Loving these inexpensive monogram platters. Large one $45.

Lambskin leather handbag, $115US.

And this labdradorite sterling silver ring for $96 USD.

Did you hear Etsy.com is launching an Australian site next month? Can’t wait.

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2012. Didn’t that used to seem like a long way away?

So the New Year has started, you’re back to working hard (or thinking about being on holidays while back at work), it feels like you never had a holiday, and all that stuff. Well, cheer up – time to start working on your 2012 is the Year I Get Richer plan.

Nope, sadly this isn't a realistic way to get wealthier in 2012.

The first – and easiest – thing to do is take a look at all of your expenses, and work out how to make them cheaper – get a spending diary if you have to. Are you using everything that you pay for monthly or fortnightly – like gym memberships, Foxtel, a big internet package, multiple bank account fees, and that kind of stuff? Make a list of them, and if you’re not sure why you’re still holding onto them, get rid of it.

Next, ring your bank and see what they can do about all of the fees and charges you currently pay on your savings account, other bank accounts, and most importantly your credit cards. If you ask your bank, “I’ve worked out from my statements that I’m paying $15 a month to you guys in fees, how can you make this cheaper for me?”, in the majority of cases, they will.

Then, ring all of your service providers – car and home insurance, private health, and talk to them about better or cheaper deals. It helps – a lot –  if you do an online comparison first and let them know (very politely) that’ll you’ll go elsewhere if they can’t find you a better deal, especially if you can name the provider and how much you’ll save. I did this last year and saved heaps on my car insurance.

Got a lump of money sitting in a normal bank account? Move it to a term deposit or a high interest account. Check out who has the best rates here.

What can you sell that you don’t need? If you’re not sure, put it in a box at the back of your cupboard or garage for a few months. If you don’t get it out of the box, then you don’t need it, and you can sell it online for extra (tax free) cash.

And if you still haven’t, grab an old shoebox and mark it RECEIPTS. It is such an easy way to keep all of your receipts for tax time. If you’re not sure if it is useable, just keep it – your accountant will sort that out.

If you’ve got another tip for an easy way to get rich or save cash this year, leave it in the comments below.

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Just a note on all things Christmassy … remember you’ll end up in credit card debt by January if you’re not careful …. so note this Grinchy reminder. Got it?

And if you really get a kick out of spending, (still!!), just fantasy shop. SO much cheaper! And still fun … And this year, make it a resolution to try, try, try to NOT SPEND MONEY ON SHIT YOU DON’T NEED. If you just do that one thing, you’ll be richer.

Oh, and remember, New Years resolutions are a total crock. Just decide to be richer next year instead.

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If you’re not going to take advantage of this strong Aussie dollar by heading overseas to shop, there’s still a few ways to take advantage of our currency without even leaving your desk.  Here’s a few websites I love …

Butterflies collage, rowantreedesign shop at Etsy

www.etsy.com – most of us have visited the “handmade EBay”, but since everything on the site – even Australian stuff – is listed in Aussie dollars, now is a great time to pick up beautiful handmade jewellery, homewares, and clothing.

www.theoutnet.com is a new favourite. Their Flash Sales are really worth a look … and the best bit is the returns policy. If you return something, they’ll refund the lot, including the outbound postage you paid in the first place. Puts your mind at ease when you’re doing online shopping.

www.bhphotovideo.com is the NYC-based camera and electronic geek heaven. Go nuts.

www.20×200.com is a well-known affordable art project based in the States. Today, art there starts at $18.75 Aussie (the $20 selections on the site include artwork and original, limited edition photography) + shipping.

www.1-day.com.au OK, you’re not going to take advantage of a low US dollar here, but I couldn’t resist putting it in, after a hot tip-off from my friend Alex, who spends all day looking for the best internet bargains. On any one day, there’s three great deals on here.

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More than a decade ago now, I remember thinking my mum was SO daggy because she couldn’t believe I’d paid $90 for a pair of jeans. In 1998, when Gettin Jiggy Wit It was Number 1, I was (trying) to rock a VERY expensive pair of  … Whatever They Weres. I was very excited about them at the time. Now buggered if I can remember the brand. Huh.

