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Is your job in danger of being shipped overseas? Is your company cutting back on raises and benefits? Are you unemployed? These trying economic times may cause difficulties, but they also represent a tremendous opportunity for each of us to examine our role in the economy and to examine our personal consumption habits. If we all resolve to improve the quality of our spending, even though we may be limited in how much we spend, our world will come out of the current recession much healthier than it was before.

Of course, if your income has been reduced, the first thing you need to do is carefully consider every purchase you make. Here are some no-brainer suggestions for ways to cut your expenses. You may think these things are too trivial to bother with, but over the course of a year or two, the savings will really add up:

• When you reach for the last book of checks in your drawer and see that “reorder now” sheet, instead of calling your bank, buy new checks online instead. You can save a bundle over the high markups your bank imposes.
• See if you can save money by cutting your newspaper subscription from seven days a week to only on Sunday. If it is cheaper to just get the Sunday paper, change your subscription. You can save a lot of time by reading the paper only one day per week. Look for the grocery ads in your Sunday paper and clip the money saving coupons. The savings will pay for the paper many times over and will significantly cut your food bill.
• Walk or ride your bicycle to run errands and do shopping close to home. Use cloth tote bags or a backpack to carry your purchases home. If you avoid driving just one mile per day, you will save anywhere from $25 to $75 per year on gasoline, depending on your car’s efficiency and the price of gasoline.
• Use your heating and air conditioning as little as possible. Watch your energy use and find easy ways to save. Start by covering windows at night in winter and caulking around window frames and doors.
• Buy inexpensive grocery ingredients and cook from scratch. Not eating out can save you a ton of money. But, don’t neglect to support your local eateries on special occasions like your significant other’s birthday!
• Need new clothes? Check your local thrift store first, especially for kids’ clothing that they will outgrow quickly. You can get great deals on high quality merchandise that is only slightly used.

These are just a few simple suggestions. Remember to have fun while you are saving money. When you buy checks, don’t get the same plain boring style you have had for years. Get checks with frogs or something exciting like wolf checks instead. Make foods you have never tried before, like a green salad with arugula and spinach, or grilled bison burgers. Buy colorful, offbeat clothes at your local thrift store that you would never think of paying retail for. Life is short. Have fun!