. How much time we spend in a car a day? For most of us, it is just a “tool” to get us from point A to point B. It is a liability. The purchase, monthly instalment, petrol and maintenance will eat up our saving.
Buy a car that costs about 6 times of your monthly salary. Foreigners use this as guide in buying cars… They are not subject to excise duty though…
Car is probably the biggest expense of a new working adult
The best way to save more money is to make more money to save, while at the same time, reducing spending wastage on unnecessary items. As time is money, use spare time to think of ways to make more money (unlimited upside), instead of thinking of ways to cut back on savings (limited downside). With this way, if I maintain my spending, Ill see improvements in my income which translates to more savings 😀
Hi VampireM, your point is so true. I always advice people to earn more instead of limiting their means. When we make more money, we can save more and also spend more.
TIP 1
As a working mum, I take the hard work of waking up early and prepare breakfast lunch for my kids and hubby. Not only its healthier (As I control their food intake – the amount of vege, fruits, meat the way its cooked – preferably steamed, bake), but it really does save us a lot of $$$. For example, a breakfast at kopitiam will normally costs RM4.50 (for kon lau mee) RM1.70 (Ice Milo) = RM6.20 for breakfast; RM6 (lunch) + RM1.70 (cold drinks) = RM7.70; total meal allowance per day would be RM13.90 X 20 working days X 2 (Me hubby) = GRAND TOTAL of RM556.00 per month. This excluded the expensive lunch we might have sometimes (E.g. eat out @ coffee bean, secret recipe etc). Take that calculation X 12 months would be: RM6672.00. (Note: My food prices are based on Kota Kinabalu Kopitiam, it may be more expensive or cheaper in your location). For home made food, your grocery bills would be much much lesser than the above! To the other mums, working is not an excuse to not making home-cooked food, as I always find recipes that takes less than 30 minutes to prepare! The amount we save allowed us to put as part of our down payment for our property investment! So picture this, saving 2 year of eat-out = approx. RM10000 : used as down payment for a apartment RM100000 – 150000 for rental purpose! Isnt it amazing! The more calculation you did, trust me, you will be willing to wake up much early to prepare! As for me, I plan our food chart for the whole week!
TIP 2
On weekdays, I would drive a company vehicle which has a smaller CC compared to my own vehicle. Driving a smaller CC car (HONDA CITY), for a full tank of fuel, I can drive up to 400km distance. And the maintenance is cheaper compared to my own vehicle.
TIP 3
I only shop once a month in supermarket with a shopping lists (E.g. milk powder, pampers erc). This is to avoid unnecessary trips to the mall which you might end up buying other stuff unneeded from other shops.
TIP 4
During our supermarket visit, I will make sure to make a stop at Toys R Us so the kids can have some fun time. They can spend an hour there without realising it. And they can try out all new toys. Normally kids get bored after playing with it for a while, so there is no point buying back! As it will end up in one corner of their room unnoticed!
TIP 5
Since me hubby love investing in properties, instead of buying under personal name, we bought it under Sdn. Bhd. This allows us to deduct certain expenses and claim for certain allowance. Not only we pay less tax, but we also owned a company with a profitable return! We have our mission objectives targets to how many property we need to acquire per year!
Since the rest about credit cards etc has been mentioned, I dont think I will say it again! Cheers!
You are a hard working mom!
It is so true about what you say on toys – my son just doesn’t seem to be satisfied all the time.
