Saving money - mission impossible

[AndraM]

I just started to try and save money,
I got to tell you, it's hard!
I'm looking of new ways to save money and
I hope I've come to the right place! Any tips?
How are YOU doing it? Do you use apps or such for this?
Do they work? I really don't know where to start..

[riverwed070707]

There are 2 ways to save money: spend less or earn more. Lets start with spending. What does your current spending look like? Do you have a budget? If you don't know where your current income is going, start by tracking every dollar you spend and taking a look at what you're spending in each category - food, housing, transportation, etc. If you share here, we're usually pretty good at helping people find ways to cut back.

[disneysteve]

There are 2 ways to save money: spend less or earn more.

Actually, earning more doesn't solve the problem unless you also manage the spending side. Too many people fall into the trap of thinking, "more money will solve my problem" but what really happens is they end up earning more and then spending more, leaving them no better off than they were to begin with.

[FLA]

this will sound silly but the book Financial Planning for Dummies guides you through the basics, saving, budgeting and then investing. The guy who wrote it is a respected finance guy, not some yokel yanked off the street to write a Dummies book. This is a quick read to get you started. There are forums all over to teach you to stretch a dollar til it cries. Learn wants from needs. You can try very hard to live frugally but it is much easier to take the time to make a budget (I hate writing out a budget- shamefully, I put every single thing on Discover, they break it down into categories, I notice if I am off track in any categories and readjust, pay bill in full every month), make a tentative life plan and goals, learn to pay off debt (many use Dave Ramsey), maximize retirement savings (then read John Bogle, IMHO).

[snafu]

Adding to what's been said...do you know where your money is going? What and how much of your income is going to interest via student loans, credit cards, vehicle loan, mortgage? Next how much is going to cover late payments, bounced cheques etc? How many dollars do you spend in some form of take-out -eating out? How much have you spent on impulse [not planned] buys in the month of July?

My suggestion is to move 10% of your net [take-home] income to a linked to chequing account. If 10% is too much for you and still pay bills [rent/mortgage, utilities, cable/internet, phone, vehicle loan/insurance/operation, SL, CCs, food etc. start with 5% and work towards 7%, 8% - 10%.

We can help and cheer your every effort. I hope you'll post your income, payment list, interest and minimum payment to get you to a stronger financial position