Why I do this.

I've been cutting down my expenditure due to the economic crisis. Really.

I've set up a to-do list, and also manage some financial planning and expenditure scheme, to help me stick with it, just in case I forget or stray away from my future plan of having a financial freedom (ewah!).

So what are the things that I've managed well for the past one month?

1. I no longer buy expensive coffee (starbucks, coffee bean and etc). I save up RM45 per week, because I usually spent close to RM15 for the grande sized coffee atleast 3 times a week.

2. Limit my expenditure to what is necessary. I list everything out, and prioritise it according to its importance. So instead of buying mineral bottled water from the hypermarket , somewhere around RM12/12bottles 1.5L x 2 (RM24) per every month, I would masak air sendiri before tidur, and top up the bottle bila dah sejuk the next morning.

3. Changed all my light bulbs in my apartment to energy saving bulbs. I spent more on the upfront, but hopefully it will provide me with a high ROI in terms of electricity bills.

4. I don't wear "branded" (middle range) stuff anymore. No more online shopping for Victoria Secret undies/undergarments, no more ZARA jeans (well I restrict my ZARA jeans purchase to 1 helai setahun, during bonus time). For shoes, I love Clarks because it is comfortable and it usually lasts me longer than any other shoes. But my craving for shoes is restricted to only 1 Clarks every year, or until I wore the old one out (which ever comes first). Untuk kasut kerja, I found one store that offers superb collection with low price. SUMMIT. Freaking comfortable and you can send your shoes back if rosak and they fix it for you for free!!! Get the member card RM15 for 2 years, and you'll get 15% off for normal purchase, and if there's a sale, 15% off on top of the reduced price. Baju, back to FOS and Padini Chain Store. For padini, since the cycle of their collection is really fast, I don't purchase my baju kerja at normal price or new arrivals, but tunggu sebulan, then they'll give 50% or maybe 70% off during the clearance.

5. For handbags, I made a promise to myself that I will use all the bags that I currently own; all the purchases from Paris and around Europe (which is more than a year dah) and Bangkok; sampai sekarang ada yang belum pakai. No more purchase sampai semua koyak rabak.

6. Before this, I spent almost RM100/month on my reading materials; books and magazines. Women Health, Easy Living, Apartment, Glamour UK and all those fabulous imported mags. But now, I buy them one month late. It makes no different really, except that I get to purchase it at RM9 per mag some even RM5, because it is outdated and the store need to clear it out asap. Favourite mag store - Sun Mag @ Cineleisure. Books; tunggu warehouse clearance.

7. Store canned and dry goods. Like mee hoon, spagetti, all kinds of pasta, sardines etc, so that if am at home, and I am hungry, I can just cook something simple and filling. Tak payah keluar beli or buat delivery. I've been doing that for almost a month now, and it works. I hardly spent more than RM50 for food every week during workdays. Now, my mission is to make and pack my own breakfast / lunch to the office.

8. I want to learn how to bake. Nak buat cookies and keep it in a jar, and belajar nak buat bread (Still trying to mintak Along to sponsor me my breadmaker, so mahal tak mampu beli sendiri). So bila my niece and Mr.Snots (both are known to be avid snacking creatures) datang, we don't need to buy tonnes of snacks. It will be healthier too. Both need that extra nutrition because those two babies are still growing. Hehe.

9. I have this small irritating and membazir habit of letting the tap running when I'm in the kitchen or in the bathroom. Sebab pemalas nak bukak tutup air. Sekarang dah tak buat dah. Although the bill was never more than RM20, basically free, but it is just a bad habit.

10. Buy perishable items when necessary. Beli bila nak masak. Instead of simpan lama-lama and bila tak pakai, then ended up buang.

11. Spending lesser time at the shopping malls actually help me to curb my shopping habit to the extreme. I was never a crazed shopper pun, cuma I usually spend money unnecessarily. Now, I only go if I need to buy something, or nak tengok wayang.

Honestly, I know am not so much of a big spender before, but I never think that I can actually save up more than I ever did. All I need to do is to control and monitor my spending habit.

So proud.