Here we go again. The financial markets are playing the yo-yo game again. It’s not looking good for the global financial markets. Investors are jittery and there are no safe havens for people to stockpile their savings.

It is getting untenable for the everyday person. Not only are the underprivileged hurting but the lower end of middle-class are now battling to make payments. The affluent continue to make money and the gap between rich and poor is increasing.

However the concept of saving should now be even more in the mindset of society. Saving involves putting aside money for a specific purpose/ goal and also reducing expenses. The principle of saving is basic and doesn’t involve anything remarkable or revolutionary. The best ways to save, however, involve practical and easy ways to save that sometimes do not even require much effort on your part.

I have listed some methods in which you can save money:

1) Use freebies and samples – Many organisations are now releasing freebies and samples to buyers to stimulate the economy and persuade us to spend. Take advantage of these free things to form educated purchasing choices to get the best bang for your buck on your products.

2) Use Online Coupons

This is a rising trend that is gaining interest each day. Offering coupons for trial services or discount products is another method to encouraging people to save money and still get what they need. So the next time you need to head for the stores, do a quick check online to see if there are existing online coupons. You will be surprised at home much you can save!

With these savings, your first thought should be reduce any debt associated with your name. The mortgage and the credit card debts should be the first to go. Once you are debt free, global economic uncertainty does not affect your lifestyle

Don’t be afraid of using free online coupons to help you save money. In this day and age, the term freebies is no longer a dirty word. Be frugal.

Do you need methods to save money on domestic expenses, items and the like? Given our present perilous financial state, I think it would be sensible for everybody to take notice of several approaches to preserve money. If America is to endure this financial crisis and pull the rest of the world out with it, all of us must become wiser consumers.

I’ve prepared some suggestions that may help you reshape your mindset and thinking towards saving money.

Money Saving Tip 1. Buy Energy Efficient Appliances. Look for the Energy Star on appliances and consider the annual energy cost before buying. More efficient appliances cost more, but you make up the extra cost and then some over the life of the product. Just a word of warning, large plasma TVs are not energy efficient! Large televisions, whilst nice to own, cost much more to run than previous CRT technology.

Money Saving Tip 2. Set yourself a limit to gift giving. What you should realize is that people are more interested in the thought that goes behind the gift and not the gift itself. In fact if you plan properly, you can probably get the gift for a fraction of the price if you keep your eyes open on sales or eBay.

Money Saving Tip 3 Cancel the health club membership. Less expensive options may include a gym at your work or a gym at your local parks and recreation center. Even better is to take walks around the block and engage in free weight training like push-ups and sit-ups that require no money!

Money Saving Tip 4 – Become an extreme couponer! If you’ve been hiding under a rock for the past 5 years then you would’ve overlooked the fast growing sensation of couponing which involves using discount coupons to save on your everyday items. Getting free online coupons is so simple. Many organisations are using coupons as an bonus to attract new clients and to promote loyalty among their existing ones.

Lamo Damo has been blogging about freebies for over 2 years. He gets
enjoyment from helping others save money by using the Internet to source the latest free stuff.

Who knows if we’re in recession or recovery. The one thing I do know is that people are now becoming a lot more inward focus looking which isn’t good for aid to the 3rd world countries, especially those in the Horn of Africa who are going through the worst drought on record.

Because individuals are inward looking, individuals are simply looking out for themselves as well as their family. Financial resources are restricted. But the a valuable thing is that lots of people aren’t utilizing a change in mindset that will assist them save and survive this financial meltdown. Below are great tips on how to save and survive:

1) Frugal living – A lot of what you might enjoy can probably be completed with an alternative less costly approach but with the same benefits. Rather than using a health club, why not begin strolling around the block and pair that with crunches and push-ups which would give the same benefit and is free.

Start using coupons. Free online coupons can be found everywhere and corporations are now beginning to utilise social media like Twitter and Facebook to deliver free coupons which will help you to save.

2) Manage your credit card debts properly – Did you know that 61% of American’s have a credit card debt of over $12,000 every month? That means over $1200 of interest payments is being made every single month! Add that up over the year and you basically could have paid the interest off a mortgage! Talk to your mortgage lender and combine the debts together and thus pay off a smaller interest rate. From there it is important to pay attention to your debt repayment period. Ensure that if you have a interest free period on your card that you pay back everything before the due date. You will save yourself a lot of money and heartache.

3) Plan meals – If you plan your dishes and know what to buy from the food store, you’re less likely to engage in impulse buying which gets many people. A dollar here or there adds up over the year. If you managed and accounted for every dollar that you spent, you would be shocked at how much you spend on unnecessary items.

Lamo Damo has been blogging about freebies for over 2 years. He gets
enjoyment from helping others save money by getting stuff for free.

I’m not sure about you, but the financial uncertainty is starting to weigh on my mind fairly seriously. For many, financial security will not be an issue but for the majority of the world, this impacts us all. Plus the events of the previous 7 days where we have seen the yoyo effect of the USD and the stock exchange shed and gain 5% of its valuation inside the span of a day is simply indicative of the start of the Global Economic Crisis 2.0.

From the increased number of natural disasters to the ever present economic crisis in America, I feel fairly overwhelmed. The USD is now tanking against other major foreign currencies and there are experts who believe China and India will take over the as the dominant marketplace over the next year or two. This is a major problem for a lot of of us who have thought for all our lives that the American way was the way to go.

Given all this uncertainty, I have decided to take the step and completely focus on debt reduction, ie mortgage before anything else. Thus any overseas trips, holidays, luxury items are now being put on hold. I have taken up a Netflix membership (even though they have now increased their rates) so the family can still have some entertainment but heading to the local cinemas is now a no go zone. Every cent is now being pushed towards debt-reduction as the only way to experience true freedom is to be debt free.

Maybe I’m over-reacting, but I feel this is the best way forward. I’m just scratching my head not knowing how to react. In fact I currently feel like life decisions are a gamble, make 1 bad choice and you could lose everything which I know friends who have made a simple mistake and will spend years paying for it.

My advice is reduce your debt and use the Internet to save money where possible through online couponing and free samples.

Lamo Damo has been blogging about freebies for over 2 years. He gets
enjoyment from helping others save money by using free stuff and online couponing.