20 Money Saving Skills to Learn

We save a lot of money around our house simply because we have learned to do a lot of things that require some level of skill ourselves.  Here are some money-saving skills to learn:

1. How to cut hair (hubby cuts my hair all the time and does a great job of it!).
2. How to cook (especially now that we are pretty much vegan, we now eat nearly every meal at home).
3. How to do minor plumbing fixes (fixing toilet leaks, replacing faucets or just washers, replacing toilet wax rings, etc can save A LOT of money over the cost of a plumber).
4. How to do basic landscaping (we have some simple tools and do our own landscaping now like trimming shrubs and trimming dead palm tree palms).
5. How to do basic appliance repair (with YouTube videos we have fixed our microwave, refrigerator, and dryer).
6. How to sew (mostly my needle and thread skills go towards hemming pants and making quick clothing repairs).
7. How to fix tech issues (again, with the internet, I've been able to troubleshoot computer, cell phone, and modem problems with ease).
8. How to do home improvement tasks (things like painting, wall papering, fixing holes in the wall, etc. are pretty simple to learn).
9. How to fix locks (both changing out locks and DIYing the replacements for our vehicle's transponders keys has saved us a lot of money over the years).
10. How to follow instructions and put things together (Ikea furniture and many other things come with instructions on how to put items together yourself which is cheaper than hiring out such tasks).
11. How to do your own personal maintenance (mani/pedi, waxing, etc. can all be learned and improved with practice and save you a lot of money over the years).
12. How to groom your pet (many people learn how to do everything for their pets from haircuts to nail clipping).
13. How to garden (raising your own food can save A LOT of money).
14. How to do basic auto repairs and maintenance (it's easy enough to jump a dead battery or change a flat tire instead of calling a tow truck; it is also easy enough to do things like refilling fluids, changing windshield wipers, etc.  We don't change our own oil because it is usually cheaper to have our local shop do it).
15. How to provide basic medical care (taking care of minor wounds, treating minor illnesses, etc. can often be done at home instead of hitting up the doctor's office).
16. How to do your own travel planning (I was surprised to hear some people still use travel agents because it is really pretty easy to book your own flights/hotels/cruises/tours/etc. online yourself).
17. How to travel with one bag (with some study and practice we can now easily travel with only a carry on which saves a lot of money in baggage fees).
18. How to organize your things (our fridge, pantry, supplies closet, even the junk drawer are pretty meticulously organized, this keeps us from buying duplicate items because we can't find things and also ensures we don't waste food because it was 'out of sight, out of mind').
19. Canning and preserving food (my main skill in this area is freezing things but my grandmother could can, pickle, smoke, dry, freeze, make jam...basically any kind of food preservation skill you can think of and it saved her a lot of money since they grew a huge garden and didn't want it to go to waste).
20. How to do crafty things (again, my skills in this area are sadly lacking but I have a lot of friends who can knit, quilt, sew, paint, etc. and this can save them a lot of money on both gifts to give and cool things for their home).

Free Skills You Can Learn Online

When I think back to just 30 years ago, there were so many things that were impossible/near impossible to learn without going to an actual teacher or a class.  And these you had to pay for.  Of course there were many books available on topics ranging from car repair to knitting but often the diagrams you saw in a book were not very easy to decipher and trying to learn a language or how to type from a book was difficult indeed.  Fast forward to today (and today's internet) where you can learn all kinds of valuable skills just by searching YouTube.

Of course you can take an Open CourseWare class on comparative philosophy or something like that but I propose you spend your time online learning skills that have, or can have, some sort of monetary value in the future.  Here's some ideas:

• How to play a music instrument.  If you get good enough you can use this skill for busking, playing for pay in a coffee shop, or giving lessons.
• How to make household repairs.  This in itself will save you a boatload of money, especially if you are a homeowner and don't have to super to call when something goes wrong with the plumbing/electrical/other household system.
• Specialized IT skills like coding, website design, SEO, PhotoShop, etc.  Once you know what you are doing, you can either sell these skills to the highest bidder or use them to get a raise at your current job.  Years ago my boss asked if I knew anyone who could make the company a website, of course I jumped on the opportunity (I mostly needed the extra money) but I had no idea what I was doing.  After plowing through a 300-page book on 'How to Make a Website in FrontPage' we had a semblance of a website.  These days a 20 minute YouTube video will show you exactly how to make a good looking WordPress website.  Advanced skills are also taught online and for free.
• The internet is bursting with artsy and crafty ideas--as well as lessons--for those both skilled and unskilled.  Many of these people sell their works online at places like Etsy or in person at craft shows and you can too once you have acquired the basic skills.
• You can also learn many money-saving skills online.  How to cook (saves money over eating out), how to cut your kid's hair, how to grow a garden, how to budget, how to repair your clothes, the basics on investing, etc.  These may not make you money with these skills but they will definitely save you money.

Take advantage of all of the wonderful (free!) opportunities available online and reap the financial rewards!