Checking over my transaction over the past month, I realize how easy it is to fall into needless spending.
Now I consider myself VERY financially disciplined. In fact, I have kept a somewhat stringent budget for myself. Furthermore, I categorize my budget into different spending areas (things like entertainment, food, shopping, and so on).
What’s great about this? I get to see and better understand where I am spending my money.
What’s bad about this? Well, I get to see and better understand where I am spending my money.
To be perfectly honest, a majority of my spending I feel is genuinely necessary (rent, transportation, etc.) and sufficient, however, THERE IS ALWAYS SOMETHING that you can change.
Here I have a small list of my biggest money wasters:
ATM Fees
I absolutely despise ATM Fees. I am surrounded by them though almost wherever I go.
I live in a particularly hip and artsy part of Brooklyn where there are absolutely major bank branches around me. I mean it, absolutely nothing! Therefore, when I absolutely need money, I have to go to one of these sketchy dilapidated standalone ATMs on corner streets. Of course, these ATMs charge absolutely ridiculous fees to use, and I always feel a pang of deep guilt whenever I see the emotionless screen ask if I would like to accept the fee.
Indeed, the feeling reminds me of the way I used to feel whenever I ate a little to much Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream in middle school (I was very overweight then).
Why do i feel this way? Because it ADDS UP! In fact, ATM fees can easily come out to a few hundred dollars by years end if you are not careful.
These fees are a complete waste of your money. Think about it. You are paying a machine money to get your own money. Moreover, these fees are completely avoidable.
A simple solution I have used, has been to simply withdraw a lot of money from my own bank so that I don’t have to pay any fees and have cash available. This way I’m not forced to use an ATM that charges me fees, as I simply have more cash on hand.
Also, a very overlooked means of having more cash on hand while avoiding ATM fees is to use cash back whenever possible. So when I am at a grocery store or pharmacy and they ask if I would like cash back, I ask for as much as I can back.
Eating Out
This is a sneaky yet powerful money waster. It’s sneaky in that I’m always astounded with how much eating out can take away from my expenses. It’s powerful in that it adds up to a massive amount.
It can easily end up taking a massive chunk out of your budget by the end of the month if you are not careful.
The problem with eating out is that it doesn’t feel like you are wasting that much money. I can order a pizza, get chinese food, etc. and it wouldn’t be THAT much more than eating in right?
That’s what saving is ALL about though. You may think, I’m only spending a few dollars more, but that few dollars will add up quicker than you can believe.
Now I’m not saying that you should give up on eating out all together. I’m just saying that you should use some moderation and consider costs associated with eating out consistently. I love eating out. However, I make a strong effort to weight the decision to eat out against the money I would potentially be saving.
Also note that there are some other added benefits to eating in too. I definitely tend to eat much healthier when I choose to eat in as opposed to when I eat out. I’m able to take out Big Macs, Taco Bell, and pizza from my diet and substitute it with more nutritional and simpler foods like sandwiches, fruits, cereals, rice, etc. Moreover, a personal benefit I get from eating in is that I get an opportunity to learn to cook for myself. I think of it as training for when I have to cook for others in the future. I get to have a lot of fun learning how to make things I never thought I was good enough to make (I never thought of myself as that great of a cook).
I know that the convenience factor definitely plays a role in choosing to eat out, but there’s a ton of cheap options out there for eating conveniently (if not more conveniently) at home. Think Ramen noodles, cereal, sandwiches, macaroni (instant kind), etc. I could make a list of all those ready to eat foods but it would be a little too long 
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Anyway, I have listed some of my biggest money wasters, let me know yours!
