Do you need a little help on the road to Tightwad? Stop by every Tuesday for a quick tip to help you on your way.
This week I was running Saturday errands, and like many of you, I just had too much to do. One item on my list was to pick up two birthday cards for my mom's birthday on Wednesday. I figured I would just pick them up at a store that was already on my list of errands.
But, when I stood at the rack and saw that the cards were $3.69 each, I changed course. One of my other stops was near a Paper Factory Outlet. I ran in and bought a .49 "from both of us" card and saved $6.89. Total time expended-5 minutes. Multiply that times 12 and you'll see that I made the equivalent of $82.68 per hour, just by adjusting my plans.
The quick tip: Focusing on the "real cost" of small decisions (like where to go and how much to buy) can save you lots of money. In the moment, I thought it would be easier to just grab my cards and run. But when calculating the true cost of the decision, it was definitely worth the extra stop.