Where not to save money - volume 1
In the current economic climate, everyone seems to be under a barrage of advice to tighten their belts. Whether that's companies announcing redundancies to cut their outgoings or whether it's people being told by the press not to spend any money. But there are some areas of life where you shouldn't cut back. Everyone will have their views on what you shouldn't cut back on - and here are mine.
Pens
To me, one of the most important things in life is writing with a decent pen. None of this Bic rubbish; a pen should have ink in it and have a nice smooth nib. Ideally the nib should be quite flexible, as I think that adds a nice "flick" to my writing style. Of course, you don't always want to be writing with a pen containing liquid ink (on planes or whilst sitting on your best sofa, for instance) in which case a decent rollerball will do. But no matter how hard the downturn bites, one should never resort to a pack of ten cheap biros from Tesco
Beds & Pillows
A bed is one of the most important things you can buy, and you shouldn't skimp on it - especially the mattress. Some of the mattresses you can buy for fifty quid in your local cheap furniture store will probably give you back problems so bad that you can't walk for several weeks. Whilst in the bedroom, so to speak, you shouldn't skimp on pillows either. Buy some nice goose feather and down pillows and you'll wonder how you ever slept on those polyester bags full of plastic...
TShirts
Buying cheap Tshirts is a false economy. They may look great when you first buy them, but after a couple of times through the washing machine, they'll be out of shape and hanging off you like a tent. Same goes for cheap underwear, which is arguably more important
Nice things
Somes flippant, but you shouldn't stop buying yourself nice things just because the economy isn't growing for a year or two. As long as you've got enough in the bank to give yourself a bit of a buffer, then it'll do you the world of good to spend a hundred quid on that shirt which you really like but can't quite convince yourself to buy. Just don't use your credit card to buy it, that's all ;-)
Food
Obviously, don't stop buying food as you'll die pretty quickly without it
And there ends today's lecture on basic economic theory ;-)
Pens
To me, one of the most important things in life is writing with a decent pen. None of this Bic rubbish; a pen should have ink in it and have a nice smooth nib. Ideally the nib should be quite flexible, as I think that adds a nice "flick" to my writing style. Of course, you don't always want to be writing with a pen containing liquid ink (on planes or whilst sitting on your best sofa, for instance) in which case a decent rollerball will do. But no matter how hard the downturn bites, one should never resort to a pack of ten cheap biros from Tesco
Beds & Pillows
A bed is one of the most important things you can buy, and you shouldn't skimp on it - especially the mattress. Some of the mattresses you can buy for fifty quid in your local cheap furniture store will probably give you back problems so bad that you can't walk for several weeks. Whilst in the bedroom, so to speak, you shouldn't skimp on pillows either. Buy some nice goose feather and down pillows and you'll wonder how you ever slept on those polyester bags full of plastic...
TShirts
Buying cheap Tshirts is a false economy. They may look great when you first buy them, but after a couple of times through the washing machine, they'll be out of shape and hanging off you like a tent. Same goes for cheap underwear, which is arguably more important
Nice things
Somes flippant, but you shouldn't stop buying yourself nice things just because the economy isn't growing for a year or two. As long as you've got enough in the bank to give yourself a bit of a buffer, then it'll do you the world of good to spend a hundred quid on that shirt which you really like but can't quite convince yourself to buy. Just don't use your credit card to buy it, that's all ;-)
Food
Obviously, don't stop buying food as you'll die pretty quickly without it
And there ends today's lecture on basic economic theory ;-)