Should You Spend Less or Earn More?

What’s the most effective way to meet your financial goals—increasing your income or cutting your spending?

The answer? It depends on your situation. While both strategies can be useful, they’re not interchangeable. Read on to discover the advantages and limitations of each approach… and which one may be right for you.

Spending less: An immediate solution with a fixed floor. There’s no doubt that cutting expenses is the fastest way to move closer to your financial goals. Canceling a streaming service, clipping digital coupons on your phone, and carpooling are simple lifestyle adjustments that take only seconds or minutes to accomplish.

But stricter budgeting can only go so far. Moving back in with your parents, walking to work, and never having fun again may still not be enough. There’s only so much you can cut before you seriously decrease your quality of life!

Earning more: High effort, massive potential. On the surface, increasing your income can seem like a daunting task. Developing your skills, working an extra job and starting a side hustle or business can be labor and time intensive. Furthermore, some of those investments may not pay off immediately—a business or side gig may not generate significant income for weeks, months, or even years!

But those investments also have massive payoff potential. Once you’ve mastered a skill, your earning power is only limited by the market demand for your abilities and your time. And as you grow more and more competent, your potential to earn only increases.

The takeaway? Spending less is a quick and simple move towards your financial goals. But, over the long-term, earning more has far more potential to create the wealth you desire. If you need to quickly increase your cash flow, create a budget and reduce your excess spending. But when your financial situation stabilizes, take inventory of your skills. You might be surprised by how many money earning talents you have, if you take the time to cultivate them!