Author name: Moira Lawler

A lot of traditional budgeting advice tends to focus on eliminating the little luxuries in life that can add up over time, like that morning latte or weekly happy hour. It’s true that you can save more by cutting out these types of costs, but there’s another factor you have to keep in mind: your own motivation. If you constantly feel deprived by your budget, chances are you won’t be motivated to stick with it long-term. (Plus, no one should judge you for needing a daily java kick.) If this sounds like you, it may be time to re-think your spending strategy. “We call it ‘savor what you spend,’” says David Blaylock, CFP®, a financial planner with LearnVest Planning Services. “Spend on the things that you savor, that you enjoy, and don’t spend on the things you don’t enjoy.” In other words, it is possible to cut expenses without nixing everything that you love. How? Start with these six pieces of advice below. 1. Rethink Your Total Food Spending Take a look at your past credit card statements to see how much you’re spending in total on food (yes, that includes your Seamless orders). If it comes close to what you spend on your rent or mortgage, then you’re likely spending too much of your take-home pay on feeding yourself (consider that the average American spends about 12.5% of their total budget on food, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics). Before you balk, we’re not saying you have to put your social life on hold or cut the takeout completely. It’s more about trying to set a realistic weekly food spending amount that you can allocate however you’d like, whether that’s in a restaurant, a grocery store or on your delivery guy, Blaylock says. Finding the perfect number for you depends on the size of your family and food prices in your area, but you can refer to your past spending as a guide and pare it down from there. You’ll likely find that there are small things you can do to scale back, little by little, that won’t require too much extra effort. The real benefit to having a weekly spending amount to wrap your head around is that it’ll make you more mindful of where your money is going. It may, for instance, make you realize that your salad-bar creations are triple the price of one you can make at home that’s equally delicious. You can then use those insights to make better food-buying choices. How much you’ll save really depends on how strict you want to be with yourself. “You can save as much or as little as you want,” Blaylock says. “But either way, you’re probably better off than you were before just by being aware of it.” 2. Trim Energy Costs to Go (and Save) Green You’ve heard it a million times, but adopting energy-saving practices can significantly reduce your utility bills, Blaylock says. Even if you already practice the obvious, like turning the lights off when you leave the house, chances are there’s room for improvement. First, get in the habit of unplugging devices that aren’t being used. The Department of Energy says appliances such as TVs and computer chargers that stay plugged in when you’re not using them can add 10% to your utility bill. Want an effortless fix? Set up a few advanced power strips, which cut back on wasted energy. All in all, the switch could save you $200 a year. It also pays to find out if your electrical company offers lower rates at off-peak hours. If it does, take advantage of this perk and do your laundry or run your dishwasher during those times, Blaylock says. 3. Nix Subscriptions You Barely UseThe ease of auto-pay and today’s subscription-crazed world has made it all too likely that you’re paying for services that you no longer need, or even use. Assess your current lineup by printing your last few credit card statements and reviewing any recurring payments. Spot any obvious places to cut? (For instance, do you really need Pandora and Spotify?) Going on an unsubscribing spree might not seem like it’ll have a big impact, but these cuts could add up to a good chunk of change. “Forty dollars here, $10 here or $50 here, next thing you know we’re adding $400 to $500 a month back into your savings account or retirement account — and that’s real progress,” Blaylock says. 4. Shop Around for Better Insurance Rates Between health, homeowner’s, auto, etc., paying for insurance can take up a huge portion of your monthly budget. The key to keeping your premiums in check is to be a smart consumer. Do your due diligence and shop around to make sure you’re getting the best rates or best deals for your money, Blaylock says. Health insurance is in a category of its own that makes it tough to negotiate. But things like auto insurance that can creep up over time, sometimes after only two or three years, are worth revisiting periodically. “It makes sense to go check that premium against another competitor just to see what that rate would be,” Blaylock says, adding that he’s reduced his auto insurance premium by more than 25% by switching to a new company. “It doesn’t take more than your time to get a quote.” 5. Pare Down Your Phone Plan You may not be able to live without your phone, but you still don’t want it to be the thing that drives your budget into the ground. To get the best deal, make sure you’re on a family plan. No family of your own yet? Recruit your parents, siblings or significant other — it’s a good move even if it means Venmoing your brother directly for your portion of the bill, Blaylock says. For example, a family of four can access unlimited data for $45 each through Verizon, which is a much better deal than the $80 you’d need to spend when flying solo. Speaking of data, take a look at your recent

