Now that I am jobless, I can not afford to spend too much on anything. The Internal SSD Hard Disk I wanted to buy, is still pending because of my cost cutting. My Pc runs faster than ever!
This is the one I wanted to did buy. Samsung Evo840. This will speed up my laptop 3 to 4 times! I have been using photoshop and illustrator a lot. They are moderately slow in my current laptop, so I wanted to give it a boost.
I’m living in Bengaluru without any monthly wage is really scary. But I have a plan. My expenditure is ridiculous here. Though I don’t spend much on useless things, the cost of basic necessities is high.
This is what I spend in a month.
1. Food: 30₹ Breakfast + 16₹ Milk + 10₹ Snack + 30₹ Lunch & Dinner. My girlfriend stays 300Kms away. That’s sad but saves some spending on cozy restaurants.
Total = 2580₹
2. Clothing: I don’t buy many clothes. Maybe four pants and shirts a year. Considering a pair costs 1000₹, four of them will add up to 4000₹.
Total = 350₹
3. Rent: Staying in a city is costly. I’m staying in a place where rent is quite high. I stay with my friend in a 1BHK independent house that has a rent of 8500₹/month. My chess coaching place has a rent of 3000₹.
Total = 4250+3000 = 7250₹
4. Internet: We have 20Mbps plan with an FUP 50GB. That costs us around 1200₹/month.
Total = 600₹
5. Online shopping: I buy stuff online all the time. This is like an addiction to many. When we see an offer, we tend to buy it before the offer gets closed. Amazon uses this psychological aspect in their Lightning Deals. Considering an approximated amount of 1000₹ every month. This is because I have bought a tablet worth 15000₹ once and I did not buy anything for months. So I’m taking an average here.
Total = 1000₹
6. Petrol: I ride to coaching class on my bike every weekend. I teach chess to one kid in their place. They are close by and not much of a travel. I still have to keep a 500₹ aside for petrol (67₹/Lit)
Total = 500₹
7. Drinks: This is a habit that I don’t want to stop anytime soon. I usually have a beer on the weekend. That would be 400₹/month. Occasionally we buy wine, whiskey or vodka. That can be approximated to 100₹ every month.
Total = 500₹
All of that adds up to 12780₹
This is a lot for me after leaving a good paying job and solely depending on what I make with my hobbies. So I have to make some decisions. Actually, I made these decisions before leaving the job (I must be crazy otherwise).
The major decision is moving. Moving to my hometown will get the costs down to nothing. It’s cheap living there. My parents are renovating a house. I will be staying there for a while (not sure). All I need is a reliable internet connection for my online coaching, blogging, and uploading YouTube videos.
I also like the idea of minimalism. Having what you need rather than what you like. This rule holds good while shopping also. We spend so much on new gadgets or cars that we don’t really need. If you think about it – deep enough, you will realize that we do this to impress someone who may not be a part of our life.
My hometown Koppa is a beautiful place.It is in Chikamagalore. It has evergreen forests. It looks somewhat like the image below. The downside is that it also has everyday power cut, heavy rains, trees fall often in the rainy season disturbing power lines, cold weather etc.,
This plan seems to be the best one I have right now. But it is shameful for someone to go back home from a city like Bengaluru. Blame this guy Jon Jandai in the video for that. I will list out all the money I will be saving once I move there.
Now the difference when I will move to a place called HOME.
1. Food: As I will be staying home. Food expenses are almost nil. That is because it gets shared between 3 people. Cost reduces next to nothing when shared. I still want to consider an amount of 500₹.
Total = 500₹
2. Clothing: I have to buy clothes no matter where I am, but there is a difference this time. I don’t have to care about the brand a lot. A minimal design is more than enough to get me into buying a shirt. I don’t have to buy any formal clothes as I’m no more working at an office. Clothes are cheaper here. So I would say quarter the amount I used to spend.
Total = 90₹
3. Rent: This is the best part. I will be staying in a 1BHK without paying any rent. I have not planned to open a chess class yet, so that would be 0₹/month.
Total = 0₹
4. Internet: I will not be sharing my internet. That would add up to 1200₹ a month. A broadband connection with 1000₹/month and a data card as backup 200₹/month.
Total = 1200₹
5. Online shopping: This cannot happen from home. My place does not have any service selling stuff online. A proper internet itself is rare here.
Total = 0₹
6. Petrol: I don’t really have to ride much when I’m at home. I think I may have to go to the market and help my mom in her job and everything will add up to the same cost that used to be in the city. (67₹/Lit)
Total = 500₹
7. Drinks: Indian parents will not hesitate to disown their kids if they find them drinking. So there is not really a choice for me than adding 0₹.
Total = 0₹
All of that adds up to 2290₹
The difference is 10490₹
This is just a speculation. I haven’t considered any miscellaneous expenditure that may occur. But I believe that this gives us a rough estimate. (I’m not taking my cellphone bills into account as they are going to remain almost the same)
I know many of you do not agree with me with the decision of moving back home. But this is something personal. My parents have nobody there to take care of them. I should be there to help them out on a day to day activities. They both are working for the government and they will retire soon.
How do I earn when I’m there?
My basic income source is teaching chess online. I have been doing this for 2 years now. I can make a pretty good living just with that.
I have an eye for good designs. I can create websites in a snap (just exaggerating). You can check out WebJeda, where I offer web design and web hosting solutions for a way cheaper price. I will teach you how I do that in a future post so that anyone who is interested to take up web designing as their career can make use of it.
I make YouTube videos and I have a network of blogs. I earn anywhere around 10000₹ from all that. I know it is not much, but something is better than nothing!
I have a friend who is returning from Dubai and has experience in hotel management. We will be starting something soon (you have to wait to hear that story).
I have at least 10 other plans that I can try but don’t know which one will turn into a successful business. I don’t have a job, so I’m going to try almost all of them.
Do you think my cost cutting plan is good? Let me know if you have a suggestion.