Family Friday
Has this happened to you? After years of mindlessly using a cliché, a personal experience brings it home, and it's as if you are hearing the phrase for the first time. Ohhhh, that's why they say that!
It happened recently to me. The cliché was "time is money." And, you guessed it, the personal experience was having lost a tremendous amount of time, and therefore, money.
My husband and I are pretty careful about money. We invest for retirement, carefully plot out our spending on large items, and eat at home as much as possible. But racing through our lives as new, working parents, we had stopped planning and started spending. And it really showed in one area: Lunch out.
It was too much to add the pressure of planning lunches to our already full days. We were struggling to get breakfast and dinners on the table that simultaneously met ours and our son's (ever changing) nutritional and gustatory needs. And, of course, struggling to find time with our son. Plus, going out to grab something in the middle of a hectic work day came to represent a much-needed bit of personal indulgence.
We're not alone. Judging by the number of articles yielded with a search with the words "save money pack lunch," there are a lot of folks out there who need some advice about spending more time on planning lunch, and less spending on it. Americans spend billions eating out. And, given the state of our economy, we all need to find ways to save money.
But few articles offered more than the general tip to "pack lunch." Yup, I thought, frustrated, I know that's what I need to do. But how? I need to be convinced that practical, money-saving lunches can replace the interesting, diverse lunches I can find going out. I need to figure out a way to be emotionally and physically satisfied with a packed lunch.
So, as we began to clean up our ways, I carved out an approach to ensure my packed lunches were easier, tastier and more interesting. Here are the guidelines I follow to save money and save time:
Do the work upfront: On Monday, take the time to bring in several components that will round out your week's lunches. Bring a big bag of chips, the whole box of blueberries, a whole row of cookies, a whole bag of carrots, a chunk of cheese, whatever. Buying a big bag of chips will cost less per serving than five little bags, and uses less packaging. It's good for your wallet, good for the environment, and saves you time. Obviously, you should pick the less perishable items for this one, check their expiration date, and make sure you have room in your office fridge for your stuff to be there 'til Friday. Most of us have a bit more time on the weekends to pack these extras, and doing this will pay off.
Make it appealing: You have to look forward to your packed lunch, or your cold ham sandwich will end up in the trash when your colleagues invite you to go for tangy, spicy, salty, Chinese food. If you like food, it will be easy to find what will add just enough interest to your lunch that you won't be enticed by other offers. Find some recipes for fantastic meals that cost less, and bring in the leftovers. Maybe a slice of your favorite banana bread will make eating the ham sandwich worth it.
Leave some work for later: I don't always complete my lunch before I go to work. Sometimes I bring the components of a sandwich, or whole pieces of fruit that still need to be cut up, and take the extra two minutes to assemble it at work. For me, taking the time to do that in the office allows me to "cook" -- something I miss doing in peace. This one won't work for you if you don't like spending time on food, but the others of you will find it saves time in the morning without taking any more than two or three minutes of time during the work day and changes the rhythm of your day. And it still takes less time than leaving the building and buying lunch.
Indulge, but on a smaller scale: Once you've established a good pattern of bringing lunch, allow yourself to run out for just an accompaniment -- a small cup of soup, or an extra special coffee drink. You'll get the pleasure of leaving the office, and indulging a little without breaking the bank.
Do it family style: Take advantage of your office. Let your colleagues know what you're trying to do, and see if anyone wants to join. You can either encourage each other to bring individual lunches, or go so far as to bring pieces that together make a great meal. Maybe you bring a couple slides of leftover lasagna and your colleague brings some veggies. You get the idea.
Go all the way: There was a time when my husband's and my lunches were the envy of all our colleagues. We're pretty big foodies, and before our son came along, we sometimes devoted as much thought to packed lunches as our dinners. The over-ambitious of you out there might be inspired to out-do your colleagues by bringing in the most wonderful lunch ...
Here are a few more ideas for fun, packed lunches. I hope that you are able to muster up the energy and time to save money with your next week's packed lunch. Plan for it when you head to the grocery store this weekend, and let me know how it goes!
Thanks for sharing these money saving tips, it is always nice to get new ideas. I am trying hard to save money where I can, I cook more at home now rather than eating out, I send my friends free greetings via the internet rather than expensive shop bought ones. I always keep my eye out for offers from shops like buy one get one frees, there are always great bargains to be had.
Posted by: Elaine | Tuesday, July 28, 2009 at 06:13 AM