Money Monday: Use It Up or Go Without!

I've decided to start something new around here and I am pretty excited about it. 

Every single Monday (that I remember or we aren't traveling or something like that...because this is real life after all), I am going to publish a new post that has to deal with money.

Now I could bore you and talk about budgets every single week, but I think there are enough posts out there about that so I want to try to give more practical (and maybe even some fun) advice. 

So let's get started with our first post, shall we?

USE IT UP OR GO WITHOUT!

A great way to save money is to use what you already have. I'm not just talking about the soap and shampoo in your shower (although we do all thank you for using that); I'm talking about many things you have laying around your house. 

I'll give you a few examples of the things I am currently "using up."

 I have a purse that I have owned for almost 9 years. It is still functional, even though it has a couple minor blemishes in it. Because it is still functional, I continue to carry it. I have had a few other purses in these 9 years, but this one has lasted the longest and will be used until it can't be used anymore. This doesn't mean that I won't keep an eye out for a great deal on a new purse, but it means I am not running out to grab one at full price just to have a new purse. 

My husband drives a vehicle that is 23 years old. It doesn't get driven all the time (we share my 5 year old vehicle a lot), but it does get driven. Yes, it needs work every now and then, but the cost of fixing it usually is much less than getting a new vehicle. 

The laptop that I am writing this post on is almost 8 years old. It has moved across the world with me. Is it perfect? Not at all. The paint on the keys are chipping, you can tell where my hands rest when I type (don't get on to me about typing posture...I know my wrists are supposed to be in the air) and the screen sometimes turns off and back on when I am in the middle of something As annoying as all these little kinks are, they don't annoy me enough to go spend money on a new computer. 

So how do you keep items in good enough shape to keep them for long periods of time: MAINTENANCE. 

Keep things clean and regularly make sure everything is in working condition. For my purse, I clean it out weekly (because kids are constantly throwing stuff in it, and give it a light scrub as needed. For our cars, we make sure they get regular oil changes and that preventative maintenance is done on them as needed. Doing preventative maintenance saves us from having an emergency cost show up when something breaks because we didn't take good care of it. As for my computer, I make sure to clean the files off it (by deleting stuff we don't need and moving important things to a separate hard drive) regularly as well as take the time to defrag it every couple months. 

Now let's talk about the second part of this, which I will warn you is not as much fun. Going without. 

A lot of times when something breaks or stops working, we think we need to replace it immediately, but sometimes we just need to think a little harder for a solution that  will buy us a little time to save up for that replacement/fix. 

Now, I am not saying this works for everything. Some things need to be fixed or replaced immediately. What I am saying, though, is you have to take a long hard look and decide if what you are wanting to fix/replace is truly a need or is it a want. 

For example, a couple months into owning my car, I ran over a screw somewhere. The tire went flat and my hope was that I could just get it patched. When the tire shop looked at my tire, they found that the screw was between my sidewall and the tread, which meant it needed to be replaced altogether. While I would have loved to wait on this, I had no other car to drive and needed reliable transportation so I got a new tire immediately. This is one of those times where you can't go without. 

But, a couple months ago when I noticed my dishwasher wasn't cleaning as well as it should, I knew I could wait on getting a new one. Yes, it is annoying having to hand wash dishes and yes, I have thrown fits about doing them, but it is possible and will continue to happen until we have the money saved up (and I do a ton of research) to get a new one. 

I am going to say this now because I am sure that there are some people thinking that I am just on a soapbox about this. I know that we all have different things that are necessary for us. I know that there are some people out there that can't live without a dishwasher and I know that there are people out there who purposely don't use a dishwasher at all. I get it and I am not telling you that what you think is necessary for you is just a want. That has to be something that you and your family decide and agree on; I can't do that for you.

The only thing that I ask is that if you are trying to curb your spending, get creative and see what you can use up or go without. You might be surprised at some of the things you have lying around your house that fit in these two categories. 

And stayed tuned for my post next week about items that I think you should SPLURGE on and those you should SAVE on. :)