My money saving method:
i. married with my working wife 😉
ii. work with company that supply with more frees stuff such as freeee house + free electric + free water – that company is palm oil mill industry. and i have save moreeee money.
iii. stay in rural area that i have to drive 20 km to arrive at the nearest main road. so i can easily avoid window shopping!!
iv. my house is about 1 kilometre from my work place – save petrol.
all the above i mention is hard to find, hard to serasi with but i have save more money than my friend… this is my first job and i aim to save rm 15k peryear hear plus 6 month bonus.. hehehe.. am i qualified… hahaha..
here comes a practical tip for all of us who leave comment here … whoever win this book, after finish reading, please pass the book to the person who comment after you. If that person already read the book, then pass to the person below his comment. when reached the last commenter, repeat on the first commenter.
i can sponsor a system to track if you all like the idea too 🙂
This sounds good!
always keep a biz mind, turn all expenses into incomes, ie.
when buying food, ask neighbors and friends if they want too, then buy bulk to save money and then may even charge normal price to them, they earn too coz u do the hard work running around and sending them the stuff.
always ask for reseller or wholesale price.
Take care of ur health. Be particularly concern with ur health, cos medical bills will be more than what u can earn if u are diagnosed with a serious critical illness.. Watch out for ur diet n exercise regularly. The other option is, do consider some health insurance. If u can settle ur by-pass operation bills with cash thats great, otherwise…
Yes..
Young people sacrifice their health to get wealth
Old people sacrifice their wealth to get health…
It is useless to have significant wealth without the health to enjoy it.
Thanks for your sharing Ben!
$$$ SAVE BEFORE USE $$$
The method I use and strongly recommended to every one.
When you get your salary, put a fix amount (5 to10%) into a separate saving account.
Use ATM machine to transfer the money or ask the bank to do a standing Instruction. When you do not see the money you will not feel it.
This saving account should not have an ATM card. The money in this account is use for investment or emergency purpose.
If you are married, then make that saving account a joint account and without ATM card too.
By doing this, it avoid you to withdraw money from it because you and your wife need to go to the bank together to withdraw money.
Then you will see the amount of money keep increasing.
You will be motivated to do it every month… ask your partner did he/she bank in money on each month this will become a reminder to both of you.
Happy saving.
You remind me of the old time piggy bank. We can’t take the money out unless we break it.
continue from the last comments:-
5) NO WINDOWS SHOPPING. SHOP only during SALES TIME (dont shop simply because its CHEAP), Shop only within list with budget set priorly, while shopping, 1st rule, is it a MUST (URGENT) as against a NEED (IMPORTANT)? Does it help in generating more income? Bulk buying with friends and always ask for discount wherever possible.
5) delay gratification always, such as, to delay for the first buying urge at the 1st encounter even though it seems DIRT CHEAP, believe that theres always theres cheaper and better out there. Always compare at least with 3-4 of the same merchant for same products.
Nice list!
1) Consolidate all your household expeses and use the high cash rebate credit card for instance StanChart JustOne Credit Card, where any spending on friday, you are given 5% cash rebate, along with choice points (reward points) given = Double reward!
or to use TravelMoney RHB Credit Card on every 1st weekend for 5% petrol rebate.
2) Never spend time on money-saving more than your time to think of creative idea to be of the service (add value to peoples lives) for others to make more money.
3) Follow straight to budget every month, etc 10% saving, 5% gift (donation) and 10% (education, self-development), minimum 10% for investment of building multiple source of income.
4) Save the earth, for instance, re-use paper, draft, write digitally, car pool, plan properly only drive and do all things at a go so to save the travelling cost (efficiency), get into habit of electric saving (use air cond only when the weather is unbearable, air cond timer to stop few hours before wake up time everyday, energy saving tool, etc)
Some tips picked up ..
a. A Ringgit saved is A Ringgit earned, simple philosophy that encompass whole financial
management i.e to earn, you must start with savings.
b. This brings to second widely used statement When you get your salary, pay yourself first
again, the concept of savings via forced mean.
Forced saving is definitely a very effective method to accumulate wealth
wow, so many tips aready like the mention above. The way i currently practice is to save 10% of my earning and think carefully before making decision to buy something. Prioritize the things i need and fit it to current world. Cheers
Very practical!
