6 Good Habits You Need to Save at the Supermarket

1. Go Food Shopping Once a Week

If you're hooked on impromptu food shopping, break that expensive habit right now. Attach a magnet-backed notepad and pen to your refrigerator, and the moment a food container runs empty and you need to replace it, add it to your list. This simple discipline will have a major impact on your family budget. When you don't keep a list, you're likely to drop into the store for one item here, and two items there. Instead, establish a time each week that you can go to the store when you have time to focus on your shopping and you aren't in a rush. Be sure to take your list with you on your way out the door.

Supermarket managers love it when you don't keep a list, for several reasons. First, the more times you go into the store, the more chances you'll have of picking up unnecessary items on impulse. Also, when you buy goods on the spur of the moment, you're more likely to pay full price for them, since you didn't have time to look for a sale or wait for one to arrive. In addition, the more trips you make to the store, the more gas you burn, which adds an invisible cost to your groceries.