To stretch your dollars, you need to exercise some patience. Stretching your dollars allows you to make the purchases that you need to make, but in a responsible manner.
First of all, try not to spend money. Before making a purchase, sit on it for a few days. Make sure it is a purchase that you need to make. Many times you will discover that it would have been an impulse purchase and you no longer designer to make that purchase.
When you do decide to make that purchase, take a look for a time with you can get it on sale or use a coupon. My wife buys our clothes on the clearance rack, but only when she has a 30% discount coupon and can get the retailers cash back. I stand in front of a room of people everyday who are paying me a lot of money wearing an outfit that cost only about $20. The audience never has a clue. She does an outstanding job at not spending money and exercising patience.
We also selected credit cards with some type of a points program. One card is to help us purchase our next car, the other one for airline miles. I would not suggest the airlines miles card unless you travel consistently for business like I do.
By not spending money if we do not need to, we save money. By waiting for the right time to buy the items we get items deeply discounted and therefor we save money. Yes, we have had to wait for months on big ticket items, but it was worth it in savings. By using a credit card that earns us points, we are able to use the money spent on one purchase to help reduce the price of another purchase.
I do want to caution you on using a credit card. My Grandpa told me never to put anything on a credit card that you cannot pay off right away. I did not listen to him for many years and I paid dearly for that. Now I do. Do not use the credit card if you cannot go online and pay it off right away. By doing this you will do wonders for your credit rating and prevent yourself from just giving away your money.
