India is a country where it is believed that rich get richer and poor get poorer. While both the categories are getting richer and poorer, the middle ones are always confused where they fit. Are they going to get rich anytime? Or will they become poor! Well, all of this apart, lets face the fact that all our Indian mothers are so amazingly talented that they save every little penny in one or the other way. More often than not, they do all the rocket-shooting expenses on a shoestring budget and none of us know how they manage to do so. Here are a few ways in which we can learn how parents save money especially from our Indian moms.
Ways to Save Money – The Indian Mom Way!
1Club two soaps
Enter any middle class Indian house and you will notice that one soap’s back is attached to another. Let it be any soap for that matter. Starting from dish washing, cleaning soap or even body soap. All that matters for our parents is the idea of – More soap, more whiteness or cleanliness. Of course, this is a brilliant way to save money. The final leftover pieces of soap needn’t be wasted just because you are taking out a new one. Club both of them and see how long it will serve its purpose.
2Cobbler becomes the next Mochi
Have you attempted to throw your shoes more than twice and still finding it in the shoe rack? Indian parents believe in something – If you are buying anything costly, you ought to use it until it breaks, breaks and breaks! Your parents befriend the nearby cobbler for this very purpose, which actually makes point in the long run if you think about it. Think of all the money you are wasting buying new footwear over and over again. Instead a 10 rupees to the cobbler and he will fix it in 2 minutes. This way you save money and you won’t have the guilt of losing your favorite shoes.
3Toothpaste tube can be cut, torn and slit..!
This is another thing every Indian parent is a pro at, your toothpaste can last 10 days after it is over, wondering how? Well, parents are brainy enough to answer this for you. They cut the middle part of the tube, so that you can squeeze the paste further more and use it at least for a week. Isn’t that just called – Truly amazing?
4Thick Shampoo becomes water shampoo
This is almost like the previous one. Instead of cutting, it is just filling more and more of water to make it more watery. This, of course, not just saves money, but the usage is also less this way, making it last for more days.
5Saving the polythene covers
Mothers are clever. Instead of buying, covers every time you visit the shop, isn’t it easier if you can carry a cover? It is easier and definitely saving money. Every time you buy a cover, it costs you 3-5 rupees per cover. You would end up mocking your moms, but you have no idea how eco-friendly and money saving this trick is.
6Make money with trash
Who says newspapers are read once and thrown out of the window. Every middle class Indian house can notice bundles of paper lying in one corner. Even glass bottles are stored. The reason? Wouldn’t you be happy earning Rs. 500 easily for the trash you have been saving for the past month? Well, yes. Earning a little buck when you are broke towards the end of the month can make you feel happy by giving all the newspaper to the (paper-wala) paper collector. He will weigh the paper and give you money for the same. This is a luminous way to save and actually earn more money.
7Playing the passing the parcel game
When you have a lot of cousins who are younger to you, your mom takes the leverage to go ahead and give your old books to them. This way they wouldn’t have to waste money on buying new books. This doesn’t stop with just books. It goes on to dress, bag and even shoes! Indian parents are smart and when it’s time, parents demand the same from other older cousins. This sure is a healthy dose of Sanskaar!
All said and done, these small things make a big difference. Yes, every droplet makes an ocean and our parents have learnt the saving money mantra very well. End of the day, we proudly can say that we have learnt how to save money from our parents. A small desire leads to a big thought and you can add the above tiny thoughts to the big bucket!
Also know, why is it important to save money
-Pavithra Ravi
