It’s Not What You Make, It’s What You Keep!

In today’s economy, looking for ways to maximize your income is smart. There was a big a-ha! for participants in my Business Planning Teleseminar this year when I said, “One of the most important actions you can take is looking for where you can save money since you get to keep every dollar you save, whereas each dollar you add to your gross will be diminished by expenses and taxes.” In other words, saving $1 gives you $1, and making another $1 probably only gives you 50 cents!

Here are some actions you can take to save in 2011:

• Re-negotiate with your vendors and service providers. Call EVERYONE–the phone company, your insurance agent, your website provider–and ask for a better deal.
• Look at last year’s expenses to determine where your business came from. Drop or modify expenses that aren’t bringing in business, unless they provide superb branding.
• Assess everything that you are being charged for automatically every month. I was paying $15 a month for Netflix, and after I cancelled, they offered me the same deal for $8. And then I discovered I could get movies for free with my Wii. Are you paying for a service you aren’t using or that you could get at less expense?
• Are you maximizing your expenses? Do you log your mileage? Keep good receipts for entertainment? Snacks & tunes for your office?
• Sign up for Groupon or Restuarant.com to save money on your meals out and other services. Restaurant.com runs specials frequently when you can buy a $20 certificate for $2. These also make great gifts for clients.

Spend time on your budgets, and you’ll put money in your pocket! I’d love to hear what you are doing to save money and thrive in 2011!

Tags: budget, expenses