Living from Paycheck to Paycheck? – Proven Ways to Save and Earn Extra Money

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I know that most people who are living from paycheck to paycheck are looking for ways how to save and earn extra money. I am too. I am looking forward to that day when I no longer have to look at the price on the menu before deciding whether I’m hungry or not.

We all want to get out of the rut. To live comfortably without having to worry if this month’s paycheck will be enough before the next one arrives but before you can get out of something, you must survive it first. 😉

We’re still not out of it yet so obviously, I can’t give you tips on how to get out of it.

What I can share is how to survive living paycheck to paycheck because this is what I’m very good at as of the moment. 😉

 

1. Sort and pay bills according to importance.

In our family, food comes first. This one is a no brainer. You and your family need to stay alive. Then comes the house rent, electricity and water bills. These are the 2nd most important bills that needs to be prioritized because it will be very hard to find a living when you don’t have a roof over your head or electricity and water at home.

When these are paid, then we move on to the children’s monthly school tuition fees and other miscellaneous stuff. Whatever is left is sorted out for our daily commute, and other daily expenses. If we do not have budget left for any recreational stuff, we stay at home and amuse ourselves with movies, experimenting with food in my kitchen or you know, the usual argue all day long. Just like any normal family. 😉

2. Find additional ways to earn money!

My husband and I both work full time and yet we still struggle at times! Solution? We look for ways to save and earn extra money outside of our work hours. My husband is a freelance photographer so he meets with prospective clients and does wedding and event photo-shoot after his shift or during his rest days while I do online work like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Kidding.

I write articles for additional income. This blog also helps put food on our table which I’m very grateful for! It’s hard work and leaves me and my husband very little sleep but hey, you do what you gotta do.

If you are interested to find out how to make money from blogging, take a look at this Ultimate Guide to Earning a Five Figure Income From Your Blog by Sharon Gourlay of DigitalNomadWannabe. This woman truly knows how to make blogging work for her. She gives really useful tips to aspiring bloggers like me!

So ask yourself, what skills do you have? What do you like doing? Writing? You can be a virtual assistant or a freelance writer. Heck, you can even get paid for taking surveys! Here’s a screenshot of my earnings from answering surveys below.

Other sites who pay for your to take surveys:

Do you have an Instagram account? Depending on your number of followers, you can earn money (or receive products for free!) by working with brands. Once accepted to a campaign, you will get a set of instructions on how, when and what to post. Once campaign is closed, you then receive payment!

Do you rock at playing guitars? Why not contact families in the neighborhood and see who wants to enroll their kids to a weekly guitar lessons! Know how to bake? Set up an FB page and offer your baking services! There are so many opportunities out there, you just need to know where to find them!

3. Shop at supermarkets and department stores that offer loyalty cards.

I love supermarkets and department stores that reward their loyal customers with cash back or points that can be redeemed for items! It’s like saving for the rainy days. Once, I was short on cash and needed to buy a cream for my daughter’s rashes, I used my reward card (which had accumulated points from previous purchases) at a baby shop to purchase it. I was so relieved!

4. Take advantage of online promotions.

If you need to buy something that’s not needed right away, you can shop for them online during promo periods. An example can be school bag shopping, you can purchase this even 2 months advance if you see a sale online. For my US readers there’s always Amazon (affiliate links), you can go ahead and try the Amazon Prime 30-Day free trial where you can get unlimited FREE two-day shipping with no minimum order size.

For my readers here in the Philippines, did you know that there’s a site that offers cash back points for every online purchase you make through them?

Check Shopback.ph. They give you cash back rewards for your online shopping. Long story short, they get commission from your favorite shops each time you purchase and then split this commission with you as cash back. Awesome, right?

Cash-outs are done via PayPal or Banking.

This way, you can take advantage of the best promotions online and still get a certain percent of your money back! Great way to save money! You can check out the best deals here!

5. Don’t be ashamed to grab coupons and discount cards.

If a new restaurant or a food shop is giving out discount coupons, you can expect me to be the first in line. Some supermarkets also give out magazines with product listing that are included in the sale of the day or week. If pork steak is on sale this week, then trust me when I say my kids will be eating pork for a week. Different recipes of course. I do not feel any shame doing this. IT HELPS! I know that for some, this can be hard to do but if it helps SAVE MONEY and you are not doing anything wrong, then momma, go get the damn coupon.

Coupons exist for online shops as well too!

Living from paycheck to paycheck sucks but there are so many ways to save and stretch your budget. I know that sometimes it can be hard. Like, really freaking hard but with a little patience and hard work, you can get by and hopefully someday, things will get better.

Got any additional tips for me? Let me know in the comments! I’m always in the lookout for money-saving tips!