Being a Coffee Shop Boss has its perks from the flexibility that comes with working on your own schedule, to doing what you love but it’s not all rainbows and unicorns. Learning how to budget and breaking bad habits can be one of the most difficult things to do.
The reason for eating out is such a common trend is the food is great quality (hopefully), and it’s convenient. The issue is it’s going to cost you unless you change where you’re eating out, what you order, and where you go. Let me explain, what you can do to limit eating out as much as possible while also still enjoying yourself.
Go To Less Expensive Restaurants
I am going to offer a real-world example, I can go out get a burrito, chips & queso (with 2 drinks) for about $20 – $25 dollars. The food is great quality and the cost is much cheaper than that of other areas it’s called Baja Burrito now going to a similarly priced restaurant elsewhere in town for the same type of food (Taco Mamacita) can ring me up closer to $35-$40 (plus I need to tip them because I have a waitress/waiter here, while at Baja Burrito I get my drinks/salsa on my own and there is no waiter thus no real reason to tip).
They are both Mexican restaurants (well Taco Mamacita is more tex mex), but the price points are wildly different, but we enjoy both of them just the same. So by selecting a different restaurant in this case I can save $15 a meal for two people which is some solid savings.
Avoid Buying Alcoholic Drinks Unless You’re Going Solely For Them
As you might realize alcohol is expensive and it tends to be even more expensive at places that are more restaurant than bar/winery. Restaurants tend to make the largest margins on their drinks so before going out and buying 2 margaritas at $6-$8 a pop if you’re just wanting to get drunk go to a bar, winery, cantina etc as they likely have a wider selection of booze and also at a lower cost.
Another important note on this is regular drinks like your soda, & teas these tend to be wildly marked up so before getting yourself a coke that’s $2 ask yourself this question. Do I want the glass now or would I rather pick up a 12 pack on the way home? I find that the biggest difference in me spending money comes with comparing its price point to the quantity of something else.
Would I rather get a bucket of KFC for $10 or get a whole chicken from the store for $7. I also find that comparing my time vs hourly rate is a good way of figuring out whether something is worth it to me. So say you make $15 an hour would you rather spend $45 taking your family out to dinner or making something at home that has a combined cost of $10.
Going Out For Small Things
If you’re going out for a cup of coffee this can be acceptable as coffee is generally cheap and in that time you can also use the coffee shop as a means to earn some money either through your own work or doing some rewards sites. But if you’re going to the coffee shop avoid getting food and eat at home before you go out. If you have to eat get something small that will be filling but don’t overindulge just for the sake of overindulging. I find going to drink shops, coffee shops and other similar stores I end up spending less money than I would at a restaurant I get more done than I would at home and I got out of the house and got to enjoy myself a bit.
Avoid Going Out At All
This is the nuclear option but it’s also the most effective. Not going out at all and staying in all the time does work for some people but when you work from home and on your own time this can be difficult and I will be the first to admit I simply can’t do this.
People who are fine with being stuck inside all day congrats this is the best option for you, but there are still some things you can do to make staying inside just as tasty as going out.
For instance, you can go to Target and grab a pack of chuck tenderloin steaks for about $10 which comes with I believe 8 or so steaks, so you could quite literally eat steak every day of the week if you stayed at home (which is amazing (no they aren’t a filet mignon but still )). You can easily stock up on your favorite meats, fish, and veggies and make a variety of foods. Combine random vegetables a meat and some rice to make a nice dish that can also serve as lunch for the day.
But most people, can’t do this solely because it’s boring being stuck at home. Those who don’t work from home get one luxury you can’t get from working from home and that is leaving work to go home. But that is a topic for another post!
