Wondering how to make $30 dollars last a week?
You’re on the right page of the web. In this blog post, I’ll show you exactly how to make your money last for a week in 7 practical ways that’ll work out if you’re disciplined enough.
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Previously, I’ve written about how to make $300 dollars last for two weeks and how to make $600 dollars last two weeks or 14 days. Following the same practical ways, you can stretch pretty much whatever budget you have at hand.
With that said, here are 10 best ways to make $30 dollars last a week.
How to Make $30 Dollars Last a Week in 10 Ways
Pen Every Need
If you want to learn how to make $30 dollars last a week, then you can get on with the very first step of writing down everything you’ll need in the next 7 days. This is important because you don’t want to spend on the things you don’t need.
Again, it’ll be easy for you to stretch your budget as all you’ll need is in one piece of sheet. It’s also really easy to know your priorities and cut down on excesses. Once you’re done with penning down everything you’d need for the next 7 days, then you can streamline your needs and put everything into your budget.
If you’re stretching on $30 dollars, everything you need shouldn’t exceed 90% of the budget.
I mean $27 dollars.
Cut Out Excesses
Now that you know what you’ll need and what your priorities are, it’ll be easier to cut down on what’s not needed. From the list, you can drop off some items or needs and focus on acquiring (or borrowing) only the most important things you’ll need.
If you want to stretch a budget, you can get everything. Some things will be taken off the list of whatever you’ll need over the course of the next 7 days or one week.
When stretching a budget or making a budget last a certain number of days, there’s the need to be extremely careful with splurging on items and focus on only the most important things.
Skip Soda
It’s funny how soda is more expensive than water.Yet, water will forever be more nourishing than soda. In every world.
If you want to learn how to make $30 dollars last a week or the next 7 days, then skip soda. It may not be the easiest thing to do in the world but you can do it. Soda costs about $2 dollars. That’s $14 dollars if you take it everyday for the next 7 days.
Not everyday?
It’s still $6 dollars if you take it 3 days a week or 3 times a day.
Cook; Skip Junk
Along the line, you’ll hone your cooking skills while trying to live off $30 dollars in the next 7 days. This is a survival strategy, and cooking is one of the many actions you must initiate if you must stay healthy and live in this world. If you can’t cook, you’re barely existing.
Again, cooking over ordering junk is one way to stay healthier. Junk, according to several research studies, is bad for your health in the long run (and short run sometimes). That said, living a healthy life is cheap. And will save you a lot of money.
Drink Tap Water
Yes, money spent on bottled water is a lot. Plus, it’s just $30 dollars you’re trying to stretch on. If you’re too used to bottled water by now, you’ll need to cut down on this if you want to make $30 dollars last a week. Drink tap water for the time being. And for the record, tap water is healthier by many standards, it’ll save you money, and leave you healthier.
In the long run, getting used to taking tap water will save you thousands of dollars. This is because bottled water is one of the most consumed beverages in the US, and who knows how much money you’ve spent so far gulping bottled water.
Borrow Stuffs
If there are things you need but can’t really get them, you can borrow them from the neighbor next door (unless you live under a rock). Borrowing isn’t a crime. You can always make use of an item you need but can’t acquire, and return it instantly or later.
The truth is, borrowing items you’ll need over the course of the next 7 days will save your stress and some money too. Let’s say there are some items missing in your cooking gear, you’re better off borrowing those items than going to buy them; it’s just $30 dollars you’re trying to stretch on.
Keep Half the Money
It’s $30 dollars, and if you want to make it last a week, one of the things you can do is to split the money in half. This means keeping $15 dollars while trying to stretch on the other $15 dollars.
Going by this idea, you would live on $15 dollars for the next 4 days, and then spend the other half in the remaining 3 days (making it a week). Realistically, this would be really challenging as $15 bucks isn’t a lot of money. That said, keeping half the money for future use is one of the ways to make $30 dollars last a week.
Ask for More Money or Tips
If you’re working at a bar or a restaurant or even an office dealing with direct customers, you can ask for a tip in a casual way.
Do your thing.
Other than tips, you can ask your colleague for money or your friend, or a relative. It’s easier to get support from those around you than those afar off. So, if you live with your family, a loved one or a friend, ask for money.
There’s no point stretching an innocent $30 over the next 7 days if you can get more money from those living with or around you. Again, if you’re not the asking type, you’ll need to recalibrate your mindset towards money and towards seeking help.
It doesn’t make you look weak, it’s simply asking for support when you need one. In the next 7 days, you’re definitely going to get some extra money if you’re willing to simply ask.
Earn Extra Money from Running Tasks
If you want to work for the money, you can take up simple tasks to get it. On websites like TaskRabbit and Mturk, you can make some bucks just by running tasks. These tasks are easy to do and sometimes they can turn out to be odd jobs.
The point is, you can make some extra money, even much more than the $30 dollars while running tasks on TaskRabbit or Mechanical Turk by Amazon.
Other than working on these websites, you can quickly get a job done for someone around you in your city with a simple quick search for odd jobs on Craigslist or Indeed.
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Take a Loan
If you want to make $30 dollars last a week, there are a lot of things you could do. And I’ve pretty much highlighted them on this list. However, you can loan money and make it easy for you to live over the next 7 days without stretching a pitiful $30 dollars.
You can take a loan from financial institutions, online loan apps, or from people you know directly. This is different from just asking, you’re taking a loan to pay up at a later date. There are tons of loan apps you can use if you decide to go that way.
Also, there are microfinance banks and merchant banks willing to grant you a loan, especially if it’s 3 figures or 4 figures. Whichever way you choose to solicit for a loan, it’s one of the ways to make $30 dollars last a week without spending a dime off the $30 bucks.
How to Make $30 Dollars Last a Week in 10 Ways – Summary
$30 dollars is small for a budget if you’re looking to stretch. However, that doesn’t mean it’s impossible to live off $30 dollars in 7 days. It’s a possibility. And with these 10 ways, you can stretch as little as $10 dollars over the next couple of days.
If you want to live off $30 dollars the next 7 days, some of the things you can do include keeping half the money and trying to live on half for the next days, cutting off excesses or a need to spend excessively, drinking tap water instead of buying Nestle, Aquafina or Smart Water, skipping soda and going for water only (while keeping the extra $0.3 or $6 for 12-pack), listing out everything you’d need for the next 7 days, and borrowing whatever you’d need from the neighbor next door, a friend, or family.
Asking for a tip from a friend or a family, you may never have to touch your $30 bucks. That’s even more realistic if you have loving friends and family who’d give you a lot of money, much more than what you’re trying to live off in the next 7 days.