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If you’re a regular reader then you’ll know I’m passionate about helping people save money in all aspects of their lives and that I believe everyone should have access to help and advice that will help them get their finances on track. And that’s what I’m here to do, to offer on advice on money saving and help people with their finances, I’m no expert but it’s something I love and something I’ve been writing about for almost 7 years now. So today I’m going to help you make 2021 your best financial year yet!
Get your bills in order
A super easy way to see your finances more clearly is to get all your bills and outgoings in order. By having everything go out of your account on the same day or within a couple of days it’s much easier to see what you’ve got left. If outgoings are spread throughout the month then you’ll never really know how much you’ve got left because you’ll just be paying bills all month.
It’s super easy to align all your bill payments and I really do think it’s one of the easiest things you can do to gain clarity on your finances. I’ve wrote a whole post on how you can easily change you bill payment dates and why you should. I highly recommend checking it out and getting all your bill payment dates aligned as soon as possible on order to start saving and tracking your money as soon as you can.
Side hustle
Side hustling is great way to earn a bit of extra money. Before we go on though I should point out that if you’re earning over £1000 from side hustling then you need to register as self employed. It gets a little complicated but it’s all worked out on the previous tax year so currently if you earned over £1000 between 6th April 2019 and 5th April 2020 then you need to be filling out a tax return.
Right with that out of the way let’s get back to the good stuff, side hustling is a great way to top up your savings or create a pot of money you can dip into for things like birthdays, Christmas or the occasional treat for yourself without touching your wage. There are so many ways you can side hustle but just having a blog can be a great way to earn money.
If you’re interested in earning big money from blogging then you need to get Kayleigh’s Ultimate Guide to Blog Monetisation. This blogging queen is regularly earning over £10,000 a month from blogging so definitely knows what she’s talking about!
Switch utility providers
Switching providers can save you so much money. You can switch pretty much anything and you really should. Often you’ll be in a fixed term contract so you’ll have to see that out first but I recommend making a note of all your providers and when the contract is up so you know when in the year you should be shopping around. You can switch gas and electricity providers, internet, any type of insurance, phone contracts and even mortgage providers once your term is up. So get looking at what you pay for, how much you pay and when your contracts are up then shop around. Switching is super easy and there’s often very little you need to do as the companies you’re switching between will handle everything or in the case of insurance policies it’s just a matter of cancelling one policy and purchasing another.
Save money every day
There are loads of ways you can save money everyday without even realising you’re doing it. A few simple changes can have a big impact on your daily outgoings and how much you save. It’s really worth looking into small ways you can save money each day as it all adds up. For example it might be a case of taking lunch to work instead of buying it, investing in a travel mug and making your own coffee instead of calling into Starbucks every morning or cutting back on the amount of takeaways you buy when there’s food in your fridge. Of course there are bigger changes you can make too that are super easy to implement. I have a whole post on how to save money every day that covers the bigger things you can do, they’re all super simple and you could end up saving hundreds of pounds!
Create a savings pot
Whether this is a physical pot, a savings account, a Monzo pot, a Paypal account, it really doesn’t matter as long as you’re saving somewhere. I appreciate not everyone is in a position to save huge amounts, I’m not and that’s fine. What matters is that you’re getting into the habit of actually setting some money aside and saving for something. Those savings you’re making every day from the above point? Put it in your savings pot. Every little helps and this is about getting into good habits at the moment not necessarily saving hundreds or thousands of pounds.
Educate yourself
The best thing you can do to improve your finances is to educate yourself. It’s a real bugbear of mine that personal finance isn’t taught it schools. Taking time to research things will help you save loads, that’s why I like to write so many money saving posts and financial posts because if it helps just one person then I’m happy. If there’s something you’re not sure about, research it and educate yourself. I’ve had to teach myself everything I know about personal finances but over the years I’ve saved hundreds and thousands by taking the time to educate myself rather than rushing into things blind.
What are your financial goals for 2021? Let me know in the comments. I hope these tips help you achieve your goals!
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Thank you for the great saving tips. i have found side hustling to be very beneficial. Yes, it requires a lot of hard work but it pays off in the long run.
It definitely does.
I feel like I have definitely taken some time during the lockdown to really go through my finances and look at what I don’t need to spend and where I can save more! These are some really great tips!
Thank you! It’s always good to regularly check in with your finances.
Lovely well written post! I’ve just moved into my first house so I think its definitely time to sort out the finances!
Thanks! Yes it’s a great time to have a look at your finances.
The lockdown is giving us a huge financial boost. No commuting costs, school wrap around care, office lunches. The savings pot is growing each month.
That’s amazing!
I am really new to the idea of personal finance. You article was so straightforward and to the point, the tips were really practical and I could relate to them. Keep up the good work!
Thank you! I’m glad it was helpful.
Brilliant advice! I bet when you wrote this you had no idea that so many of us would face financial changes, both positive and negative!
Thankfully I have managed to save a lot of pennies over lockdown, but I will certainly be following your advice x
I certainly didn’t!
I wish we had the option to shop utility providers in our area. I’ve heard you can save so much money doing so.
Oh no that sucks that you can’t shop around.
Useful info! I’d never heard of Monzo. I checked it out and they’re working on getting set up in the U.S. Heading over to your How To Save Money Everyday post. Later!
Brilliant! I hope you found both posts useful.
These are all great tips! I am so bad at saving money, but since I started a pot on Monzo I managed to save more than I had ever done! Thanks for sharing x
That’s great to hear! I think my next money saving step will be to open an account with Monzo as I’ve heard great things!
I love this – you’ve shared some really fab money advice! Side hustling really helps boost your income and being smart with how you spend can help too xx
Thank you!
This month is a no spend month for me and I’m surprised how much I usually spend! Definitely going to organise my bills and find better deals! Thanks for sharing! 2021 is the year I get rid of some debt!
Good luck with your money goals this year!
I want to increase my savings and investments this year. Also decrease credit card debts significantly. Definitely looking to my blog to be a side hustle.
Liz
http://www.piecesofliz.com
Good luck with your money goals!
Thanks. They really are!
Nice Post. I think educating yourself is super important. I just wish they would teach this to my kids in school.
Great work!
I really wish personal finance topics were taught in school. It’s such an important skill to have.
This post is full of amazing money advice Lauren, there are so many ways to save money, switching utility providers is definitely a great way to save money and decrease your bills! x
Lucy | http://www.lucymary.co.uk
Thank you! I think it’s such an easy thing to do but it’s often overlooked or seen as more complicated than it is.
My husband and I have been looking more closely at our finances as of late. Starting in 2020, we prioritized learning more about saving money and how to prioritize a healthy financial state. It has involved some changes (with more changes coming), but we know that a minor sacrifice or change now will help us to build a stronger, more secure future.
That’s great! Little changes and a little bit of financial education make a whole lot of difference!
These are great tips! I had a great saving year last year and am hoping to do even better this year!
Katie | https://katiemayonline.co.uk/
Thanks! That’s really great to hear. Good luck with your money saving this year!
These are such good tips about money saving! Will definitely be using some of these 🙂
Thanks! I hope you have some money saving success with them!