It seems fair to say that times are tough right now. Many people are struggling and lots more are looking for ways to cut back on expenditure. One method that is often touted as a good way to save cash is doing it yourself. But is a DIY approach all it’s cracked up to be? As with everything, there are two sides to the story. For instance, while doing your own decorating might be a big tick in the ‘yes’ box, doing your own car repairs (unless you’re actually a mechanic) is probably not going to help you – and it’ll probably reflect badly in your car insurance quotes.
So then, it seems that while doing things yourself does have potential, there is something of a tricky path to steer to get the best results from it. Let’s take food and drink as an example – this is one area of big spending where, for many of us, a little bit of DIY probably wouldn’t go amiss.
For instance, many people who go out to work every day by their lunch while they’re out. Whether this is a sandwich from the lunch cart, something from the company canteen or something upmarket from a local restaurant, it involves spending dollars you don’t really need to spend. Making your own lunch before work might not be that exciting, but if you’re looking to cut back, it makes a difference.
Say you currently spend $5 a day on lunch and other snacks while you’re at work. That’s around $100 a month just on lunch alone. It’s not much of a stretch to say you could save upwards of half of that by switching to homemade meals. After all, it isn’t much of a stretch to spend $5 on a single cup of fancy coffee when you could be making your own for a fraction of the cost, so food is clearly an area where DIY can help us save money.
As mentioned above, household activities such as decorating can also be benefitted by DIY. Maybe you already do all your decorating yourself, which is great, but many of us still hire someone in to take care of these things on our behalf – and labor is costly, especially if you want a really good job. Instead, buying the supplies yourself and setting aside a weekend to decorate a room costs a small percentage of hiring someone to do the job for you – and if you’re spending all weekend painting, you won’t be spending money elsewhere, either.
All of this shows that if you want to save money, it pays to take matters into your own hands. Of course, there are some things where DIY is resolutely not advisable, such as anything to do with electrics or other tasks that require a professional touch. However, there is a surprising number of ways where we can save money simply by putting a bit more of an effort in. From getting your own insurance quotes instead of sticking with the same supplier to getting busy in the kitchen, we could all make some changes in order to save some cash.
Do it yourself does not work for me! I usually destroy more than I fix. I learned along time ago to call a repairman. Iti scheaper for me in the long run.
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Yah, I guess it all depends on what you need to fix. If it was plumbing, I would totally hire someone to do it. But most other things I cnan figure out on my own with a good friend called “Google.”
I think using a sandwich is a bad example. Yes, you can buy a $5 sandwich, but nowadays, lunch meat is super expensive! However, I think most people spend more than $5/day on lunch. I feel like it’s around $7-$9. So in this case, then making your own lunch definitely makes sense!
I think the #1 costs that MOST people can cut is their gym membership!
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Yah, it’s more like $10 here in San Diego. I typically make my own lunch for less than $3. But then again, I’m not eating sandwiches!
Good points Jon! I think the battle being buying, hiring or DIY-ing has changed in the past few years. As you know, I’m an avid DIY-er…and lately I’ve been finding that even simple little things like making my own throw pillows can end up costing more then just going to buy them at a discounted retail store like Ross or Marshells. I don’t think it’s always been that way, but with prices in EVERYTHING going up – it’s hard to just decorate your house on a budget!
That being said, I’m always of the opinion that, if you get creative, doing things yourself will USUALLY save you some money! It’s just smart to compare DIY-ing or hiring.Sometimes as you start adding up your time spent, and cost of supplies, it just doesn’t end up being the smartest choice.
Great comments Carly! I’ll have to relay that info to Hannah so we can stay uber frugal once we’re married. I guess it depends on the individual situation but I totally agree that doing it yourself will “usually” save you money in the end.
BTW, Ross and Marshalls are my two favorite discount stores. I feel like a peasant shopping there, but once I’m out on the town I feel like a million bucks knowing I paid 75% less than other people!