Making your money work for you is something you should definitely be aiming to do, no matter who you are and how much money you actually have to work with. Why? Because if you leave your money languishing then it will never grow and help to secure your future for you, but if you put it to work, it will start to multiply and your financial future will rapidly start to look a whole lot brighter too. It really is that simple!

That being the case, let’s take a look at some smarter ways to make your money work for you, than just the usual savings account, right now:

1. Pay Off Your Debts

Probably the smartest thing you can do to make your money work for you right now is, if you have them, to focus on paying off all of your debts. If you have money to spare at the end of the month, you might think you are being financially savvy by putting it into a savings account, but umes that account pays more interest than your credit card company charges you each month (which is pretty unlikely), this is actually a foolish decision.

Pour all of your spare cash into your debts and once they are gone, you will be able to really start building a nest egg for the future instead of throwing money away on interest. It’s that simple.

2. Real Estate Syndication

Investing in property has long been one of the smartest ways to use your money to earn money and build a nest egg for the future, and real estate syndication just makes the process even more accessible to many. Okay, but what exactly is it?

Basically, real estate syndication is a bit like crowdfunding for investors. A bunch of people are able to joining a syndicate and invest in a share of a property that they will earn money on. It makes buying big-ticket real estate more affordable and increases yields for everyone no matter how much or little they are able to invest. Pretty neat, right?

3. Peer-to-Peer Lending

Peer-to-peer lending might not be something you have heard about when it comes to investing your money, but it is actually a really great way to see a return on your investment that is higher than the average savings account would be able to deliver.

Basically, peer-to-peer lending lets you lend your money directly to individuals or businesses, cutting out the middleman. Normally, you will get to choose which projects you give your money to, so you can minimize the risk or maximize the return depending on what you are comfortable with. This is a great way to invest your money because, not only do you get to make it work for you, but by lending some of your capital to a budding business owner, you can also help someone else to maximize their own potential and secure their own financial future too. It’s a really cool way to get your money working for you.

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4. Invest in the Stock Market

Yes, it’s a classic, but it’s a classic for a reason! Investing in the stock market has traditionally been the best way to make a lot of money, if you are good at it, at least. So, if you are looking for a smarter way to make your money work for you, I would say that learning everything you can about the stock market and trading, and then putting that knowledge into action, is a really effective way to go about that.

5. Start a Side Hustle

Got a skill or hobby you’re passionate about? Turn it into a side hustle. Whether it’s knitting dog sweaters, creating digital art, or starting a blog about underwater basket weaving, the internet is a vast marketplace for just about anything. The trick is to find a niche that excites you and that others are willing to pay for. It’s work, sure, but it’s also potentially making money from something you love. Just don’t let your day job catch you crocheting in a meeting or your financial situation could actually end up being a whole lot worse, right?

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As you can see, making your money work for you does not require you to have a financial degree or a rich relative who can guide you along the way, and maybe even throw you a few dollars too; it’s something, with a little effort, we can all do, so y’know, why wouldn’t you?

We can run the risk of complacency when we achieve a certain role or career. It’s more important than ever to understand how you can be indispensable in your particular role, but also when there are people who do not progress for whatever reason, they work at being a better version of themselves.

Those who have ambitions to progress up the career ladder but are stuck in a particular position confine themselves to becoming complacent, which can be detrimental in the long run. This is why it’s important to be proactive and identify the potential to learn inside and outside of the role. But how can you improve your learning capacity in your workplace?

Raise the Subject Internally
Many organizations can view workplace learning as a box-ticking exercise. There are many companies that set out e-learning courses on an LMS (Learning Management System), but they fail to engage, or they become something that gets in the way of employee development. Now might be the opportunity to raise these concerns with your line manager or go higher up if you’re not getting the right responses.

Workplace learning is not just about ticking a multiple-choice question, but about actively engaging people within the organization in methods that suit their learning style. We’re all different when it comes to absorbing information, whether it’s through kinesthetic (touch), auditory, or visual, and we should work towards improving our learning capacity through methods that suit us, but we have to phrase it in such a way to benefit the business rather than just ourselves.

