I am not an economist neither am I a stock trader but the truth remains that the whole world is being touched by the global economic situation. 

With the COVID-19 pandemic to the war in Ukraine, there have been broad supply shortages. The fuel hike became very obvious as well as food prices amongst others. 

Being a mom of 3 and living with my parents, I feel the pinch as my living costs have tripled in the past few months. 

This is not the time to feel pressured and anxious, but making a few readjustments can help alleviate the situation. Also, as a parent, the worst thing to do is being anxious as this will adversely affect the kids. 

It is not easy I know, as we think of what the future will hold and all the uncertainties will come crawling in. But remember this one thing – Life is uncertain and each passing day is a leap of faith. If life was all certain, it will be boring at least in my own opinion. 

Trusting in God

This is the first step. As a Christian, what keeps me going is trusting that God has got my back. I know that sometimes challenges come, but going to God in prayers gives us that inner peace that passes all understanding. I also study my bible to understand how God took care of His own when they were passing through difficulties. Reading the Bible as well as praying and meditating upon the word of God is essential to help glide through the storm. 

Buying in Bulk

I must confess that I had to stop going to the gym when the war started. Reason? Cost of fuel. As the cost of fuel tripled, I knew I could not afford to drive every day to the gym which is some 12 minutes away from my home and back. This also relates to going shopping as I could not drive to the mall or supermarket at all times. I started planning and looking for means of cutting fuel costs. This resulted in planning better, buying in bulk with the help of a shopping list, and also doing fewer trips to the mall and thereby saving costs.

Shopping list/Organiser

It is always ideal to have an organizer or board in your kitchen. Why? Once you run out of any basics at home, you quickly jot them down. This helps you to keep track of how quickly you used up the home essentials and also serves as the Shopping list. You will not miss a thing if you do this and will also avoid unnecessary purchases. 

Use the Internet to your advantage

Almost everything can be found on the Internet. You can learn how to cook almost any dish you wish to, by searching for it on YouTube and other media platforms. Some of them are free and others you pay for. But in the long run, you can learn that new thing you wish. When you do this, you can spend less on restaurants and eating out. Restaurant meals can be achieved at home, believe me and you will save more, and eat better while in the comfort of your home. I am not saying that you should not treat yourself once in a while, but let there be more control. You can also get hacks on how to reuse old things that you never imagined like getting drinking glasses from candle cups and a lot others. 

Eat better to live healthier

This comes back to planning your meals and learning to make healthy wholesome meals at home. There are also courses you can take to learn meal planning and from scratch basics like granola, yoghurt, butter, jams etc. These are basics that we use in our daily lives and learning how to make these at home will save costs and ensure that you eat better too. When you eat better and live healthier, you can be guaranteed to reduce visits to the hospital. Yes, you read right! In this sense, also learn how to hydrate your body. This cannot be overstressed. Daily hydration flushes all forms of toxins from the body. Be it water, teas, infusions, or natural juices, it is essential to hydrate at all times.

Storing up leftovers and using them to create new meals

This is the time to save up that leftover food and remake something nice with it. Be it made whole foods or fruits learn how to store things by tagging them and freezing them. Never throw away stale bread or old fruits. You can use stale bread to make bread crumbs, croutons, or even make bread pudding as well as gazpacho. These will be shared in my recipes on my channel soon. Old fruits can be used to make pudding, jams, or even in cooking. So much can be done with these things. 

Learn to use coupons

There are coupons that help you save a lot. Either digital or paper coupons, use your coupons. I sometimes wait to buy a few things at a later time so as to spend less on my groceries. This will help you save some money, yes it will. Seizing promotions are essential to save costs. 

Reduce unnecessary spending

If you want to make a purchase, reconsider if it is a want or a need. Do you buy clothes and shoes most times just because sales are on? Let me tell you, drops make a mighty ocean! The more you spend saying it is only a little amount because of the sales time, calculate your purchases over time and be shocked! The truth is that nobody cares if you repeat clothes, shoes or accessories. At least I don’t. So, think, even if you have friends who are into looks and like to oppress one another, rethink the “friendship” and consider being in that circle. I will tell you something, it will be more embarrassing for you to borrow money from them or have them find out you asked for a loan.

Use the switch wisely and teach the kids

I learned the hard way this winter when I received my energy bills. I always switched off lights and appliances whenever not in use. I however didn’t let my children know how important that was. I always switched off after them but when in a haste, would forget to. With the change in tariff in energy bills in Portugal, I got the greatest shock when I saw my bill of about €800 for a month. I was dumbfounded and called the children together to show them. In previous winter months, I always paid at most, €250 due to the use of heaters but this was way too much. I had to teach them always to turn off unused appliances, especially the heaters.

Stay connected

Most times people are very lonely and do not want to reach out to others. Sometimes others assume the people are fine and do not want to be bothered. But a smile, a kind word, a helping hand matters. If you cross your neighbour with heavy bags of groceries, offer to help. Help the old lady or man up the stairs, check on them sometimes especially when they live alone, greet when you pass people, say hello. It means a lot. The world is being affected by digitalization making humans not to matter anymore. There is global social isolation as many people tend to be glued to their screens, sometimes intentionally just to avoid contact with the next person or sometimes being totally distracted. The essential thing is to stay connected with family, friends, colleagues, neighbours, etc. Stay connected with the world! 

Be grateful

Gratitude is everything. How do you look at circumstances? Do you always see the things you do not have? Change that mindset. Focus on and be grateful for the things you have. Being thankful for little things will cause God to multiply all you have. Never take anything for granted be it good health, family, your spouse, your colleagues, your very difficult boss, etc. Did you twitch from the difficult boss 😀? Be thankful for that difficult boss and let me tell you why? It will refine you. I know that having a difficult boss can cause a lot of emotional and psychological stress. I had one too I must tell you but after working with her, I learned self-control. It was tough I must admit but it helped mold me. From the lessons I learned from working with her, I will work to be a better boss to my employees. Some people learn the hard way and decide to push it down to future generations saying it was done to them. That is not intelligent, I must say. Learn from the tough times to improve and better your world.