Estimated reading time: 14 minutes
Learn practical strategies to increase your money supply and improve your financial situation. Discover how to optimize your finances for long-term success.
This is how we funded our journey to debt freedom, and if you’re serious about your finances, look at what we did to optimize our money supply.
Since becoming debt-free, including our mortgage in May 2014, readers have often wanted to know how we can increase our net worth so much.
Honestly, there are months we see our money supply go up and months where we see it go down, such as December of last year when all of our investments took a nose dive.
Thankfully, our retirement investments have pulled through, and we are earning more than ever, which helps keep our net worth on the incline.
5 Ways To Increase Your Money Supply
I wanted to keep this simple for all of you but offer you the resources we use to increase our money supply, which we have done for many years.
Some of the resources may be programs you have to apply for or tips for saving money by utilizing programs to help customers lower their overall household expenses.
My one tip for increasing YOUR money supply is to READ and Network with like-minded people.
If you are interested in a topic and unsure how to go about something, learn everything you can and work towards your goals, as I did with this blog.
Pay Your Debts
The number one way to increase your money supply is to decrease the amount going out each month.
That means you’re blowing money into thin air if you pay interest on top of interest.
For many of you, that might be money you don’t have, which keeps you in the minimum payment cycle for many years.
This can be heartbreaking, especially if you want to get out of debt fast and onto brighter roads.
Once you increase your money supply and pay off debts in full, you’ll slowly see that you have more money in the pot to play with or move around to pay other debts.
It’s simple to understand that paying off one debt leads to having extra money for another, which is why the snowball payment method appeals to many people.
The idea is you pay the smallest debt first while paying the minimum payment on the more significant debts, and eventually, you’ll be debt-free.
Cha-Ching, you’ve just increased your money supply.
Budget Your Money
Budgeting is an obvious way to increase your money supply because it gives you an accurate picture of the amount of net income and expenses going out.
Once you get control of your monthly budget, you will be able to gain control of your money so you’re not overspending when you should be saving.
When you save in one area to pay off another, you’re increasing your money supply little by little.
You may not be out of the red, but you’re working towards it.
Don’t pay for a budget online or any apps when you can get all your budgeting needs at CBB for FREE.
They aren’t as fancy as those apps, but they work, and we’re proof of that.
Earn Extra Income
I often tell everyone that if you aren’t paying your bills on time, spending too much money, or your budget won’t balance out, you need to earn more cash no matter what you do.
The only way to increase your money supply is to get a second job, start a business, become a homestay parent to a student, or sell stuff.
I wish I had more answers for you, but there aren’t any.
This isn’t about investing to increase your money supply, although this is certainly attainable in the long term.
It’s merely a way to cut your costs in the present so you have more for the future.
How We Earn Extra Money
Some ways we earned money over the years above our monthly net income may seem tedious, but we saved money and are debt-free.
It made all of it worth every minute invested.
- Sign up for Swagbucks. It’s FREE; we have it and LOVE it.
- Suppose you love to earn extra cash Sign up for Survey Junkie. You earn points for taking surveys and gift cards for your time.
- Earn Extra Cash when you shop online. Sign up with Rakuten Canada and receive your money back when you shop! Get $30 back with your first online shop. See the post for details. So far, we’ve received hundreds of dollars back in Ebates money just for shopping online. YES, it’s TRUE!! I have the cheques to prove it. 🙂
- Don’t miss the savings by signing up for Checkout51 and other Coupon Apps.
- Honey is a browser extension that automatically finds and applies coupon codes at checkout with a single click.
- Great Canadian Rebates. Please read my review of the Great Canadian Rebates website here.
- My Points All payouts are made through gift cards to Amazon or other leading retail companies.
- The best credit cards offer you the best deals and interest rates. We have over 4 million PC Optimum points with our PC MasterCard and love it.
- Believe me when I say joining the Nielsen Homescan Canada panel for FREE will open up a window of rewards for you.
Other Ways To Earn Extra Money
Use Canadian coupons, babysit, dogsit, assist friends with home repairs, host international students, and participate in local focus groups to increase money supply.
There are always people looking for you to participate in something, so look on Kijiji and source businesses in your area that participate in panel discussions, focus groups, or study groups.
I remember we did one that lasted a month, and we went in once a week for 1 hour and were paid $300 cash each.
One other time, we drank espresso for $75 in a controlled environment and offered our feedback via computer.
We were full of energy when we left the building. That only took us 20 minutes, and we made $75 each.
Another time, I spent one hour talking about driveway salts with four other people and a moderator, and we got to take as many bags home as we wanted.
The room was filled with different brands, and I still have some in our garage.
Plus, they paid $100 and fed me.
Finding A Second Job
As you might already know, there was a point in my career when I worked two full-time jobs to get where I am today.
It was my foot in the door, and although it took up all of my time, I earned double my income.
Finding a second job is a nice boost to the income but a drain on time.
My point is that all the savings and earning a bit here and there cash helped us to pay off our mortgage in 5 years.
Invest It Wisely
I could tell you to take the money you have and buy a house and then rent it out so someone else is paying your mortgage.
This investment may be a windfall for you in the future, depending on the housing market, but it could also flop.
Also, investing money, such as buying a house or retirement savings to increase money supply, is a long-term investment worth looking into only if you have the money to do so.
On the other hand, if you have the cash to invest, you’ll be increasing your money supply, which means you’re on the right path.
Don’t let what you can’t see (the future) scare you away from what you must do today for tomorrow.
Sometimes, it’s tough to hand over your money, hoping to see it grow.
However, if you don’t include some financial risk, your money supply will only grow as fast as you save it in the bank.
