That Guy: Tune in, cop out - surviving the credit crunch

Opinion

Let's face it. Thanks to the international credit crunch, many of you will be going through some very harsh economic times. But it's not all doom and gloom and I believe that if we remain positive and adjust our daily lives slightly, most of us should be able to come through it relatively unscathed. Here are some practical cash-saving tips to get you through the credit crunch.

Pianos

Instead of getting a costly piano tuner to tune your piano, use a Phillips-head screwdriver and a tuning fork and do it yourself. If you don't own a piano, now isn't a good time to buy one.

If you do have a piano and it came with a stool, sell it. You can play just as well on any conventional chair. List it on Trade Me under "Unwanted Piano Stool For Sale".

Incidentally, by having to tune their own piano, many people will learn that they are actually tone deaf, meaning they should never have had one in the first place. What better reason do you need to sell it?

De-clutter

Take a few hours to walk around your house to identify all the things your wife doesn't use or wear any more. Once again this stuff can be sold on Trade Me or in a garage sale. She will be amazed at how many unnecessary items you were able to identify.

Toasters

Trade in your four-slice toaster for a two-slice toaster. This will use half the amount of electricity and you will also go through half the amount of bread. Less bread means fewer carbs, resulting in you being a lot fitter, meaning you can cancel that pricey gym membership.

Manual labour

Encourage your wife or partner to start doing dishes by hand. Explain that your mother used to do it that way and if it was good enough for her, it should be good enough for your partner. She will understand and the savings on the dishwashing powder alone will give you enough cash for other things like Sky Sport and the adult movie channel.

House share

Find another family you get on with and move into their home for six to eight months or over winter. You will be splitting the living costs but you will probably get the better end of the bargain as things like rates will already have been paid by them. Sweeten the deal by saying they can move into your house after this time - but hopefully the credit crunch won't last that long.

Sacrifice

If you had plans to visit your out-of-town in-laws, now would be a perfect time to cancel them. They will understand that for the next couple of years at least, it is not the ideal time to pay them a visit. These are hard times so we need to make hard decisions. With your savings you may be able to take a smaller holiday to Fiji or one of the other Pacific islands.

Cars

If you were ever going to do an insurance scam involving your overvalued, under-performing car, now would be the time to do it. Be aware that many other people will be doing this around this time. You may want to get together with three or four of them and stage a huge car pile-up, giving you strength and safety in numbers.

Big Wednesday

For many this will be their only real hope, so they should double, triple or even quadruple their spending on tickets. A lot of economists will try to say that this is irresponsible, but I would like to see them try to explain that to somebody who has just won the bach, the boat, the car, the jet-ski and the house.

Remember, now is not the time to consolidate too much. Those who survive the credit crunch will be those who take risks. Now is an ideal time to invest in investment companies that are promising a high yield. Better still, now is the time to start your own investment company or buy a rental property that you can't afford.

Good luck. More specific financial solutions are available on my 12-cassette audio course entitled The 12 Easy Steps To Greater Financial Security and Battling Alcoholism. This audio series is available for just 12 easy payments of $49.95 or 10 not-so-easy payments of $60.