Adopting a Growth Mindset
Continuous improvement should be the goal, and if you feel you’re being passed up for opportunities, is it because you’re not showing the powers that be that you have a growth mindset?

Abilities can and will be developed over time, but if we slowly incorporate our desire to better ourselves into a business framework by adopting and embracing a growth mindset, this will, over time, be noticed by the right people. It’s important to note that if you are struggling to progress or you are growing impatient, it could be either down to the attitudes you are displaying, but it might also be due to ineffective line management, which is a critical thing to address.

Learn From Somebody With More Experience
If you want to accelerate your skill development in the workplace, there are many ways to do this through active and passive learning. Active Learning is all about hands-on experiences and discussions to promote a deeper understanding of the subject, but you could also push for skills swap sessions or even ask for a mentor if there is minimal impact on your abilities to work.

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When you want to make changes in your career, learning from somebody else doesn’t just show you the ropes in terms of the potential roles, but it gives you a better feel for what it takes to get to their position.

We are all works in progress, and it’s important to not grow impatient. But if you are looking to progress within your company, it might be time to improve your learning capacity.

Makeup really can be a fantastic tool. It can completely change your face, carving out features that you don’t really have and making you look extra glam- or it can just provide you with a little bit of natural coverage. You can use it however you want and it give yourself a confidence boost however you need it. If you have an area of your face that makes you feel a bit insecure (like under eye darkness or skin discolouration) a dab of makeup can hide these away, or if you have a feature on your face that you love like your eyes or cheekbones, then you can highlight these and really make the most of them. Maybe you’re going to an interview and want to look put together, or you’re going to a party or on a first date and want to feel like your best self. You might just want to look a little bit more awake with a swipe of mascara each morning! Either way, it’s so worth having a few products in your makeup bag, and practice using them so you can use them to your advantage if you want to.

If you have the basics down, there are a few extra ways that you can make your makeup pop and look even better- here are some ideas!

Don’t skip the prep and finishes
Prepping your skin before using makeup will make all the difference to how it looks, and how well it lasts on your face. Putting together a simple skincare routine will benefit the health of your skin, prevent premature aging and as a bonus your makeup will look better. Before applying makeup, give your skin a clean with a light face wash, add a light oil and moisturiser. If you feel inclined to, adding a primer will help your foundation apply more smoothly and will last longer as well, perfect if you’ve got a long day ahead of you. When you’re all finished, adding a setting spray will seal everything in- if you go with a chemical free SPF 50 makeup setting spray you get the benefit of added sun protection too with no added nasties.

Get your colours professionally done
You dont need to run out and buy all the most expensive products, in fact so many highstreet brands do brilliant makeup items that are similar to those that are priced much higher. But it is worth knowing what suits you and what kinds of shades and tones to pick. If you go to a beauty counter, they will match you to a good foundation and give you ideas on what sorts of shades work best with your skin and eye colour.

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Practice
Finally, even if you don’t plan on wearing much makeup, it’s worth practising with it. Try using different brushes and sponges to see which gives your foundation the best finish, practice applying eyeshadow, mascara and other techniques. The great thing about makeup is it just washes off, so have a go and then wash it off if you dont like it! Keep practising until you can apply all of the steps in your routine quickly and efficiently,

When it comes to selling your home, there are many mistakes you can make. In fact, 84% of first-time sellers admit to making mistakes that have cost them money.

Selling your home isn’t an easy process, and there are things you need to do and things you definitely shouldn’t do when the time comes to place your property on the market so you have a better experience and get as much money as possible.

If you want to know what you should avoid, read on for some common mistakes homeowners make when selling their property.

Asking Too Much
One of the biggest mistakes you can make is pricing your home too high. Sure, you want to get the most money possible for your home, but pricing yourself out of the market will have the opposite effect. Around 70% of the interest in a new home on the market comes within the first three weeks, and with it taking anywhere between 10 and 25 viewings to find a buyer, interest will be drastically reduced if you put too high a price on it.

You want to remain competitive while not underselling yourself, so working with a good realtor who knows the area and has priced and sold similar properties can help you price your home accordingly.

Listing Too Soon
It takes time to get a house listed for sale, and rushing into things before you are ready will mean your house might not get shown off in its best light. To get your home ready for sale, you need to prepare it for viewings, which can take some time.