Before buying anything you think you want, go away(some where else or leave it for a day or two) and think on it again…usually after a while, you wont want to buy it anymore. Save at least 10% of your monthly income and put it into your savings account and once you have a small chunk(maybe RM2000 or more) in the bank, put 50 % of it into Unit Trust Fund to appreciate even more over the years (and once you start your unit trust fund, make sure you keep putting in regularly despite current economic situation as there is never a right or wrong time to buy when you practise dollar cost averaging!!!
Unit trust is an effective saving vehicle especially with the dollar cost averaging strategy.
Hear my money-saving tips when furnishing your home interview on BFM radio.
http://www.bfm.my/Inexpensive-Ways-To-Furnish-Your-Home-Bargains-Warehouse-Sale-Cheryl-Teh.html
Enjoy,
Cheryl
Hi Cheryl,
You have a great voice! Thanks for sharing.
HI KC
Heres my Top 3 tips
1) Switch of ALL electrical products switches at the mains when Im away for more than 2 days – not only does it save (as you know, theres electricity leakages when the mains are on even if the equipment isnt) but less risk of electrical short circuit too!
2) Instead of cooking everyday, I cook up a big batch of most of my dishes and freeze them in little serving portions. This saves time and electricity / gas and also healthier as its just as quick to pop containers of homecooked rice and dishes into the microwave compared to eating out.
3) Go to the park or stay home and watch DVDs instead of going to shopping malls and cinemas. This way, Im less tempted to buy and also save on the movie ticket.
There are many ways one can save money as some of the others have put it so succinctly (while others fluff about rather than be SPECIFIC) BUT here is ONE tangible specific way anyone (provided they have an income good credit rating) can benefit given its recent introduction into the market.
Open a Standard Chartered Just One Current Account and get the SBC Just One Mastercard too (this is of course subject to card approval)
Whats so good about it?
– You earn 5% cash rebate on ALL card spending on Fridays (so any planned purchases can be done on Fridays)
– You earn 2% cash rebate on ALL card spending on all other days
– On top of the above cash rebate, you still earn 1 Reward Pt for every RM2 spent
– You can earn up to 2.38% interest on your Just One Current account if your balance exceeds RM100k (which is HIGHER than FD rates in banks except for the 12mth term period) Even if your balance is as little as RM2k, you still earn at least 1.38% which is way better than some savings accounts out there!
– You can also earn MORE Reward Pts by earning 1 Reward Pt for every RM10 saved (based on your average monthly credit bank balance)
The added sweetener – until July31, when you open the above a/c, you will also get a 1st yr annual fee waiver AND guaranteed 5 000 Reward Points!!!
Hence, aside from the other standard credit card benefits like not having to carry physical cash, minimum 21 days interest free period, special tie-ups with merchants, discounts, zero installment plans, balance transfer plans, etc, you can also enjoy the above TANGIBLE benefits of the Just One Current a/c and Credit Card.
Enough said! So when should i expect my FREE autographed copy??? Hahaha!
PS – Fyi, i am not a SCB staff BUT i have to take my hat off to them as i now use my newly received SCB Just One card for all my card purchases BUT do note that the maximum rebate claimable is RM600 per year.
Hi Raj,
This card really sounds great!
However, the maximum claim of RM600/year is the catch. In my case, I have already claimed more than RM600/year from my Alliance bank credit card which give 1% instant rebate only.
For those who don’t spend much on their credit card, this SBC Just One credit card provides a lot of benefit you can’t enjoy elsewhere.
Thanks for sharing.
There are so many money saving tips. The most primarily basic is attitude. We need to discipline ourselves and have a proper of control. If there are no proper attitude, no matter how many things you have listed, the succession of following will may not varied thru the life time. Once a month may success later on forget about it or postpone it. Therefore succession in saving is always come from our mind and attitude.
Suez, you are right. Financial success is more depending on one’s emotional quotient rather than IQ.
