Use Down Time at the Office to Save Money
If you are lucky enough to have a few spare personal minutes at your workplace then why not try to use them to your economic advantage? The internet is a frugal man’s best friend and down time—maybe I should call it procrastination time—at your desk can be spent in the following cost saving ways while surfing the web at the office.
Consumer Research. Most of the purchases I make, both big and small, I first research online until I’m comfortable with the item and price. If I don’t do this, I tend to second guess my buying decision and usually conclude that I wasted my money. It’s a process that drove my wife crazy at first, but now, even she is starting to rationalize nearly everything she buys. Some may argue that this takes time and time is worth money, which I would agree with. But for me, being comfortable with my spending and ensuring myself the best deals is gratifying and reassuring.
Just last week, I saved some money using this method. I have been needing an office chair for my computer at home. I use to use a wooden chair that I think was made more for decoration than actual sitting, needless to say, it wasn’t very comfortable. I went to a few stores close by to where I live, including Staples and Best Buy. I have to tell you, I wasn’t prepared for the prices of computer chairs! For a decent looking chair that was comfortable, cost close to $200 or more. I took some down time at work, thanks to Congress being in recess, and found a chair online at a nearby store (this way shipping is free) for $100 that was the exact same chair for $200 at a competing store.
Travel. A good example of a productive timewaster at work is subscribing to frequent emails feeds of specials at your favorite stores, preferably those you shop at out of necessity. An email that I receive every couple of days is from airfarewatchdog. With most of our family living in the Midwest, we find ourselves flying back often for weddings, graduations, etc. This service provides us with an email with the cheapest possible flights leaving from our closest airport to nearly every major and minor city I choose. The times the flights are offered may not always matchup with your plans, but if you are flexible, you will likely find yourself saving hundreds on flights.
Another great way to save on flights, but requires some of your time, is to check sell.com frequently for airline vouchers. Just last week, I bought two $100 vouchers on Northwest Airlines (the only airline that flies to my hometown) for $18/piece, saving me $164 on my flight. This can be intimidating to some, but it’s quite simple. You pay with PayPal and the code you need to enter at checkout when buying the tickets is emailed to you. This is a good habit to get in, especially if you are constantly using the same airlines. Also on sell.com are complete roundtrip vouchers, these are worth purchasing if your flight cost more than the voucher.
Flyers. Use some of your spare time to browse the online flyers for the stores your sure to visit over the weekend, rather than ignore the flyer upon entering the store because you are in a hurry. For example, plan your meals for the week based off what your local grocery store is having good deals on. Buy your toilet paper in advance of needing it at Target because of a ridiculous deal. Or just browse flyers to gauge the best possible prices for items or services you may need in the future like tire changes, brake work, duct cleaning, etc. Just being aware of what certain services should cost, will save you money when it comes time to actually needing it.
Coupons. I think most of you would be surprised to the number of coupon codes on the internet that are free and can save you a substantial amount of money. If you have the time, at most online checkouts, you will see a section where you can enter a discount code. Usually, this is ignored, because we never have a code. But, there are countless websites out there that have online web codes and a simple google search will provide you many options. It cant hurt to look, if you have the time.
What other ways do you spend down time at work that ends up saving you money? $
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Comments
Way to promote spending your time wisely. These are some nice and easy ideas to be more productive, and fiscially conservative, when you would otherwise be blowing bubbles at your computer screen.
Original content, very nice!
Thanks,
TAM
Cool, I will try this the next time I get a lunch break at work. As long as the boss isn’t breathing down my neck wondering what I am looking at.
Great article, I really like the coupons tip, only found out about how great online coupons sits were recently, you can really save some serious cash.
Great tips ..Think we all can benefit out of this.. are easily implementable..Every penny saved is a penny earned..Thanks for sharing..