Balancing A Healthy Savings Account With Your Social Life

 There is one simple thing we can all do if we want to save money; nothing. If you never do anything or go out anywhere fun, you’ll save tons of money. A lot of people feel like they’re faced with this reality and if they ever want to meet any of their financial goals, they’ll just have to give up on their social life and stop spending money on anything that isn’t essential. 

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But if you consider your quality of life, socializing is essential and if you never spend time with friends and family, you will be miserable. The good news is, you don’t need to choose between a social life or a healthy savings account because you can have both. Here’s how to save money without sacrificing your social life. 

Drink Less Alcohol At Bars And Restaurants

Drinks are usually the biggest expense when you go out, especially at a bar. But you can save yourself a lot of money if you have some drinks at home first and then cut back on the amount that you drink while you are out. Drinking soft drinks will half the amount of money you spend and you still get to socialize with people.

If you really want to cut the amount that you spend on alcohol, why not try making your own? You can get everything you need from an online home brewing shop and make a big batch of beer. When you consider the cost per bottle, it’s less than half the price of buying drinks from a shop. You don’t have to cut out alcohol to save money, just try to limit what you drink. 

Don’t Split The Bill 

Going to a restaurant when you’re on a tight budget can be tricky. You spend time carefully choosing your food so the cost doesn’t get too high and you only have one drink so you are still way under budget. Everybody else carries on as normal and has more expensive food options and a few more drinks. Then the bill comes and somebody suggests you all split it.

Everybody agrees because it’s easier that way and they all spent roughly the same amount. The problem is, your budgeting goes out of the window and you end up paying way more than you actually spent. This is an awkward situation but it’s easily avoided if you set expectations from the beginning. When somebody invites you to a restaurant and you are concerned about money, be honest. Tell them that you will come but you need to save money so you’re going to order conservatively and pay for your own share. 

Be A Volunteer 

It’s so frustrating when there’s a great concert or event that you want to go to, but the ticket price takes you way over budget. You can still attend those events if you go as a volunteer. Venues are always looking for people to set up before the show and you’ll get a free ticket in return. At concerts, there is even a chance that you might meet the band. 

These are all simple ways that you can still enjoy a social life without blowing your budget. Failing that, check out some of these ways to earn cash on the side so you can afford the lifestyle that you want.