This is a tip for those who loves to eat the mc nuggets in Macdonald. If you happen to order 12 pic of nuggets, You will definitely order 2 set of 6 pic nuggets from the mcvalue meal. Here is the trick. Instead of doing so, buy 3 set of 4 pieces of mc nuggets from the Mc saver menu and you end up saving up to 50 cents to a dollar and still get to enjoy the 12 pieces of nuggets at a cheaper price!!! WOOHOO
wow .. you are very sensitive
Nice trick!!
Wow so many tips already. I just read all this, make my day to be a better person in personal finance hehe. Thanks for for the tips guys. By the way all my tips already been mention by many of you. One certain thing, I live below my means and save whenever I can hehe. I want to be an automatic millionaire next door one day. Cheers
In fact, personal finance should be simple.
We must always spend less than we earn. Then focus our effort to increase our income. Simple rules, but true and practical.
Great sharing, DOM.
First of all, everyone have different priorities which essentially dictates their money saving habits. Its also dependent on their income level. So, for the past 4 years, the first step to my money-saving method is to find out the trends in my spending or saving habit. Everyone puts emphasis on how to save money. Well, if you are saving a little bit money or a lot of money on something UNNECESSARY, thats not exactly saving is it? What you need to do is find a way to track your spending/earning habit first.
I personally use Microsoft money which comes free on most pcs. I have been using it for almost 4 years now. You set up your checking accounts, credit cards and balances in the software. Then as you spend/earn you go in there and post it to the appropriate category. You do this for a while youd be surprised at some of the reports the software will show you. Trust me little things add up!. The BEST money-saving tip is REALLY knowing where your money is going!
This is like a doctor at work.. Doctor try to find traits and clue on the patient condition before giving the prescription. Knowing where our money goes is the first step of better financial planning.
Nice sharing!
1. Buy a Great Eastern endowment or investment linked policy (a portion of monthly income bout 20-30% depending on targeted savings)
2. Spend the rest…
Outcome…enjoy life without needing to worry of savings for a rainy day… 😉
@ Kennard,
This is what I practice too, since I am a GE agent.
My saving tips:
Transfer a minimum amount of RM50 to EPF via CIMB online banking every month as additional savings (must be between RM50 to RM5,000)
Invest in Amanah Saham Malaysia / Wawasan 2020 if there is additional fund open for subscription. The returned is higher than FD and EPF
Maintain money at FD if there is no other higher return investment
Open maintain Gold Investment Account
Monitor on monthly expenses. Spend less on those unnecessary things. Think twice before purchase it
Hi Joey,
There is a reader who is very curious about your tips on transferring RM50 to EPF via CIMB online banking. Are you a self-employed who opt to contribute to EPF?
Please enlighten us.
Thanks in advance.
I’m not self-employed. I still contribute 11% of my salary every month. On top of that, I did the transfer as additional savings.
I have checked this transfer matter with one of the KWSP officer at Shah Alam and the officer said no problem and just knew about this matter when I told that I’ve tried to do the transfer via online & has successfully.
At the EPF statement the amount transferred will show as “Bayaran Caruman Diri Sendiri” at “Syer Pekerja” Column and the amount will split to Account 1 (70%) & Account 2 (30%).
Recently, I saw this function available at Maybank online banking but I have yet to try it.
Plan, plan, plan… A good plan is the best way to take control of your finances.
Track your spending and cash to know where every ringgit goes!
Yes. We shall have a good and sound budget plan.
My top saving method is think twice with survey and BUY what you NEED and NOT what you WISH.
Wow .. that’s very discipline.
GIVING = SAVING
You will have the abundance.
Bring your tithes to God and he will open the windows of heaven for you and will pour out a blessing so great you wont have enough room to take it in.
This is true. The more we give, the more we receive.
Active force saving – On the day the monthly income is received, put aside a certain amount (eg: 15%) and save that into a separate account for investment or just basic saving. When theres lesser amount available in the account that is tie to ATM card, theres lesser money to spend hence preventing any unnecessary lavish activities. Thats what i used to practised, now what I do is to have multiple accounts: saving 15%, entertainment 10%, investment 15%, daily expenses 15%…etc etc…
Hi David,
That’s very troublesome to manage so many bank accounts. Mind to share how you do it with ease?
