12 Examples of Spending Below Your Means

It is possible to live below your means even in a tough economy. You don’t believe me?

Well, I’m going to show you how to live below your means so you can have something left to save with the same income that has so far failed to take you anywhere.

Easier said than done

Easier said than done. This is the instinctive response you will expect from the average wage earner or small business owner when you dare raise the issue of living below one’s means.

The argument is simply this. It is a herculean task to live within one’s means in a tough economy let alone talk about living below them.

Much as I appreciate the difficulties involved and the personal discomfort it can cause, I still believe that it is possible to live below your means.

There are amazing benefits of living below our means. These benefits should make it more appealing for each one of us to seriously consider pursuing this worthy goal.

Here are 13 simple approaches you can adopt anytime to begin to live below your means.

1. Stop buying too much stuff on credit

Or eradicate the habit altogether.

Develop the habit of paying immediately for everything that you buy.

One rewarding outcome of this is that it will force you to buy only what you need and can afford. You have to learn to avoid those purchases which add nothing to your life now.

Another positive effect is that you will no longer have to pay extra money for goods and services which cost much less than the credit offer price.

2. Purchase your foodstuffs in bulk.

This works well especially if you have a reliable storage system like a refrigerator. Believe you me, it is a good idea to invest in one.

Buying vegetables, fish, meat, cereals, tubers etc. in bulk at the local market saves a lot of money. The saved cash could  be used to take care of other equally important household needs.  

Try this. You will be pleasantly surprised at the financial rewards it will bring to you.

3. Avoid impulse buying.

You and I are familiar with the situation where you dipped your hand into your wallet, took out those few “useless” coins to buy that item which had just caught your fancy.

You never planned that purchase in the first place. And you got home only to question the sense in making such a disastrous buying decision.

The truth is this: the more impulse buying we do, the less capable we are of saving bits of money which could gradually grow into something really big, over time.

One way to control the impulse buying habit is to avoid carrying excess money on you when you go out.

4. Ignore the Joneses and follow your plan.

You can’t be like your neighbours because you are not them. Period.

Neither can you become your colleagues at your workplace, your friends or even your siblings.

So just learn to be yourself.

Do you know where the people whose lavish spending habits you are desperate to imitate get their income from? Are your values not different from theirs? What about your personal goals?

Surely you both can’t have exactly the same financial plan. This is enough reason for you to do what serves your interests best and let others do theirs.

5. Budget

Let’s face it. It has never been easy for anyone to spend their money according to a budget they spent so much time on putting together.

But the good news is that a budget which is imperfectly implemented is better than spending without one.

If for nothing at all, a budget puts you on track as far as the way you spend your income is concerned. For that matter, a good budget prevents you from making unnecessary expenses.

Try one and you will be amazed at how a well-prepared budget can help you save some few coins here and there.

6. Avoid expensive schools for your kids.

You will agree with me that in most parts of the world, the cost of education in private schools is generally higher than that of public schools – for obvious reasons.

Are you suffering financially because of the unbearable cost of sending your kids to a certain school?

Then there is this truth you must admit now. This admission, and your ability to take a decision and action on it will liberate you financially.

Simply admit that it makes no economic sense for a parent struggling to make ends meet to send their children to expensive private schools.

Some private schools are really expensive to attend.

There are people who can afford such extremely expensive schools but surely it isn’t wise for everybody to follow them blindly, knowing they are finding things tough.

Let me tell you one secret. The quality of tuition in some public schools is equally good, if not better, compared to what you will find in some unbearably expensive private ones.

You can save yourself a lot of financial headache by finding a good, affordable public school for your kids.

7. Please yourself, not others.

I talked about the Joneses early on; but this is a different angle to it.

You and I know of people (so-called well-wishers) who have made themselves other folks’ financial advisors.

Just listen to them: “Oh, this fits you so well, buy it.”, “You must attend that function if not, people will talk.”, “This is below your status, don’t buy it. Look for something more presentable.”

Well, maybe they mean well but beware.

Whenever you land yourself in financial trouble (you can’t blame anyone else) and desperately need help, the “well-meaning” advisors usually disappear.

As an Akan proverb in Ghana puts it, “Do what would make you feel comfortable, not what others would praise.”.

8. Eat at home more often.

Are you the type that enjoys eating out or buying takeout (“takeaway” in Ghana) from the popular food vendor around the local street corner all the time?

In case you didn’t know I’m telling you today: you’re throwing away your hard-earned money on the wrong things.

Buying prepared food for most of your meals is an expensive habit. This is not only in terms of money but also in terms of the possible health hazards to which you’re exposing yourself.

The more you buy your own ingredients to prepare your own meals at home, the more money you can save. Not to talk about the health benefits.

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9. Plant a garden.

If you ask me I’ll tell you this: Yes, you really need to grow as many of your foodstuffs as you can. This becomes quite an easy thing to do if you have an idle parcel of land in your backyard or elsewhere.

Planting a vegetable garden, for example, will reduce the portion of your pay or profit that goes into such expenses, you know.

10. Avoid entertaining jerks and parasites.

They are all over the place. They don’t work but they know how to spend or help others spend their money.

My advice is simple: Do not entertain people who aren’t ready to dirty their hands doing anything that will earn them an income.

Likewise, beware of those who are so irresponsible with their spending habits that they are always lurking around you, eager to parasite on your meager salary or profit.

This will not make you a miser, a wicked person, or whatever description they end up giving you.

It is called responsible financial behaviour. Period.

11. Do it yourself.

I have discovered, through consistent practice, that one of the easiest ways of conserving one’s financial resources is to cultivate the habit of doing a number of things by oneself.

Learn to do simple repair works on your fence, your chair, your sink or even your phone or computer.

Personally sew your kids’ little coats of many colors – if you can.

Thanks to the internet, it is now possible to learn how to perform many simple tasks on our own without calling a workman to come and do so for a fee.

12. Lend only what you can afford to lose.

It is inevitable. Once in a while, someone in serious need of financial assistance will knock on the door.

It is good to give such assistance, at least, because we live in an interdependent world. More also, we are not all endowed equally.

So there is absolutely nothing wrong with giving a small amount of money meant to be paid back later to a friend or neighbour.

Sadly, however, not all borrowers are faithful debtors.

Some will never pay back what they borrowed. On top of that, they will treat you badly if you dare ask for your money back.

That is why you need to act wisely. Think carefully before you give. And if you have to, give what won’t hurt you much in the event of default.

13. Reduce wastage.

Once in a while, we each fall foul of the rule of reducing wasteful living.

Do you want to be able to live below your means in order to save part of your earnings? Then you really need to take another look at how you use utilities like water and electricity in your home or office.

Another area is your use of the internet and mobile phones for calls, chats and what have you.

Then comes the way we throw away excess food and other items which could have been preserved for future use.

Those who are able to consume utilities wisely, reduce the number of unnecessary phone calls as well as the time and data spent on social media, for example, would tell you that they are able to cut down their living expenses significantly.

Why don’t you also give it a try?

To wrap it all up …

Many of us desire to live within or below our means so that we can save something for the future. Unfortunately, this laudable goal always remains a dream for most of us.

We try hard but without much success, then we give up.

Are you one such individual? All hope is not lost yet. Try as many of the ideas above as you can and see what you can come up with.

Just remember that when you act on your decision to live below your means, you will enjoy countless benefits.

Getting rid of needless expenses will definitely put you in a stronger position to achieve your business, relationship and, of course, your spiritual goals.

Trust me, this is possible even in a tough economy.

Last Updated on March 13, 2026 by PTG Market