Being an undergraduate (or a postgraduate, so to speak) is a scary enough experience in addition to all the worries about money. The less you think about the financial side of your life in these few years, the more you would focus on learning and developing. So here we offer you 5 tips for reducing stress which could be caused by your constant ?moneyless? condition.
- Go for the low price
A very clever thing every new undergraduate could do is take a walk around town and find the cheapest prices for all the products one usually needs. That means knowing at which store you can buy eggs for 80 cents instead of 1 dollar, and where to buy a shampoo at the lowest price.
Furthermore, it could prove quite efficient to wait for a discount before buying something that you can live without for another few days. In fact, you certainly can wait for another few days before buying most of the things that you usually go for straight away. And this directly leads to?
- The ?One Month? rule
Camus says that only when we give up on something we can realize that we can actually live without it. Way to go, philosopher! To be fair, many of the things we buy are not actually necessary for our well-being. We live in a consumer society and we often spend tremendous amount of money on fancy stuff that do not improve our lives in any way.
So the golden rule is: if you want to buy something but its actual impact on your life is doubtful, try to live without it for a month. If you succeed, chances are, you can live without it for a lifetime.
Just don?t try it on life-saving medicine; it might not work that well!
- Break the habit
Don?t always go for the expensive drinks and the night clubs. When you do it every Friday night it becomes a routine rather than a real celebration for the end of the tough week. Check out the local parks at night, try to fit in that swing behind the block, play your own music at a quiet place where only those special people can hear.
Do this instead of getting completely lost in that huge crowded club every time. These are the best years in your life. Don?t spend them all for the sake of those blurred memories and expensive clubs. It could save you a lot of money and buy you countless moments that have no price.?
- Don?t buy a gift, make one
Yes, we all know how it goes. You go to university and add a hundred people on Facebook the very first week. The result that follows is basically a birthday party at least twice a month and a cracked budget weighing on your shoulders. If you rush for the new bag or that red helmet every time you get invited, chances are you will hit the limits of what you can afford way too soon.
There are some wonderful DIY ideas for a gift. Get to know the person, learn more about their interests and hobbies, and create something unique accordingly. This makes it a lot more personal and many people will certainly appreciate it.
- Don?t buy a book you can borrow
This is an important one. If you can find a book at the local library (or the university library, so to speak) or borrow it from a friend, don?t rush to buy a new copy of it. Shipping may be free if you are a member of certain clubs, but that doesn?t make the book itself any less expensive. Plus, if you turn buying new books into a habit, there soon won?t be enough space for you to keep them anyway.