Thanks
Saving Plan come from my 5 max. expenditures:
– Insurance – Choose only one and cover all types premium by having full time and aggressive agent. Sometime, they also help financial plan consultancy
– Transportation – Drive Viva save petrol and service outside instead perodua service
– Food – Do gardening eat what you plant. Vegi are good for health too. I have 5 choices weekly
– Clothing – Buy during Jusco day. 70 % le…
– Self interest – Buy during exhibition or fair for better offer and comparative
That’s organic food if you plant it yourself. Nice.
My wife is also crazy about Jusco day.
My self had adopted envelope system since before because it is simple yet effective. On top of the envelope i put a note: Necessities (55%), Saving (20%), Education (10%), Entertainment (10%) and Donation (5%). Through that way, i able to control myself with minimum effort because i know my limit at the first place.
There are many ways of saving tips. To me the most primarily is always come from our attitude. We should disciple ourselves and control ourselves in spending. If the attitude is not there, and there are one bunch of list of savings, it may can success for a few days or month but not permanently. Therefore it is important we should have a strong will of attitude.
Consider Savings as an Expense.
Many people dont save because they think that their income barely have extra for them to spend (what more Save?!) after paying for expenses. Thats why I think people should start considering Savings as an Expense, as something that you will and must pay for every month, just like how you have to pay for car installments every month.
It is something like providing a certain amount for bad and doubtful debts in accounting terms. In that way, you will be able to see your financial position more accurately. (Im not sure if this example is used correctly, anyone can understand what Im trying to explain here?? correct me if Im wrong.)
Thanks!! I want to win the book!!
I wants the book…
My main method of reducing my expensed is:
– I will not keep much money with me. Will only have RM 10 in my pocket for per day expended.
– Will go for shopping alone rather that bring my family members.
– will only top up once a month – RM 30… credit will be for 30 days
– sometimes have to be stingy rather that emotionally spend allot..
– i have stop hanging around with my friends and attend to most of the function.. can meet them over there as well
– everymonth i freeze a portion of my salary. So my budget will be based on the rest of my salary… ( therefore my savings are accumulating and will spend lesser)
– will only use prepaid credit card rather than using normal credit card.
– will never encourage discount vouchers – as its encourage to spend allot rather that save. I will only use it when it is necessary else gv to my friends who are interested. – eg: i wil be having voucher for RM 10, but the minimum price of product will be more that RM 100. This is only encourage us to spend.
My attitude towards saving is as long as we can make the BIG money, it is ok to spend SMALL fraction of it.
To me, time is more valuable, so I will not wait for the bread at 9pm to buy it at discount.
Also invest in myself on books , courses that will help me generate more. Is the value that convince me make purchases, not the price .
Be discipline in our spending is also important, many times, we buy what we want and a lot are not necessary.for eg although i can afford a car, I choose not to have one as transportation is easy in Singapore. The cost of owning a car is also very high in Singapore, parking, petrol, road tax, insurance and etc etc, meanwhile as I didnt take long time to travel everyday, so thats fine with it. However if one day, I need to rush few appointments and cant afford time wasted on road, I will consider buying a car. Is the value again not just save save save
Plan, plan, plan… A good plan is the best way to take control of your finances and also track your spending and cash to know where every dollar goes!
My personal money saving tips is apply the rules of 10% to myself ! The rules of 10% means that commitment to save at least 10% of my monthly earning ^_^
Top saving method:
Go throught this before spend
1) Do I really need the item? If yes,
2) Can I buy the item later? If yes
3) Any other cheaper alternatives?
Maximime credit card usage (to earn points for free gifts) but discipline with credit limit (example: RM1K per month only).
