Time Management for Better Financial Health

Let’s start with a disclaimer that this article is not intended to take fun out of your life. This is not to make you slave to the demands of modern life where you forget to enjoy life at your leisure. This article is about finding time from your everyday life for money-saving and money earning work. If you want to be rich, you need to find time to be rich.

Where I can see, better time management can help us

• Finish more work within a time frame
• Spend more time with loved ones by reducing/eliminating overtime work.
• Free up time for other money-making activities

As they say, great people become great by doing things differently, rather than doing different things. To be anywhere near a great, we should do our normal chores differently and efficiently. We should eliminate time-waste and implement work prioritization in our lives.

There are tasks that can wait and there are tasks that can be avoided. Time management involves identification of those tasks. Time management also encompasses strategy to do things when it is most appropriate to do.

Time management makes us doing things that can save money more diligently and on priority. Time management allows us to put more time and resources on money earning tasks.

Below are a few time management techniques that I could think of, I am hopeful they will be valuable for all of us.

1. Automate your bank account

When my wife and I started to accumulate a couple of credit cards, we found it hard to keep track of numerous due dates. Worse, she had to run on some days just to be able to pay them on time. Thankfully, we learned our bank actually allows for automation. This means we simply had to authorize these credit card companies to charge our bank account. This way, we didn’t have to fall in line or worry about due dates. Automating your life gives you a more free time to do other things.

2. Organize errands

I definitely thank my wife for being good at this. Being a home maker she runs the errands for us. Her ultimate purpose is to actually perform all her errands, such as paying bills not covered by our bank account, doing some groceries, or even having herself fixed once in a while. Then she picks up our children from school. We’re able to save a lot of gas money with this strategy.

The things that depend on me are kept for the week-end. If they can wait, they usually wait till I finish them at one shot in one of the week-ends. This way I can concentrate my energy at work without taking breaks from work. Most of my weekends are available for spending time together and it also allows me to put more hours into blogging.

3. Wake up early

My wife and I aren’t really early risers, but after we’ve found some benefits to it, we decided to push ourselves to do it. Waking up early means I don’t have to take the car to work, so we’re able to save on gas. She can prepare my lunchbox. As you know, brown bagging saves a lot of money over time.

Now a days I go to work early and leave from work early. I think my efficiency increased a bit and I am more productive at work. I tend to finish more tasks working with a fresh mind in the morning compared to working with a tired body in the evening.

4. Buy items in bulk

Or at least get as many as you can for the same thing. Here’s why: stores actually love it when you buy so many items as the same time, and as a form of gratitude, they shower you with deep discounts. But you have to remember that not all items can be purchased in bulk. You can’t have a lot of meat stuck in your freezer, for example, unless you’re planning a huge party in a few days. But for other things such as those we can keep in the pantry, we try to do so. This also saves us from getting into last-minute shopping.

The biggest gain is the shopping time save.

5. Get things early

When you’re booking an accommodation or ticket, do so early. When you’re trying to buy clothes for the next season, do so early. There’s less competition at this point. You can also take advantage of the off-peak season, where prices for these types of goods are incredibly low just to stimulate some sales.

6. Plan your retirement as early as now

Don’t wait until you’re already forty or even thirty to start thinking about retirement. Unless something bad is going to happen to you—God forbid!—you will definitely retire. It’s best to be truly prepared for it. How much retirement money do you need? Just take a look at your current expenses and lifestyle. You should be able to sustain it when you’re older. Nevertheless, you can always talk to experts and retirement plan brokers to know how much you really need.

It also helps if you can inquire from your company if they’re offering a retirement plan. Mine does, and it’s helpful for us since it motivates me to work hard and appreciate all the help my company is giving me.

7. Don’t wait

There’s an old proverb that says, “Don’t hold off things you can do for today.” It’s actually true, even in monetary standpoint. If you miss one day from your due date, you have to pay for penalty fees on top of your present credit card debt. Pay your bills on time. Doing things ASAP can also greatly improve your credit score and makes you more trustworthy to your creditors.

8. Limit net surfing and TV

Honestly apart from watching news and a couple of TV program on Discovery, Nat Geo, etc. I do not find much value in watching it. Yes, we see movies together regularly and some occasional soap operas too but, that’s the part of our family quality time. Evening is the only time I dedicate to this blog. So far whatever money I earned from it wouldn’t have been possible had I watched TV after coming from work. I use this time for other money earning activity which shapes my financial future better.

You need time to find ways of saving money. You need time to earn more money, you need time to research on spending, you need time to find new ways to invest, you need time to enjoy life to rejuvenate yourself. You need time to be with family and spend time with them so that you don’t lose sight of actual goals, seeing your family happy and being loved.

At the end of it, do not take life out of your life. You don’t have to be serious all the time while you are set to achieve things. Don’t take the joy out of your routine, keep some time to savor your victory and share with others. Live!