How to Save Money

We save money for a variety of reasons. Some save it for the rainy days or some save to use it for investments and hope to reap better returns from their savings. Saving money requires discipline and it takes time to develop. No matter what, it’s best to start early. Don’t procrastinate. The amount saves may look small initially, but over a period of time, you’ll be surprised how it has increased later on.

I would like to share five of my saving money tips.

Tip 1: Budget Plan

Plan your income and expenses to know the movements of your money. From this plan, you can know which expenses to cut to achieve your saving plan. If you have a family, it’s best to plan this budget together as a family activity as you need their co-operation to avoid complains.

Tip 2: Reduce Unnecessary Spending

Most people are tempted to buy things on impulse and later the items bought are hidden somewhere in the house. Review regularly what you spent and look for ways to reduce spending. E.g. making unimportant phone calls during off-peak timings are cheaper.

Tip 3: Buying in Bulk

Look for offers in newspapers for your commonly used non-perishable items. E.g. Toothpaste, toilet rolls, dish washing liquid. These tend to have bundled offers to give you real savings in your grocery bills.

Tip 4: Wait for Sale

There will always be a sale at major department stores or warehouse sale for branded items. Sale must be from reputable companies known for their credibility of conducting sale to reduce old stocks to allow space for new ones to be displayed. Beware! Some companies may fool unwary customers by conducting sale all year round as part of their marketing strategy. Normally, I shopped for my regular items and know the estimated market price.

Tip 5: Monitor your Utilities Bills

Read and file your utilities bills. Compare it to the national average usage. If yours is way above, do an audit of your usage. E.g. If there is a sudden surge in water usage, there could be some leakage somewhere. Check it to stop the problem as soon as possible. Always replace old electrical products with new energy saving ones. I saved some money on electrical bills when I replaced my old air-con to inverter air-con which consumed less electricity and yet cool the rooms better.

Earn Money from Online Surveys

I’ve earned some money from online surveys for quite a while using my spare time. It’s quite interesting to answer those survey questions. I admire the creator of the surveys for their clients. The surveys are usually well-designed, creative and structured. Their clients want to know the consumer behavior and are willing to compensate us for our time by giving our opinions. Online surveys won’t make us prosperous but it can provide us another stream of income.

There are lots of survey companies on the internet. Some of them could be scams which normally request for registration fees before joining as member. They normally have wild claims of earning big money from participating in surveys. I don’t go for that. Some sites may have spywares or viruses. I joined those that are free and reputable research companies as I need to register my email address, home address and contact number. These companies are often quoted in our local newspapers.

The company that I registered with would send me an email occasionally to notify me to participate in their survey. Their email would inform me of the estimated time and points to be awarded. These points are like credit card loyalty points which are exchangeable for cash vouchers. The survey would usually starts with a screening process to identify whether you meet their criteria. After that, there would be a series of questions ranging from multiple choices to some open ended ones. I really enjoy participating in online surveys. You can skip taking part when time is not at your hand. Just wait for the next email invitation. Please read their terms and conditions before you sign up to avoid unnecessary misunderstandings later.

I hope you can find yourself a good survey company and earn some money from Online Surveys in your spare time to prosper with me.

Is Halloween Getting Popular in Singapore?

A recent visit to shopping centers, I noticed more retail spaces were allocated to Halloween products in retail outlets and Hypermart this year. Does it mean it’s getting popular in Singapore? It must be so as I’d also seen the management of the stores and leisure spots advertising aggressively. They’re quick to cash in on the rising trend in Singapore. Halloween falls on Sunday, 31 Oct 2010 this year. I guess it’s the younger generation that is creating this rising trend in celebrating this yearly event. I’d seen some them dressed up in Halloween costumes and heading to some night spots to join in the fun.

The design of the costumes is getting better each year. Make up on their faces is as good as those Hollywood movies scary characters. I’d heard of one past incident in which one man dressed up in such costume and went to a public toilet to answer nature’s call. While he was coming out of the dimly lit toilet, another man accidentally knocked into him and got such a fright. He gave a loud scream…his face turned as white as sheet. He fled and shouted “There’s a ghost! There’s a ghost!” Well, could be at that time, Halloween is still relatively new to Singapore.

For those celebrating, I hope that they know what’s the meaning of this celebration and not just following it blindly. Traditionally, it is the celebration of the eve of All Saints Day which falls on first day of November each year. The old English word for ‘Saint’ is ‘Hallow’. Combining the both words ‘Hallow’ and ‘Eve’ together, the word ‘Halloween’ was coined. I wish those celebrating this day to have a wonderful and joyous time.

Those who seek to prosper may wish to think of ideas to cash in on this Halloween Festival which is getting popular not only in Singapore but also in many countries as shared by well-traveled Singaporean friends.

Answers to BIBLE Books Knowledge Contest!

Chance to prosper by joining contest.

Circle your answers. 3 correct entries drawn from contest box will stand a chance to win shopping vouchers. Closing date : 3 Oct 2010, 2 pm. Cut out the portion of contest form from Eternal Life Assembly HI_Kids newsletter and put it into the contest box located at level 5 Bukit Timah Shopping Centre Auditorium 1.

Below are my answers!

Can you find the names of 25 books of the Bible in this paragraph? This is a most remarkable puzzle. Someone found it in the seat pocket on a flight from Los Angeles to Honolulu, keeping himself occupied for hours. One man from Illinois worked on this while fishing from his john boat. Roy Clark studied it while playing his banjo. Elaine Victs mentioned it in her column once. One woman judges the job to be so involving, she brews a cup of tea to help calm her nerves. There will be some names that are really easy to spot . . . that’s a fact. Some people will soon find themselves in a jam, especially since the book names are not necessarily capitalized. The truth is, from answers we get, we are forced to admit it usually takes a minister or scholar to see some of them at the worst. Something in our genes is responsible for the difficulty we have. Those able to find all of them will hear great lamentations from those who have to be shown. One revelation may help, books like Timothy and Samuel may occur without their numbers. And punctuation or spaces in the middle are normal. A chipper attitude will help you compete. Remember, there are 25 books of the Bible lurking somewhere in this paragraph.