Recently, we took $5000 from our son’s bank account and invested it in him, so we weren’t just building him a bank savings account portfolio earning peanuts in interest.
The kids will be set up when he gets older because we are taking the steps today for his tomorrow.
The only downside is hoping he does the same thing for his family and perhaps has the same savings ideals as we do.
Nothing is promised, but it would be worth it if we could help him this way.
Start A Blog
This is a big topic that I haven’t discussed much on the blog, but I plan to do so in the future.
I can tell you that I’m earning decent money, which I consider passive income, which has helped increase our net worth.
However, when blogging, remember many expenses come with owning a small business from home.
Passive income means I don’t have to do anything, and when I wake up in the morning, the money will be in my account.
If you are a stay-at-home parent looking for a hobby and have something to say that might interest a wide-spread audience, then blogging may be for you.
I also can get paid hundreds of dollars just for writing a blog post or working with other well-known businesses to offer my story to their readers.
Blogging Resources To Start A Blog
If you want to start Blogging to earn extra money or you want to work from home, here are some blogging resources to get you started:
I’ve been blogging here for over six years, and Big Scoots is the best hosting company.
I’ve bitched about hosting companies that I was with in the past because they kept going down or were slow, but not with Big Scoots, and the customer service is fantastic.
You feel important and not just a number.
Set up your Email Subscription Service with MailerLite
I couldn’t be happier with Mailerlite as I’ve moved away from Feedburner, which didn’t allow me the same amount of control over my subscriptions as Mailerlite does.
Again, customer service is fantastic, and I’m happy that Sara, my blog designer and friend from Moonsteam Design, helped me with the process.
She designed this blog, and we are still making tremendous changes for the readers.
Choices You Make
Your money supply depends on your income sources and how well you budget the money.
If you are in a financial situation where you are on a fixed income, it can be challenging but not impossible.
Negativity can sometimes get the best of us regarding our money supply, so take it in stride and start with minor changes, and you’ll see how it can blossom into something big.
Just look at Canadian Budget Binder, a blog that I started to help people with, which is now giving back in the form of passive income.
If I can do it, so can you. I had NO idea what I was doing when I started.
Discussion: What other ways do you increase your money supply? Leave me a comment, as I love to read your feedback.
Net Worth Losses and Gains
April 2019
What happened to our money in April?
Hey everyone,
We finally got rid of our second vehicle, which took us forever, but it’s done now.
That’s where the -$500 appears on the vehicles portion of our net worth update above.
Although we lost $500, we got money for the vehicle, which was included in the income.
The most major increase was through our investments, which is always a nice thing to happen.
The markets and our investments have been on a bit of a roller coaster ride these last few months, but hanging in there pays off.
We had good gains in all of our investments, which everyone wants.
Mr.CBB
Understanding Net Worth
What Does Individual Net Worth Mean?
Net Worth is a snapshot of your financial health, like a picture of debt to net assets. Simply put, it’s the total value of your assets minus your liabilities.
We credit the growth of our net worth to patience, perseverance, using a monthly budget, and not giving up.
Your numbers may go up and down, but don’t let the numbers scare you. Instead, understand why and move on.
If you would like to use our budget, I offer a FREE downloadable budget, which I created, and you can use it at home just like we do.
I don’t charge for it because I want you to save money, not spend more!
Canadian Budget Binder offers many other free printable lists to help you achieve some of those financial goals and build your net worth.
Calculate Your Net Worth.
Do you know how to calculate your own Net Worth?
We want to calculate our monthly net worth to see if we are still on track.
Some people calculate it yearly or quarterly, but it’s up to you and how informed you want to stay.
Net Worth is only an estimate, and not everyone uses the same type of figures to tally it up.
Some of you may not include vehicles as we do or leave out assets inside the home as we have.
You might be that person who believes that your house should be excluded.
It depends on what you want to calculate or what you can sell today and make money on for tomorrow.
Figuring out net worth is relatively easy as long as you know your numbers or monthly finances, so you must do your homework.
Net Worth is simply adding up all your assets (what you own) and then taking away your liabilities (what you owe), giving you a net worth number.
Understanding your net worth will help you determine if you are on track to meeting or beating your personal financial goals.
It doesn’t get any easier than that.
Net Worth = Assets – Liabilities
Financial Numbers
When budgeting, anything is possible; we are proof of that, although we still have a long way to go in our journey.
These are our numbers and goals, not a means of comparing your own goals and others’ target goals.
We don’t care how much money others make if they have a high net worth or are lower than ours, as it’s not a competition.
I hope our experiences will help guide you along your financial path, working towards debt freedom.
Not everyone has the same path in life.
Some of you may have had to start over like I did or go to school again and now have OSAP loans to pay back.
Others may have divorced, lost money in the stock market, or suffered job loss, health problems, or injuries, but you can’t let that stop you from achieving your financial goals.
Some of you may have been given trust funds, paid-for homes, paid educations, or perks in life that give you a financial kick-start, and that’s OK, too.
Remember what I said, “It’s not about how much money you make; it’s how you save it.”
People accumulate wealth only because they know how to save or invest it wisely, even if they inherit money or win the lottery.
The most minor improvements should mean significant strides in reaching your goals.
Sometimes, we have to fail to learn, and we’ve all been there.
Money can be an evil force for some people, especially those with a negative attitude towards their financial situation.
I urge you to be optimistic and, little by little, with determination, too, should see improvements if you want that to happen.
Net Worth Updates 2019
Click the links below to read our net worth updates for the year.
That’s all for this month’s net worth update, but please check in at the beginning of June 2019 to see how we made out in May 2019 with our financial portfolio.
~Mr.CBB