Make a Plan:

Before doing any shopping for the holiday, creating a plan of action will result in added savings. The plan should list every individual who needs a gift. Beside the individual’s name, set a spending limit or budget to avoid overspending on gifts. 
A budget and a list of people not only organizes the shopping trip, it prioritizes the gifts and prevents spending more than the allotted amount. 

Look for Special Discounts:

Discount codes for online shopping can add up in savings when it comes time to shop for that perfect gift. Some retailers even offer codes and specials on their social networking pages that offer their friends and followers an opportunity to save even more.

Getting a few discount codes can result in savings as much as 30 per cent, even on items like gift cards. The exact savings will vary depending on the store, the code and the item, but often can add up quickly in extra savings for the season, and you may even come across some great free stuff.

Make Some of the Gifts:

Nothing tells friends and family how much they mean than a homemade gift. This type of gift requires more thought than the purchased item and can save a large amount of money by making numerous gifts with the same supplies.

Great homemade gift products include homemade bath items, special homemade sweets like fudge and Christmas cookies or that unique craft project that will delight the receiver and makes a great decoration.

Homemade gifts vary in cost and options, but even the least expensive gift of some baked cookies or fudge will make the receiver happy while limiting the cost of the gift. 

Suggest a Secret Santa:

The holiday season often means a tight budget for gifts and special items, but one way to help improve the savings is through a secret Santa exchange. This is appropriate for family gathers, friends or even an office setting. 

Instead of buying a gift for everyone at the event or gathered for the holiday, the secret Santa requires a single gift either for one individual drawn out of a hat or for an anonymous exchange.

Each person brings one gift and that is used in the exchange or given to the individual drawn from the hat. 

Recycle for Wrapping:

Wrapping paper is often a large expense in the Christmas season. With so many gifts to wrap, it is possible to go through several rolls of the paper. This is especially true when working around large gift items rather than small gifts.

Instead of using traditional wrapping paper, opt for a recycled option. Use pages from a magazine for small gifts of use the comic section of the newspaper to cover the gifts this year. 

The cost of Christmas adds up when that special meal, decorations and gifts are added up at the end of the season. Fortunately, it is possible to limit the cost and bring down the expenses with a little careful planning and setting a spending budget.

In order to reduce the amount you pay out on your various business insurances, you may consider lowering your level of cover. It is wise to review your insurance regularly to see if you are over-covered in certain areas, or if you are able to get a better deal elsewhere. Carrying out online comparisons with specialists such as Staveley Head Business Insurance can help you ensure that you are getting the best deal possible.

The importance of simple building maintenance is often overlooked when it comes to the cost of business insurance too. Making sure your premises is as secure as possible and fitting a security system endorsed by your insurer can help to lower your premiums significantly. You may also want to consider paying a health and safety professional to review both your building and procedures to lower your perceived risk; something that is likely to be viewed favourably by potential insurers. One final step is to make sure your business can operate whatever the weather. Do this by preparing for winter and ensuring pipes are not at risk of freezing and bursting. If you are able to have an alternative site available for business use should yours be out of use, this will also have a positive effect on the price of your premium.

Finally, you may want to do what many hundreds of thousands of businesses are doing all over the globe at the moment and review your staffing situation. You could consider taking on any extra staff through contractors who should then be responsible for covering their own staff; just make sure you confirm this before outsourcing.

Maybe we all need a step stool of sorts to help us save money. We all need a hand to save money, the question is what is your step stool going to be? I guess it could be whatever it takes to help you sock some money away or pay off your bills. You could put a change jar next to where you drop your keys when you come home, your credit card debt amount posted on your fridge so as to remind you to try and get that number down, or maybe a post it note with your goal on it that you update as you move closer. The possibility is endless.

You just need to find your step stool and use it. I would love to hear other ideas if you have them.

I blogged recently about keeping all of my receipts together by putting them in a bag inside my junk drawer. I turned over a new idea about my bills and important mail. I am scanning everything that comes in and backing them up to a disk and saving them for tax time. These days most computer printers have scanners and comes with scanning software. I have a scanner and never use it. Up until now. I am starting to use my resources to save me some time and money.

