Oil has reached a new all time high at over $70 a barrel, and we all know what that means. People are going to complain about it without considering the whole “supply and demand” idea that determines prices.

Don’t get me wrong, I don’t enjoy spending $2.89 per gallon of gas either, but I know that since I can’t directly control the price of gas, I can control how much I consume. This is pretty obvious, but can be ignored pretty easily even by yours truly.

Use less gas.

If you fill the tank less often, you spend less. So get on your bike and go! Put on your walking shoes, get a bus pass, or ride with your friends.

Using less gas will save you money, but what if you could use high gas prices to actually make you money? The price of oil affects all kinds of stocks; I’m sure that yesterday when they all either jumped or dumped, you realized this little lesson.

High oil prices will drive shares of airline stocks down as well as the rest of market. But it will drive up the prices of some stocks such as alternate energies as people look to lower the oil dependency.

Take a look at some of the sectors in comparison to the price of oil. Oil prices often drive trends, so see how it has affected your stock sector in the past. While it won’t guarantee that you will see similar results, it can help you predict where your finances will be going.