Point is, now, if I saw a pair of designer jeans for $90, I’d race over to the 50% off rack (that’s the only place you’d find them), and fight 3 other size-tens for the chance to try them on. And tell all your girlfriends about your bargain. Ok, that was 13 years ago, and I get the concept of inflation. But now, just like my mum, I’m staggered at price hikes in fashion, entertainment, food and life in general in the past few years, and even more staggered that wages in Australia simply haven’t kept in step.

So we’ve got two choices – get paid more, or spend less. I reckon you should do both. But today, let’s look at getting paid more.

If you’re not going to quit your job, you need to ask your boss for a pay rise. I know, awkward.  Here’s a few tips to make it less fist-clenchingly uncomfortable for you.

* Remember that things will only be uncomfortable for a little while – hopefully only a few minutes – in front of your boss. Like doing the plank at Bootcamp, it’s short term pain, you know that uncomfortable moment is going to go away. So make like a Bandaid and do it quick.

* Talk to your boss in positive terms – don’t make it seem like a whinge. Something along the lines of “I love it here, but I want to be paid more” is going to come across a lot better than “I hate that I don’t get paid enough” when asking for a salary increase.

* Make a list of notes in case your mind goes blank in the office – or send a short, friendly email outlining your contributions to the company over the past year and why you should have a pay hike. But always try to do at least part of the negotiating in person. It’ll mean more cash for you.

* Do your research first and work out what the market is paying for similar positions.

* Tell the truth. If you haven’t been sought out by a rival company, don’t make out that you have – it’ll come back to bite you.

* And if you really don’t think your boss will give you cash, try to negotiate on the things that cost you to come to work – gym fees in the city, parking and toll passes, and other benefits.

Have you ever asked for a pay rise? Did you have any success?

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Well, yes and no. Well, no. Kind of – maybe. If you love it? Yes. Arrgh.

Buying something you really don’t need is hard when you’re saving for something like paying off debts or a house deposit or a mortgage.

But constantly denying yourself the things you love all the time is no good either … you’ll save plenty of money, but your life will be crappier as a result. I reckon there’s a few basic questions you should ask yourself before buying TYJDN (Things You Just Don’t Need), and this’ll help you make your decision.

* Is the thing a one-off? — That’s important for buying a piece of art, as opposed to (another) new pair of jeans

* Have you shopped around and made sure this thing is at a comparable price to other similar things? — That’s important for things like jewellery or electronics where the price for TYJDNs can differ hugely from brand to brand.

* What would happen if you didn’t buy it? — Since it’s a TYJDN, probably not much, but if it’s something like an extra activity while you’re on a holiday, what will happen is that you’d likely never be able to do that again. If that eats you up inside, buy it. If the thought of never doing it isn’t devastating, don’t buy it.

* Is there a reason you want it so much? — Does it go with your house, is it an incredibly unique colour, is there a particular reason you fell in love with the TYJDN? The reason would want to be a pretty good one.

* Are you able to go away, think about it, and come back? — Sometimes the desire to buy that kind of stuff (particularly clothes and handbags) passes if you decide to think about it and come back. If you find you haven’t been thinking about it constantly for the rest of the day after you first spied it, you don’t want it that much. Walk away. If it’s burning a hole in your heart, like really burning a hole in your heart, go back.

* Is it similar to something you already own? — If it is, walk. Away.

* Are you buying a TYJDN to cheer you up? — If you are, ring up a girlfriend and go for a glass of wine instead. That’ll be $193 cheaper than a vintage lamp you can’t actually fit into your bedroom anyway, and works way better than retail therapy.

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I love wandering around the markets in whatever city I find myself in these days. And if I can’t, shopping on handmade and artisan website Etsy is the next best thing for me. I love it. Love. Here’s my favourites from today.

I Love My Boots framed print, $30 US.

Custom rings with a secret message inside, $50 US.

Handbag made from old leather jacket, $125US.

Cute polar bear print, $25US.