I realized that I already have most of the system right in my house. I have a couple of decent older floor speakers that I was going to throw away but decided to keep. I have a surround sound receiver that I thought was old and out dated but will do the trick. I just have to pick up a couple of extra speakers and a decent tv stand.

I was all over Ebay and Kijiji tonight and have already contacted a gentlemen that is selling off his home theatre that he is upgrading. We talked about a few prices and I basically going to save a ton if his equipment checks out.

I am glad I just didn't fly of the handle and drop a ton of money at a big box store. I think I am going to have a nice home theatre of matching pieces together for a great price. It's just going to take a little while to get it all together but for the price it's worth it.

I am guilty from time to time of missing a credit card payment. It happens. You get the email or the snail mail and you forget about it. I hate paying interest and so should you. I haven't paid a cent since I got my phone thanks to the world of banking apps. I downloaded my banks free app from the itunes store, set up my account and set up my monthly bills for credit cards and other payments such as cable or hydro.

Now everytime a bill comes in the mail, I grab my phone, load the app and make the payment over the phone and post date it to the date that it is due on. It is as easy as that. No more remembering two days later that you were to make a payment or getting bill the next month with interest on it.

Just remember to check the due date and make sure it isn't a weekend or holiday. If it is you might want to move the day up a couple of days to make sure your payment clears.

Examine your priorities and ask yourself if you really need the items you are thinking of buying. Especially those big ticket items. Do you want them because somebody else has them or because you are trying to fill a void or are you just bored? Prioritize and spend your money on things you need and seriously think about things that you want.

Set spending limits and stick to them the best that you can. You have to realize that you can't always meet your goals but try to come as close as possible. Don't get depressed or upset when you don't meet your goals but feel good that you made the attempt and came as close as you can. Things happen in life that are beyond our control like flat tires and a car that won't start.

There is that old saying about keep it simple stupid. Life can be complicated. Sometimes we try to make things more difficult than we have to. Do you need to join an expensive gym when you can take up jogging or walking for a fraction of the cost? Can you get buy with your existing car without having to sink into massive debt to have the latest model?

Take stock in what you have and be happy. Some people place too much importance on having the latest gizmo's and toys. Does this make a person happier? Not really, especially if you can't afford it and it bogs you down in debt. Be happy with what you have and enjoy life. Work towards the goal of saving money, getting out of debt and enjoy life one day at a time.

1. Find a credit card that offers cash back or has a rewards program and use it for your gas purchases. I recently just switched to a credit card that utilizes Air Miles so I can get some swag from their rewards catalogue.

2. Find a gas station that offers membership savings for using their credit cards. I know of a petro station nearby that offers a couple of cents on the litre if you use their special credit card to make purchases.

3. Check the internet for local gas prices and compare stations to see if you can find one that has cheaper prices.

4. Turn off the AC when driving around in the city. You will save gas by not running your cars air conditioning. You just have to sweat it out a bit. On the highway however having open windows might cost you more in gas because of the drag. You might want to have the a/c on in this case.

5. It's okay to use the cheaper priced gas. This day in age who would pay for premium? It's just money down the drain.

6. Get in the habit of checking your tire pressure. Most stations offer a free air pump for customers. Just check your tire pressure on your tire and give it quick check once a month. You will save money.

7. Clean the garbage out of your car, especially heaving items. A lighter car uses less gas. You aren't a transport so stop hauling heavy loads.

8. Avoid idling. If you are going to be stopped for more than one minute, you will save gas by turning the car off and restarting when you are ready to go. Our town has a law that cars can't idle for more that a minutes.

Here are some benefits of taking some online courses:

• the cost of the courses themselves are generally less expensive than going to school
• you save money on travel expenses such bus passes and gas money
• books can be cheaper depending on the courses you are taking.
• you can save on food, when I was going to school I spending tons on junk food and eating in the cafeterias or restaurants
• start and stop courses when you want so you don't have to drop tons of money on taking 4 or 5 courses at a time

Updating your job skills can't be a bad thing. I blogged about it once before. You can't take courses to try and get a job in a dead industry. You have to research the field that you are interested in otherwise you could be throwing your money away right from the start.