A lot of my favorite blogs lose me when they talk about crazy topics like marriage and putting together a will. I find that some personal finance advice is universal. Spending less than you earn and focusing on earning more money is always solid money management advice. Then on the other hand, there’s personal finance tips that make me roll my eyes. I’m sure that if I was a 50 year old man in love for half of my life that I could use these tips. If you’re like me then I’m sure you’re tired of personal finance advice along the lines of:
Save money by staying in and playing board games.
Cut your own hair.
Buy used clothing.
If you’re a single dude in your 20s you likely enjoy getting laid. You also likely enjoy getting out there and having fun. You spent so much time working and investing in yourself that you deserve to have a little fun while you try to be financially responsible most of the time. This post is for you. This is an article for all of the single 20-something dudes out there.
How can single guys in their 20s save money?
Delay your haircuts.
Cutting your own hair is only feasible if you shave your head. I find that the best way for cutting back money on haircuts is by delaying them. At one point I used to go to the barber almost on a weekly basis. Now I go about once a month. I find that you can save some decent money on an annual basis by delaying your haircuts and you can also let your hair grow out to see if you want to change it up.
Pre-drink at home.
When you go out on the town you’re likely to drink. Drinking at a bar is not cheap by any means. I find that you can save yourself lots of money by staying in and having a few drinks before you head out.
Go out on week nights.
Have you considered going out on week nights? Weekend nights get too crowded, the lines are too long, cover charge is usually more, and you have a bunch of drunk punks running around. The week nights are much more easy going and you can save some money.
Stop trying to impress strangers.
You don’t need a new car or $80 Ed Hardy shirts impress your true friends. Whether you do it consciously or sub-consciously, you can easily blow a ton of cash in your 20s by trying to live an unrealistic lifestyle. The sooner you bring it back to basics, the sooner your wallet will thank you.
Buy clothes in bulk.
You can debate this point, but I find that I save the most money when I buy my clothes in bulk. If possible I also try to buy off-season. Meaning that I grab my summer time gear around fall time where everything is on sale. This also works out for me because I go down south at least once each winter so I don’t have to worry about not wearing the clothes for too long. By buying in bulk I find that I get everything that I need in one shot. This works out much better than picking up a piece here and there for me.
How else can young single guys save money?
If you have self control, a good trick is to use your credit card at the bar, that way, you pay one tip, instead of paying a tip for every drink, It adds up by the end of the night and you can still tip at 15% with the credit card and still be ahead of the game. when you tip without it, by the end of the night you could be close to 20-25%.
If you don’t have self control, or are known not to remember anything when you drink..do not use this tactic.
Just a heads up I wrote a response to this, “Money Management for the Single Ladies” on my site, check it out if you get a chance!