Before the listing, you need to consider aspects such as decluttering your home, depersonalizing it slightly, taking care of minor repairs and maintenance, freshening the decor, giving it a deep clean, and so on. If you’re wanting to get the best price, you want the place to look good, and minor repairs are vital, as is making sure your home is shown off in the best light and is clean and welcoming for people who come to view it.

Ignoring Curb Appeal
Your home’s curb appeal is one of the things that impact how easy it is to sell your home. These days, it’s not just the physical curb appeal you need to hide but the digital one too, which is where the above point comes into play too.

For digital curb appeal, it is the pictures and videos they see online. So once you have taken care of repairs and cleaned your home and you are ready to take pictures; you need to make sure you have a photographer or videographer who can take the right images to show it off.

Physical curb appeal is how good your home looks from the curbside. Seeing a property for viewing for the first time doesn’t begin inside. It begins outside. If your house looks messy, tired, worn, scruffy, etc., this won’t give off an excellent first impression and will put buyers off before they set foot inside.

You can remove clutter building up outside, give the patio a jet wash, de-weed and mow the lawn and flowerbeds, get that garage door repair and installation you have been putting off, you need to clean the windows and doors etc and make the outside of your property as pleasant as the interior for a good first impression. If you don’t make an excellent first impression outside, pulling things back inside will be hard.

Choosing The Wrong Realtor
You want a realtor solely dedicated to your interests and not working both sides of the fence trying to sell your home and sell to a buyer. This conflict of interest might be good for them, i.e., double the payments, but it won’t be good for you as they won’t just be thinking of getting the best deal for you as they will be trying to secure a good deal for the buyer, too.

Choose an agent who is experienced in selling homes in your area, has your best interests at heart, can offer you everything you need in terms of advice and support, and has a good track record.

Ask family and friends who they choose and look around at reviews to see what other sellers think of the service they received. Don’t be afraid to meet a few realtors before deciding who to go with. You want to be able to build a rapport with this person to help you get your house listed and sold for the best price, and you can’t find this person by going with the first person you come across.

Bad Timing
Now, timing the real estate market isn’t easy, nor should it be something you are doing. However, listing at the wrong time can be detrimental to your selling success. So what do you do?

You list when you are ready. Selling and then moving into rented accommodation simply to get the house sold or to wait for prices to drop before buying again will be a bad idea as this can mean you are in between homes and less likely to move forward quickly. It’s a risky game to play and one that might come off well for you.

Make sure you have all of your finances in a row, pre-approval for a remortgage if you need one to move forward, and you have options to move to should you sell quickly. You are actively looking for homes to move to and are ready to strike should the right opportunities present themselves instead of waiting for the market to change.

Over-Developing Your Home
Every single home has a maximum resale value regardless of the work you do to it. While it might seem like you can add anything to your home and recoup your losses when you sell thanks to property shows, it doesn’t always work like that.

There’s a certain limit people will pay for property in different areas, and over developing your home and making changes can cause your house to exceed the value you are willing to pay, make it harder to sell, or result in you selling for a loss.

If you are making changes to improve the home and your standard of living only, then it’s likely you were investing for the long term, and having to sell wasn’t on your cards. But carrying out extensive work simply because you think it will get you more money when you sell can be a dangerous game if you exceed the value people are willing to pay.

Showing Buyers Yourself
You’re the best person to show off your house as you know it so well, don’t you? Wrong. As you live here, there is every chance that you could become too emotional when selling the property. You could tell the buyers every single detail that they don’t even need to know and put them off.

Buyers want to be able to see themselves living in your home, and if you are there telling them stories about the house, they won’t be able to do this. You need a third party with no emotional attachment to the building to host the viewings to allow the buyers to gain just enough information but not too much to put them off making a decision. This is where an experienced realtor comes in as they will have the answers to the questions the buyers need to know and can present the house in a different light to boost the chances of making a sale.

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Selling your home isn’t easy, and if this is the first time you are doing so, there are many mistakes you need to avoid for a successful experience. This post ran through just a few of them, but if you can avoid making these big ones, you will have a much better experience when the time comes to pack up and move on.