I personally save by tapauing my lunch from home. not only i save money, i pretty much prefer to eat my healthier home-cooked food. 😉
ps. i am not a stingy person but packing food from home makes a big differrent for my hubs and kids. somehow, i feel theres more love in the air~~~
Hi, would love to win this book. Am an avid saver!!
Anyway, here goes my savings tip :
1. Get an SI to deduct your monthly salary directly into your savings account/FD. Do this as soon as you get your monthly salary.
2. Budgeting is important and staying within your budget is even more crucial.
3. For groceries, Scour the friday papers for coupons, discounts. Or buy at farmers market where its fresher and cheaper. Buy in bulks whenever you can. If you shop frequently and a certain hypermarket, get their members card. You can earn points!!.
4. I got a credit card where the points collected can be used to redeem petrol voucher and ! use them wisely. They can be your best friend or your worst enemy. I use them for most of my transactions solely for the purpose of collecting points and getting discounts at certain outlets. I never spend more than what I have. Never be late in paying and get the ones with no annual fees.
5. I buy items that I know I use a lot in bulk. I save from 20-30% from doing so. Especially milk formula for babies and toddlers. I buy in bulk directly from their supplier agents.
6. Besides the savings that I set aside every month, any amount left in my bank at the end of the month will go either to my savings or investment or splurging myself.
7. Being a saver doesnt mean I dont reward myself. I set aside a certain amount monthly and when it reaches a certain figure, I will reward myself with the cummulated amount.
8. When going for a holiday, we book way ahead to get the best deals.
Hi, would love to win this book. Am an avid saver!!
Anyway, here goes my savings tip :
1. Get an SI to deduct your monthly salary directly into your savings account/FD. Do this as soon as you get your monthly salary.
2. Budgeting is important and staying within your budget is even more crucial.
3. For groceries, Scour the friday papers for coupons, discounts. Or buy at farmers market where its fresher and cheaper. Buy in bulks whenever you can. If you shop frequently and a certain hypermarket, get their members card. You can earn points!!.
4. I got a credit card where the points collected can be used to redeem petrol voucher and ! use them wisely. They can be your best friend or your worst enemy. I use them for most of my transactions solely for the purpose of collecting points and getting discounts at certain outlets. I never spend more than what I have. Never be late in paying and get the ones with no annual fees.
5. I buy items that I know I use a lot in bulk. I save from 20-30% from doing so. Especially milk formula for babies and toddlers. I buy in bulk directly from their supplier agents.
6. Besides the savings that I set aside every month, any amount left in my bank at the end of the month will go either to my savings or investment or splurging myself.
7. Being a saver doesnt mean I dont reward myself. I set an amount monthly and when it reaches a certain figure, I will reward myself with that amount.
Set a budget and follow it strictly.
Helo, KC,
My favourite (hopefully green) approach is to Share, Share Share where possible: e.g.
– share an order of food or drink when its too big for one person (dont order two of the same and waste food that people elsewhere in the world are in need of);
– car pool, especially kids going to the same school (save fuel and reduce harmful emissions);
– while at home, everyone in the family doing your individual activities together in the same room/space to share lights and air-cond, e.g. eating, playing, studying, sleeping (save on electricity and the resources to generate it);
– share clothes with your older kids of same build (e.g. t-shirts);
– share a pool of recycled paper for printing drafts or documents for strictly internal office circulation.
Bottomline: Avoid duplicity, triplicity, quadricity, . . . multicity, any-plicity where theres absolutely no need for it.
.
Look forward to receiving more tips from you.
Thanks very much with best regards,
Lil Olde Me, Daniel
I love your sharing! This seldom happens nowadays.
today my husband just entirely gave up (first warning ever!) at me for being so expert in wasting his money…the most terrible at all i am a finance graduate…so today i made a plan…i will put RM10 to every page of my thickest finance book every day..the moment i finish sliping the money in, i knew the amount that i have saved by looking at the pg number…i will seriously change my bad habits in order to cheer my beloved ones up!!
