Do you let people take advantage of you? You know what I'm talking about. When relatives or friends come to you and ask for money or need a place to stay, do you automatically feel like you have to help them because they are your friend or family? If this is you, you might want to re-think your strategy when it comes to dealing with these people. Unfortunately, there are always circumstances that will make the situation personal and hard to give advice on, but if you start to feel like someone is taking advantage of your hospitality, you're probably right. You might think that giving someone a place to stay won't cost you anything, but at the end of the month when you look at your grocery and utility bills, you'll think differently.

Sit down and find out what exactly you are spending every month. Factor in your rent, electricity, gas (if you have it), insurances, groceries, and other miscellaneous expenses. A lot of the time, you will notice that a larger portion of your funds go toward miscellaneous expenses than you thought. This includes small purchases at the gas station or fast food restaurant or just about anything else you would purchase on a day to day basis. These seemingly insignificant purchases make up a larger portion of your monthly budget than a lot of people would expect. Save your receipts from these purchases for a month and see just how much you're spending. You'll be surprised at what you find.

Next on the list is to get rid of the processed foods from your kitchen. Frozen foods or meals that are "ready to eat" out of the can are generally the most expensive items by ounce in the grocery store. Unfortunately, a lot of us have strenuous jobs to deal with and so paying for the extra convenience of having a meal that you can just stick in the microwave seems like a great option. The bad thing is that these tend to be very unhealthy for you and your family to eat and as we mentioned before, they're expensive. If you simply cannot do without the convenience of processed foods, try to make up for the funds you are losing in other areas, such as cutting back on your utility usage.