We’re seeing the cost of living shoot up in record numbers and the average cost of electricity is on the rise, and that doesn’t matter where you live around the world. Reducing your energy bills are more important than ever before, especially if you hope to be able to continue to live on the way that you are being paid.

There are plenty of reasons your energy bill could be higher than usual, so it’s important to keep on top of your bills so that you can understand why. If you are in need of furnace repair, for example, it could be the cause of spending a LOT on your utilities if you don’t get it fixed. If you can understand why your energy bill is higher than you expected, you would be able to address the issue and make the changes you need to make. There are some very common reasons why your electricity bill could be so high, so let’s take a look at those below.

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  • You are using estimated bills. If you are currently not in receipt of a smart meter from your provider, you should look at getting one. A smart meter doesn’t rely on an estimate, it goes by actual usage, which means that whatever you are spending on your electricity or using from your electricity. That’s exactly what you will be spending and you’ll see it in real time. If your energy company hasn’t received a meter reading, they will use your usage history or a profile of a home similar to yours to estimate your bill. It doesn’t have to be that way.If you are keeping on top of your energy bills, you’ll be able to see whether or not your bills are the same every month or just an estimate. Choosing to submit a meter reading can show them your actual usage and your bill will be adjusted the way it should be.
  • Your energy tariff has expired. Did you know that most energy tariffs have a benefit period? Most people sign up to their energy providers based on the deals that are available to them. But if you have an energy tariff offer, that’s going to expire and it’s not going to be the price you will always pay. If you’ve noticed that your bill has suddenly gone through the roof, then there’s every chance it’s because the tariff that you signed up for has now expired and you have to look at either changing providers and picking up a new deal or negotiating with your current provider to take your bill down.
  • Seasons have changed. A lot of people will see a difference in their energy bills because of the fact that the seasons have changed. They might spend more on air conditioning in the summer or heating in the winter, but the changes in season can affect the energy bill due to changes in temperature and the amount of light that is used during the day too. Your temperatures and adjusting your thermostat according to the season is going to help you to lower your utility bills overall.
  • You are not unplugging your devices if you’re leaving devices plugged in and on overnight. These are known as vampire devices because they’re going to suck all the energy from the room. You need to keep your utility bills low, and that means making sure that you are taking things out of their plug sockets and leaving them to one side so that they are not leeching your electricity while you sleep.
  • You are using old appliances. The appliances that you’ve had in your kitchen for years could be less energy efficient now than they were when you first bought them. You need to make sure that you have appliances with the right Energy Star rating and consider updating your older appliances to reflect the new way you want your utility bills to go.
  • The appliances you’ve got are draining your energy. It’s not just about the star ratings. Your appliances, ovens, clothes dryers and space heaters are very heavily draining on your energy. These are all usually used by those in areas that require it in the winter, but if you don’t need your dryer, don’t use it. If you live somewhere that has beautiful weather most of the year then utilizing a washing line outside could really help you to take down your electricity bills.
    Extreme weather conditions are preventing you from saving money. You might not consider it, but extreme weather is something that you may not originally think of when you think about why your energy bill is so high. Summer heat waves as well as winter cold fronts can help your energy bills to go up, so you should consider exactly what that would mean for your overall spending and if you can stop.
  • Spending more time at home. You would never think that it will cost you money to stay at home. But if you’re staying somewhere and you need the lights on and the heating going, you’re going to find your utility bills going up. Spending more time at home is an obvious reason your energy bill could be higher. So if you’re working from home these days, you might want to look into tax incentives to get some money back on your bills.
  • You’ve got guests coming to stay. A good sign that your utility bills are going to go up is that you have guests coming to stay. Having extra people in the house that are using extra charges, hair dryers, showers, and more loads of laundry are all going to help your energy bill to rise. Empty bedrooms that are suddenly filled means that you’re going to have to pay to warm and light up these spaces, so keep an eye on that if you have more people staying around.

Now that you know the reasons behind your energy bills being up, you can work on reducing those things.

Buying a home is one of the most expensive things you’ll ever do, but the costs don’t end there. There are quite a few costs of owning a home you should already be aware of. Many of these can be a lot higher than you’d like. You could want to bring them down.