[…] View original post here: Top Money-Saving Tips for Malaysians […]
What i think important is not how much you can save in terms of dollar and cents….. what is important is how you spend your dollar and make the most out of it . Teach money literacy and cultivate the habit of in the family….. this will go a long long way, even into the next generation. I have seen how parents save all their life and gave those money to the next generation that finished it in a few short years…
Be disciplined to differentiate needs and wants. If you need it, then try to use it as a business expense, hence be a proprietor.
(1) Earn higher pay – by being really really good at what you do, i.e. don’t be mediocre.
(2) Live simply – no need to upgrade when your pay increase.
(3) Invest – until you don’t have money to spend unnecessarily.
Stay together in big family instead of having separate mini families. One can enjoy some savings from sharing which is a virtue…
1. sharing electrical appliances (TV, fridge, washing machine, computer)
2. car pooling (saving in term of petrol and maybe number of cars purchased)
3. sharing furniture (may need more sofa, tables etc if staying together in one big family, but in overall, it is still less compared to the sum of the total furniture required living separately)
4. electricity (eg. consume same electricity whether watch TV alone or by one big family)
5. meal (makes home-cooking feasible, cheaper compared to dining out)
6. sharing domestic maid
7. buying household items in bigger package that usually come at cheaper unit rate (eg 5 litre detergent vs 2 litre detergent. Small families usually purchase smaller package to avoid wastage due to expiry of the products, particularly food)
8. newspapers, magazines etc
9. Indah water bill, assessment fee, quit rent (bigger total amount if staying in separate houses)
10. gardening (every member can have bigger garden compound with less gardening efforts)
11. Convenience (can ‘tumpang’ other family members in running errand, thus save time, petrol, parking fee etc.)
Economies of scale applies here. The amount of saving whether from one tiem purchase or recurring expenses could be substantial.
Most importantly, the big family can enjoy the merriment of being together is invaluable…
Don’t buy something your can afford to impress people that don’t care. Practice this, then we can save more rather than spending it.
I want to win this book.
My top saving method is to wash laundry at full load. Save time and electrity besides money on water bills.
I want to win this book.
My top saving method is to use cloth diapers.
I think a good tip is to scour the junks or stuff we bought or collected and have it liquidated i.e. offered for sale on the web.
There’s so much benefit that we get out of it – learning to do e-trading, getting our old stuff disposed, gaining some new (old) found space in the house and on top of it be paid for doing such an entrepreneurial/homekeeping work!
I want to win this book.
My top saving method is to cut down eating outside, buy local produce.
I love to win this book!
My top-saving method is to check and record down every bills, every expenditures and compare before I buy.
Wow nice book!
One of my top money-saving method is to set aside a fixed amount towards a saving cum investment-linked account and spend with ‘envelopes’ method with each expenditures such as entertainment, groceries, etc.
Hi I love to win this book!
One of my top money-saving method is pay off my credit card bills on time and in full amount instead of minimum payment. The interest they charged on balanced credit amount is crazy!
I would love to win this book!
One of my top money-saving method which I do it daily is to turn off lights and take out the plug before I leave home for work or activities.
Hi I would love to win this book!
One of my top money-saving method which I do it daily is packed lunch and car pool to work with my partner daily!
Hi I would love to win this book!
One of my top money-saving method which I do it daily is to read free online newspaper, magazines, newsletter and practice whatever good tips I learnt especially on savings.
We use points!! we charge almost everything to our No-annual-fee-credit-card (bills, groceries, etc) and are able to claim petrol vouchers almost every month so we save on our transportation cost!!Of course we don’t swipe our credit cards unnecessarily. That just defeats the purpose.
To save on milk formula for our toddler, we buy by the bulk direcly from the agent of the supplier which is roughly 20-30%% cheaper than any retail price.
Also, having a standing instruction to deduct a certain amount from my salary into my savings account also helps in maintaining a regular savings every month. If I didn’t do this, I doubt I’ll be able to save as much as I do now.
