More than half of Canadians report living paycheque to paycheque. From a high cost of living to a challenging job market, a severe housing shortage to high gasoline prices, Canadians face challenges on many fronts. It’s important to take proactive steps to stop living paycheque to paycheque, which is why we offer five smart tips on how to do just that.
1. Start with a Budget
First, it’s important to figure out your net monthly income. Then list your fixed expenses and variable expenses. Fixed expenses are the ones you must pay every month, including things like rent/mortgage payments, utilities, groceries, and transportation. Variable expenses may be optional or change from month to month.
Once you have your net income and fixed/variable expenses, you can look at whether your income is sufficient cover all your expenses. If you have no money left over and nothing to put in your savings, it could be a problem with either income or spending. Therefore, there are two basic ways to tackle this: increase your income and/or reduce your spending.
2. Increase Your Income
Despite today’s challenging economic times, there are opportunities to earn a higher income.
- Start a side hustle. Do you have a passion or special interest? You could potentially monetize it online, by using social media or, for instance, selling your art online.
- Get a part-time job or weekend gig. If you have the energy to take on a part-time job or weekend gig, it will help supplement your main income.
- Retrain for a new career. This may seem daunting, but there are many opportunities to learn new skills online, whether by attending online bootcamps, taking online courses, or watching free tutorials.
3. Consider Debt Consolidation
Are you worried about multiple debts? Consider consolidating all your debts into one loan. This will mean a single monthly payment, likely at a lower interest rate. Then you won’t have to worry about multiple different creditors.
4. Reduce Unnecessary Expenses
Brew your own coffee at home, stop going out to restaurants so often, stop buying new technology that you can’t afford, etc. Whatever discretionary expenses you’ve had until now, review them carefully and make sure that you’re not overspending on things that you can do without. Even a few hundred dollars a month can make a big difference. You could potentially start building an emergency fund with the money you save by cutting out frivolous expenses.
5. Set Financial Goals
You must take your financial life seriously. This means setting goals and figuring out steps to achieve those goals. A combination of budgeting, increasing your income, reducing unnecessary expenses, and building an emergency fund, is sure to result in a more secure financial future. It all starts with a determined mindset.
Conclusion
The above five tips can help you achieve a healthier financial life. If you ever run out of cash between paydays, apply online via OntarioCASH. You can get funds deposited into your bank account in as little as 24 hours! We don’t check your credit score or credit report during our simple online application process.
