With the holiday shopping season just starting and prices of many consumer goods continuing to rise, saving money can seem impossible. But those financial pressures also make doing so even more important.
“Saving is your margin,” says Eric Maldonado, a certified financial planner and owner of Aquila Wealth Advisers.
“When things happen – your car breaks down or there’s a layoff, or smaller stuff like gifts for the holidays – you have something to fall back on.”
Mr Maldonado notes that saving can also allow you to have money for fun things.
The personal savings rate for Americans has been dropping in the past few months, and as of July was 3.5 per cent, according to the US Bureau of Economic Analysis.
Mr Maldonado recommends aiming for a savings rate closer to 20 per cent of your take-home income.
“You can live off of 80 per cent and put 20 per cent towards deferred gratification,” he suggests.
That guidance matches the popular 50:30:20 budget, which suggests putting 50 per cent of your take home income towards needs, 30 per cent towards wants, and 20 per cent towards savings and any debt payments.
“If you're just starting out, then it can be too daunting, but you can work towards it,” Mr Maldonado adds.
If you’re looking for ways to power up your savings, consider these strategies:
1. Pause before buying
“One of the biggest mistakes people make is buying things you don’t need,” says Vivian Tu, author of the forthcoming book Rich AF: The Winning Money Mindset That Will Change Your Life and a TikTok influencer who posts as @YourRichBFF.
To counter that tendency, she recommends “taking a beat” before making any purchase.
“Really ask yourself, ‘Why do I want that thing? What makes it special?’” she suggests.
Ms Tu says asking herself that question helped her to scale back on material purchases so she had more money for experiences, like holidays and brunches with friends.
2. Spread out the impact of big expenses
For big expenses that are on the horizon, Cary Carbonaro, a financial planner and senior vice president at financial advisory company ACM Wealth, recommends setting aside a small amount of money each month so the final cost doesn’t overwhelm your budget.
“If you know you’re going to spend $1,200 at Christmas, then put aside $100 a month for the whole year,” Ms Carbonaro suggests. “Everybody overspends in December unless you budgeted for it.”
3. Try kerbside pickup
When Ryan Greiser, a financial planner and founder of the financial company Opulus, and his wife noticed their credit card bill going up with inflation, they brainstormed ways to cut back.
One of their most successful ideas was relying on online grocery ordering with kerbside pickup.
“We noticed that if we did kerbside pickup, our bill was $50 to $100 less than if we went into the store because we only bought the things on our list. It reduced impulse buys and allowed us to easily compare prices and coupons that popped up on the screen,” Mr Greiser says.
Given their weekly shopping needs for a family with three young children, that shift allowed them to save $200 to $400 a month.
4. Rotate subscriptions
Mr Greiser and his family also started saving $10 to $30 a month by rotating their streaming subscriptions based on what shows they were currently watching.
“We keep one or two active subscriptions and cancel the rest or pause it when a show wraps up so we can rotate to the next one,” he says, adding that he sets a reminder on his calendar so he doesn’t forget to cancel.
Similarly, he pauses his fitness subscriptions when the weather is good enough to exercise outside.
“They are month to month, so easy to pause and restart,” he says.
5. Ask for discounts
Speaking up for yourself is another saving strategy. “You have power as a consumer,” Ms Tu says.
That means you can ask your bank to waive late fees or overcharge fees, or ask for a discount on shoes that have a scuff on them.
“Be polite, be kind, but you can be entitled and understand that your business has value,” she adds.
The answer might be “no”, but there’s no reason not to ask, and it might just save you some money.
We keep one or two active subscriptions and cancel the rest or pause it when a show wraps up so we can rotate to the next one
Ryan Greiser,
financial planner
6. Shop around for insurance
Find discounts on the bills you don’t look at very often, too. Instead of letting your home and auto insurance automatically renew, consider taking time to shop around through an online comparison tool.
When Mr Greiser did that, he ended up saving a total of $1,000 on his bundled car and home insurance plan.
7. Sign up for cashback apps
Popular cashback apps allow you to earn cash for online shopping after you set up an account.
“I highly recommend using cashback apps,” Ms Tu says. “I know it seems like kind of a pain to sign up, but you can save hundreds of dollars a year because it lets you get cash back on purchases you were already making.”
Sometimes making the extra effort pays off, right into your savings account.
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Zayed Sustainability Prize
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl turbo
Power: 247hp at 6,500rpm
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Transmission: 10-speed auto
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Company%20profile
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What the law says
Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.
“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.
“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”
If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.
FIRST TEST SCORES
England 458
South Africa 361 & 119 (36.4 overs)
England won by 211 runs and lead series 1-0
Player of the match: Moeen Ali (England)
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
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Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
The Bio
Favourite place in UAE: Al Rams pearling village
What one book should everyone read: Any book written before electricity was invented. When a writer willingly worked under candlelight, you know he/she had a real passion for their craft
Your favourite type of pearl: All of them. No pearl looks the same and each carries its own unique characteristics, like humans
Best time to swim in the sea: When there is enough light to see beneath the surface
Why are asylum seekers being housed in hotels?
The number of asylum applications in the UK has reached a new record high, driven by those illegally entering the country in small boats crossing the English Channel.
A total of 111,084 people applied for asylum in the UK in the year to June 2025, the highest number for any 12-month period since current records began in 2001.
Asylum seekers and their families can be housed in temporary accommodation while their claim is assessed.
The Home Office provides the accommodation, meaning asylum seekers cannot choose where they live.
When there is not enough housing, the Home Office can move people to hotels or large sites like former military bases.
3%20Body%20Problem
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Glossary of a stock market revolution
Reddit
A discussion website
Redditor
The users of Reddit
Robinhood
A smartphone app for buying and selling shares
Short seller
Selling a stock today in the belief its price will fall in the future
Short squeeze
Traders forced to buy a stock they are shorting
Naked short
An illegal practice
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
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Disability on screen
Empire — neuromuscular disease myasthenia gravis; bipolar disorder; post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
Rosewood and Transparent — heart issues
24: Legacy — PTSD;
Superstore and NCIS: New Orleans — wheelchair-bound
Taken and This Is Us — cancer
Trial & Error — cognitive disorder prosopagnosia (facial blindness and dyslexia)
Grey’s Anatomy — prosthetic leg
Scorpion — obsessive compulsive disorder and anxiety
Switched at Birth — deafness
One Mississippi, Wentworth and Transparent — double mastectomy
Dragons — double amputee
Our legal consultants
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