Be a discipline credit card user. I just redeem a branded vacuum cleaner and chordless phone today (total worth more than RM400) despite not paying any interest by paying promptly and annual fee waived.
KC Lau,
Before buying something, just write 10 reasons why you should purchase it, if you cannot justify, don’t proceed.
Women and shopping always goes hand in hand…
we can find 1001 reasons/excuses to get that pair of shoes,handbags, dresses,another handbag bla,bla,bla..
I myself have practised this one test to see if i really need another handbag (on top of those i already have)..and this is how..
DO NOT straight away buy that handbag/shoes/dress etc!!
Go back home and give it a 2,3 days thought,,because we always buy on impulse only to realise that we dont really need it after all…
it works for me! everytime!
Before buying spending my money on expensive items, I’ll normally ask myself 3 questions:
1) Do I really need the item?
2) Can I buy the item later?
3) Any other cheaper alternatives?
For me as a student, i will save my money on the things that are not necessary. I also limit my expenses in a month, so that i can track my financial. But to invest my money for gaining knowledge, i dont mind to load some..such as to buy books or ebooks to boost my knowledge…Thanks
Investing for personal development is probably the best investment in our lives.
Well, there is no really such thing as top-money saving method, unless you invested in properties.
What I do for my savings is I DIVERSIFIED. I dumped my money into FD, unit-trust, investment-linked ( also as part of my risk management), multi-cash, and park some of money into bank as emergency fund.
As the saying goes…don’t put all your eggs into one basket. =)
It does not really matter how much you earn, but how much you are able to save. A man earning a lot may still be starving for money (MJ??).
Earn – Savings = Expenses
Earn – Expenses = Savings
It just depends on how we choose to save.
GiapSeng
money saving methods -> by leaving a comment here!
since i spent quite a sum buying books each month, it will save me some money if i can get this must have, interesting and intriguing book for free. 🙂
in other words, we can save some money if we’re willing to try our luck in joining competition that reward on the things we wish to have.
Satu lagi panduan yang boleh dijadikan rujukan kewangan.
Congrats Lydia!
Hi KC, thanks for the info, well I really need to have this book-well you know as I said last time, I am a financial idiots which know how to make money but at the same time spend it.Well at least 10% of the 300 tips I can apply.
another way to save, join this contest and save money on new book if you win!
i join competitions all the time to save (maybe even gain money!)
radio stations often offer free tickets if you answer simple questions on their website..
mommies can also save by using cloth diaper instead of disposable ones..
read e-books instead of buying books is also another tip..
* i hope i win, in need of a good book!
Najwa, I can see that you make money selling stuff using blogs. That’s great and you can write a book teaching people how to do exactly that!
I always think of this statement that help me to save:
If you have something in mind to buy, think twice if it’s a real needs or necessary. If it’s not needed then why think of buying it?
Yes! Certainly this book would be a BIG HIT! Especially in these troubled times of inflation and recession.
I personally look forward to reading every single word in this book.
I try to save whatever i can by stretching myself an extra bit. For example, eating outside less frequently, using public transportation instead of my own transportation.
The best is to create passive income apart from your salary. The entire passive income should be your savings. passive income can be created in many ways, most importantly doing something that you enjoy and good at.
I always keep on notepad with me when going to shop for grocery. I will record down and make some calculation to see Items like milo, milk powder, etc are really cheap by comparing a few places. Nowaday I got a pocketPC, so the calculations are in excel. 🙂
You certainly know your gadget!
Always practice this: The ‘things’ that you have in mind may not be what you need, since it’s not what you need, then don’t think about it. You will be able to save more…:-)
sounds logic!
Put 20% to unit trust..Withdraw after 20 years, specialised for youngster.
that’s the advantage of using twtter… hehehe
@Prince of Andalus,
oh man .. you are fast!
i’m the 1st who comment here.. hehehe
don’t save, but find ways to earn more money… (quote from ur book)