Scroll through any parenting site and you’re bound to find lessons on teaching your kids about the A-B-C-s, 1-2-3-s, or maybe even the birds and the bees. But money? Not so much — even though it’s just as important to their well-being. Teaching kids about money not only enhances their financial savvy, it also imparts other valuable life skills, such as being responsible, learning to prioritize, and delaying gratification. But it is possible to steer your children the wrong way, too — and likely without you even realizing it. Below, we’ve rounded up some common mistakes parents may make when it comes to kids and finances, as well as some advice from the pros on how to make sure your little ones are learning the right kinds of money lessons. Money Mistakes to Avoid With Kids 5 and Under Not talking about money at all. Your little one picks up on the concept of money starting when he’s just 3 or 4 years old, says parent educator Vicki Hoefle. So if you don’t openly talk about it, your child may end up making his or her own (often inaccurate) conclusions, according to researchers from North Carolina State University and the University of Texas. In other words, your reticence doesn’t mean that you’re not sending a message. “A core mistake is not realizing that, whether or not you’re choosing to consciously and intentionally teach children about money, you’re still teaching them about money,” says Elisabeth Donati, owner of Creative Wealth International, who runs a financial literacy camp for kids called Camp Millionaire. Giving allowance based on behavior, grades, or chores. This is considered a mistake because it teaches your toddlers that they will be rewarded with money for behavior that they should be doing anyway, such as being nice to their siblings or putting their toys away. Instead, Hoefle suggests giving each child a flat amount each week that’s equal to his or her age. Your 3-year-old, for example, would get $3 a week that she can spend on whatever she’d like, such as a treat at the grocery store or a toy, after she’s saved a few weeks’ earnings. This introduces them to tasks like saving, spending, and budgeting. Money Mistakes to Avoid With Kids 6–10 Openly disagreeing with your partner on finances. Couples enter relationships with their own financial habits, and oftentimes those are at odds. Arguments between a spender and a saver, for example, could leave kids wondering which parent is right, Donati says, adding that kids generally start picking up on tense money talks around age 6. That association can negatively impact a child’s financial future. One study in the Journal of Family and Economic Issues found college kids whose parents frequently fought about money were more likely to have $500 or more in credit card debt. Thinking kids are too young to understand investing. Nine- and 10-year-olds can generally grasp the concept of investing, Donati says. At Camp Millionaire, kids play a game where once they’ve saved enough, they can buy an asset — real estate or stocks, for example — and collect passive income. “This light bulb goes off for the kids and they go, ‘Oh, I didn’t have to work for that $100!’ ” she says. Lesson learned. Judging the way your child spends money. While you can maintain veto power over certain things like buying violent video games or tickets to R-rated movies, it’s best not to give hard rules for what your kid can or can’t do with his allowance, Hoefle says. If you constantly disapprove of their junk-food spending habits, for example, “they’re going to start sneaking, and now you’ve attached something negative to money,” she explains. So if your 7-year-old wants to spend his entire allowance on candy, let him. But tell him for every cent he spends on Skittles, he has to put a penny in the health jar to cover potential cavities. “They begin to develop self-control and self-regulation, and it’s taught around having a few dollars a week,” Hoefle says. Don’t worry that the allowance money will go to waste. Hoefle says kids usually start to make more thoughtful choices within six weeks, and they’ll have picked up valuable money lessons along the way. As a bonus, having access to money helps kids develop and pursue their own interests. They may surprise you by buying a chemistry set you never would have thought to buy for them, for instance. Money Mistakes to Avoid With Kids 11–17 Thinking an allowance is enough to teach kids about earning. Once your child reaches 12, reevaluate the allowance-based-on-age strategy. At that point, cut the allowance in half to $6 a week, Hoefle says. By that age, “Kids will be able to go out and get jobs around the neighborhood — stacking wood, walking dogs, mowing lawns,” she adds. Then, by 14, the allowance could go away entirely because in many states they’ll be old enough to work part-time. Again, allow your kids to spend their hard-earned money on what’s on their wish list, whether that’s popcorn for a family movie outing or a pair of designer sneakers. “Over time, you’ve expanded their awareness about money,” Hoefle says. “They’ll have to realize what’s important to them.” Bailing your child out of a jam over and over again. So your teenager got into a fender bender — for the third time this year. Do you rush to the rescue and write a check for the damage, or do you leave it up to him to clean up the mess? The latter, as tough as it seems, could have a more positive long-term effect. Of course, you might have to foot the repair bill upfront, but it’s important to set up a plan for how your child will repay you, rather than simply lecturing them — and then letting them walk away, Hoefle says. “Bailing them out really sets them up for some hard knocks when they get out of the house,” Hoefle says. Consciously or not, you’re teaching them you’ll be there for them whenever they