Although it is quite clear that packing your lunch each day will save you money, many people still prefer to buy their lunches each day at work or school from the cafeteria, local restaurant or even fast food joint. However, over time those purchases really add up, costing you money each month as well as extra inches added to your waistline. Instead of settling for an expensive meal, plan ahead to enjoy delicious gourmet lunches each day brought from home. Your meals don’t have to be dull to save you money!
1. Eat What You Like: Many people who bring in packed lunches don’t enjoy their meals because they eat the same items every day, or bring in convenient items that aren’t made with fresh ingredients. By bringing in tasty meals that you actually enjoy, you are more likely to stick to the plan and continue to bring in meals from home.
2. Prepare in Advance: Don’t wait until the morning before your workday to consider what to bring for lunch. This last minute planning results in you either buying something for lunch or bringing something unappetizing. Instead, make your lunch the night before and store it in the fridge. By planning ahead a day in advance all you have to do is grab the container in the morning and be ready to go.
3. Upgrade Your Brown Bag: Bringing your meal in a brown bag may be what makes your lunch so appetizing! If you are bringing your lunch every day to work, consider upgrading your paper bag to something more attractive that will keep your meals cooler and fresher each day. A plastic cooler with a compartment for an icepack in the bottom can make all the difference.
4. Get Some Support: If all your friends and coworkers go out to eat lunch in a restaurant together each day, it will be hard to abstain and eat your meal from home alone. Enlighten them on how much money you save each day on your lunches, as well as how tasty your homemade meals are. You might be able to get a few of them to join you in saving money each day.
5. Leftovers for Lunch: If planning lunches each day and creating extra meals is taking up too much time or causing your stress, then simply make larger portions of your dinners at night. Double the recipe of a pasta dish, stir-fry or casserole and then portion up single lunches to put in the fridge or freezer. Simply grab one container each day on your way to work for a delicious meal that doesn’t take up any extra time in the day.
Once you begin packing lunches, calculate how much money you are saving. If a typical lunch at work costs £6 and you are bringing meals from home that cost only £2, that means £4 per day, or £20 per work week, can be set aside in savings. That can quickly add up to a lot over the course of a year!
(Guest Blog) Author Tanya Mitchell is a budget consultant and writes for SavingUp.com.au, a site with lists of savings accounts with high interest and details for other ways to stretch your dollars.