You don’t need to settle for using things a lot less to do this. Instead, there are more than a few home improvements that’ll save you money.

While you’ll have to spend some money on these upfront, they’ll save you money in the long run. You should see your bills noticeably drop, especially if you use several strategies at the same time.

It’s worth diving into a few practical ways you can do this.

Home Improvements That’ll Save You Money: 7 Practical Picks

1. Installing A Tankless Water Heater
When you want to have a hot bath or shower, you’ll have to heat up the water beforehand. That takes time, and it costs a decent amount of money to heat up all of the water in the tank. You could save yourself a noticeable amount of time and money by investing in a tankless water heater.

These heat up water on-demand, saving you the time and effort of heating up water you don’t end up using. While this could be relatively expensive to install, it should end up reaping dividends in the long-term. You’ll bring your bills down quite a bit.

2. Buying Energy Efficient Appliances
One of the more obvious home improvements that’ll save you money is investing in energy efficient appliances. These work just as well – if not better – than their counterparts, while using a lot less energy. They’ll end up playing a decent role in your energy bills, so there’s no reason not to have them.

With how commonplace they are now, they shouldn’t even be too expensive. Consider it an investment to help you save money in the future. All of your energy bills should be noticeably lower once you’ve made the switch to energy efficient appliances. Start off small, and you’ll see a difference.

3. Getting A Rain Water Harvesting System
While it can take a decent bit of time – and some money – to install a rain water harvesting system, it can be more than worth it. With a quality system, you can collect this rain and then use it for various purposes, like showering. It could even be much more hygienic than you could think.

Many systems filter the water to make sure there isn’t anything to worry about in the water when you use it. While you’ll need to check whether you can actually use one of these where you live, it can be more than worth it if you can.

4. Repairing Your Furnace
Your furnace is naturally used to make sure your home is warm. The more efficient it is at that, the less energy it’ll need to warm your home. That’s why it’s always worth making sure your furnace is working as optimally as possible. Using it properly and cleaning it regularly could help with this.

Occasionally, it could be worth investing in a furnace repair or upgrade, however. This makes sure everything’s working the way it should be. It might end up impacting your energy bills more than you’d think, and you wouldn’t even have to worry about making your house colder.

5. Using Proper Insulation
Everyone knows they should insulate their home, but it’s often an area they try to save some money on. That could lead to cheaper insulation being used, or simply not enough of it being put down. Both of these could be big mistakes to make, as they affect how hot or cold your house is.

If you don’t have proper insulation, then your heating bills will be a lot higher. You’ll bring them down noticeably once you put in some proper insulation. It shouldn’t even be as expensive as you could think.

6. Installing Solar Panels
Solar energy offers more than a few benefits, with the most obvious being it’s more environmentally friendly than many of its alternatives. That’s far from the only reason you should consider installing solar panels, though. It could save you a lot more money than you thought it would.

Your electricity bills should be noticeably lower after you’ve installed them, saving you more and more money in time. Then there’s the fact houses with solar panels tend to be worth more than those without them. You’ll have a more valuable house because of it. You can even get grants to install these, so it shouldn’t cost too much.

7. Getting Low Flow Toilets
While your energy and electricity bills are the main ways to benefit from many home improvements, they’re not the only ones. You could reduce your water bill by getting low flow toilets. As the name suggests, these don’t use as much water when you flush them as their traditional counterparts.

Because of that, your water bills should automatically get lower. Then there’s the fact these could be much more sustainable than their more traditional counterparts. You’ll use up much less water, so there’s no reason why this shouldn’t be more environmentally friendly than more standard toilets.

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Home Improvements That’ll Save You Money: Wrapping Up
There are more than a few home improvements that’ll save you money. Some of them could help a lot more than you’d think. They could end up dropping your bills a lot more than you might expect. While that means spending some money on it now, it’ll save you much more in time.

They could even end up paying for themselves with enough time. Since they’ll offer more than a few other benefits on top of that, you’ve no reason not to consider them.

If you’re considering doing a few home upgrades anyway, it could be more than worth paying attention to. The costs should be more than worth it, and you’ll have a more functional and comfortable home before you know it.

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