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Aussie readers, Mother’s Day is just around the corner — May 8th. Here’s my compiled list of easy and relatively cheap things to get yer mum. In other financial news, keeping her happy will also mean you’ll be good for loans from her for the rest of the year

Online Cheapies:

Etsy has these lux robes for $69 + postage.

Also on Etsy, this mother + child circles necklace, $34 + postage.

Or if you think your mum will see the funny side (mine would!), check out Chatterbox Cards.

Best bargain — the beautiful vintage-look earrings, $13.

Gifts that Help You with the Taxman: Give to a charity, and you can also claim the donation as a tax deduction.

In this category, tough to go past the Breast Cancer Institute of Australia – that also send a personalised card noting your donation to give to her on the day – and Unicef’s Mothers Day Inspired gifts — I like the story books, polio vaccine and mosquito nets. They buy them on your behalf, and you get a card you can instantly print off at home to give to your mum (perfect if you’ve left it to the last minute, like I do every year). I also like Freeschools, because if you’re skint, you only need to donate $15 to educate a girl in India or Thailand for a year. Or if your mum’s a Greenie … make a donation to Greenpeace. You can choose which animal you want to protect — I like the Emperor Penguins!

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For those of you struggling away at your Nine-to-Five, not-paying-you-anywhere-near-enough jobs, here’s some weekend escapism … a list of jobs you NEVER knew existed. So next time you’re worried about your really annoying boss .. spare a thought for deodorant testers worldwide. Pe-ewww!

Here’s the article …… my favourite – and total dream job as an 8 year old! – waterslide tester!!

But seriously, if you really want to quit your job and start something you love, like you own business, check out my recent article about whether you’re financially sorted to do so first, and get some words of inspiration from my friend Denise Duffield-Thomas’ blog.

Happy job hunting, sniffers …!

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Forget all that stuff about making a New Year’s Resolution and sticking to it. It is all crap. Are you really going to do that yoga DVD every day for the next 365 days? Nup. Zero chance. But there are some simple things you could decide to do this week that will mean you get richer. They’re painless, and almost all are close to effort-free. Tick them off as you go, and at the end of 2011, you’ll have made a lot of cash.

1. Make a list of ALL of your debts as they stand now, prioritise them in order of most to least interest charged, and work out a weekly plan to pay them back this year. Remember to include all credit cards, store cards, loans from the bank and even loans from family and friends. Stick the list from January 2011 somewhere where you can see it often and tick them off as they get paid off – ridiculously satisfying. If you have debt in many places, consider consolidating the debt. Use every cent of your existing savings to pay off your debt – I know it looks like you have less in the bank, but it’ll mean less interest charged and it’ll make you richer in 2011.

2. Find out how to make your savings work for you a little better. Go here to find out the best rates on term deposits, and work out how much you can afford to put into your long term savings. The longer you put it away, the richer you’ll be at the end of 2011.

3. Make sure that your everyday habits aren’t making you poor. Stop buying dinner ingredients every night at the convenience store, or keep a money spending diary if you’re just not sure where all your cash goes.

4. Do quick n easy audit of your “essential” spending – especially insurances – and work out if you can get the same thing at a cheaper price. If you can’t be bothered shopping around, just call your existing insurer and ask for a cheaper price. If you have a convincing argument (and a friendly phone manner), you’re likely to get it in the current economic client.

5. If you’re renting something you don’t really need (especially appliances and electronics), stop it. If you have unwanted valuable items or clothes, sell them.

6. Figure out what you spend a lot of money on, and just don’t do it in 2011. Or for all of January in 2011. My weakness is clothes … I’m going to start Fantasy Shopping again. It’s so much cheaper!!

7. Work out where you have money or points sitting that you may have forgotten about, and use them. Frequent Flier points can be used to buy cool stuff. Don’t bother having a balance sitting in your PayPal or similar accounts – they won’t ever pay you any interest!

8. Start a long-term, meaningful relationship … with a good accountant. Get a referral from a friend or colleague, and pay attention to your new best mate. You wouldn’t walk up to a perfect stranger and give them a wad of notes … but you’re doing exactly that if you’re not taking your tax returns seriously.

Good luck …! Let me know how you go.

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