The best way to build a money reserve or get out of debt is simple. Spend less than you make. Sounds easy enough, doesn’t it? This solution is painfully obvious, but can be ridiculously hard to follow through on.

So how do you knock out this demon of overspending without cutting out the ‘essentials’ of your life?

I’ve got two words for you. Spaghetti Night

Take a look at how much you spent going out to eat in the last three months. It may be a ton, or it may be not so much. It’s cheaper to produce your own gourmet meal than it is to eat a restaurant’s wimpiest dish.

But spaghetti night isn’t all what this post is about and I’m not saying you shouldn’t go out to eat ever again. Take a look now at what you’re spending, not just on food, but for everything. If you spend more than you make now, you limit your choices in the future.

Track your expenses for a month. It’s becomes apparent quite quickly where all the money you spent has gone. Then you can actually determine what of that you actually needed.