New Year’s Resolutions that help your budget

You may be starting out the New Year looking to make some life changes. Wouldn’t it be cool if you could incorporate some of your resolutions as a way to keep on budget or to save money every month?

Many popular New Year’s resolutions are also budget boosters. Can you say win-win!
 
Here are some suggestions:

I’m going to eat healthy

Eating healthy is not only to the benefit of your health (obviously), but can yield some serious budgetary benefits as well. We tend to, in favour of time, gravitate towards convenience foods- like frozen foods, fast food and prepared dishes. Not only are these usually chock full of sodium and preservatives, you’ll pay a hefty premium for the convenience.

Planning to eat healthy means doing more of your own cooking-which is going to save you money.

I’m cutting out my guilty pleasure

Whether your vice is smoking, drinking or jolts of caffeine, they all are detrimental to your health in  varying degrees.

Smoking is obviously a very expensive habit that causes a multitude of health problems. Alcohol, by the same token, is not a healthy or budget-friendly substance, especially if overdone. Coffee, while the least harmful of the three, can really add up if you hit the coffee shop a few times a day.

I’m going to learn a new skill/hobby

It’s never a bad idea to learn something new. Not only do you enrich yourself personally, maybe that new skill or hobby might be able to earn you some extra cash on the side.

I’m going to become more environmentally friendly

Being environmentally means taking active steps to reduce your carbon footprint, like reducing energy and water consumption.

The major upside? Not only does choosing to use less energy let you give Mother Nature a hug, it puts a whole lot of green back in your wallet.