How to Get Rich the Easy Way

There are only two ways to get rich, either make more money or spend less money (or both). Since it isn't easy for everybody to make more money, the guaranteed way is to spend less money. That's right, you too can be rich by simply living below your means.

Obviously this isn't the most glamorous way to live your life, but there is an enormous satisfaction in not ever having to worry about money again. Many people who experience depression, divorce, obesity, hypertension, heart disease, etc. can directly associate these ailments to the stress caused by not having enough money.

Over the course of the next couple of months, I am going to feature different ways you can reduce the amount of money you spend. The money you will not be spending should be saved and invested. Notice I said SAVED and INVESTED. First, everybody should have an emergency stash of cash in the bank equal to at least 6 months of expenses. This is savings. Second, you need investments. These include retirement (401k, IRAs, etc.) and non-retirement (stocks, bonds, rental property, CDs, etc.). Let's take a look at 5 quick and painless ways to stop spending money:

• Never Buy a New Car- I don't care about 0% interest financing. Buying a new car is one of the worst financial moves anybody can make. The second you drive it off the lot, the value has declined by 20%. Rich people don't buy new cars and certainly don't spend their money on things that DECLINE in value. Go buy a used Honda or Toyota. These cars are reliable and affordable.
• Get Rid of Your Phone- Do you have a home phone? A cell phone? Why do you need both? Get rid of your home phone. Between the line fees, call waiting and caller ID, you are probably wasting $40 a month. If you have long distance too, you are probably spending $80 a month. Just use your cell phone. With competition sky high amongst cell providers, plans are cheap (even unlimited plans).
• Get Rid of Your Cable- At least get rid of your premium package. Instead, subscribe to Netflix. For as little as $4.99 a month, you can see all kinds of movies and most T.V. shows (since everything goes on DVD now, even crappy MTV shows like The Hills).
• Buy an Entertainment Book- Tired of living like a pauper with a used car, no cable and no phone? Here is a nice splurge. For about $30, this book contains thousands of dollars in coupons and savings. The highlight of the book may be the buy one entree, get one free dining coupons. Depending on where you live, they have some really good restaurants participating. Better yet, they usually have coupons for grocery stores. Even if your favorite isn't listed, most grocers will honor competitor's coupons.
• Cancel your Newspaper/Magazine Subscriptions- Are you seriously getting magazines and papers delivered to your door daily? Most of these articles you can get for FREE online. Better yet, you can quickly scan the headlines, read abstracts and get better information online these days than you can in print. Save the trees and save money, what a great idea.

See how easy that was. These easy steps just saved you THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS. I will keep you posted on more ideas in the coming weeks and will even suggest some things to do with all this loot. For starters though, if you have high interest credit card debt, get rid of it. Otherwise, if your employer has a 401k that matches your contribution, max that out. It is free money. Live Rich.