Doctorate in economics from the University of Essex (UK), macroeconometrics and finance expert, researcher and collaborator in media, Professor Javier Santacruzthat Together with investment platform Bitpanda, he helps Daniel Illescas in his financial challengesand it give us useful advice on how to increase our savings -also on the five year view-, What control our expenses or maybe how to generate income in summer, we ask you this time to give us a perspective to center the shot in the fall. Or at least not to experience a backlash from the excesses of the previous months, taking into account the cold weather, the energy crisis, inflation… Finances also train, and we must build financial muscle for tomorrow. Our experts answer some of the questions Men’s Health readers have left on social media…

What’s the best idea for saving money after the summer is over?

The first is to be very strict with spending from September to November, especially when there are bills to pay from the summer (for example, when credit card payments arrive). But if there’s something more important, don’t be discouraged to increase the use of the money we make day by day because the distance to Christmas is too far…

Do the September slopes and their posts represent real scale in economic matters?

This is one of the times of year where the financial frailties of a Spanish family who have spent without much planning over the summer and now need to incur high costs trying to delay paying their debts are most evident. In my opinion, the September slope is worse than the January slope.

How to mentally recover our account after summer excesses?

For “mental recovery” it is necessary to set as a goal to stop improvising and not to plan expenses with a small down payment. In other words: no more going on vacation without having a budget, no minimum consistency when making spending decisions… This is undoubtedly a lot harder than the famous “New Year’s Resolutions”, but it’s the minimum one can ask for to at least have a mattress small.

The key to earning more extra money if you are already working from Monday to Sunday.

Years ago, saying this about “working from Monday to Sunday” was the same as having a full time contract but where you felt you were underpaid or where you saw that your salary was not enough to support yourself. Now, most likely what you have is a succession of overlapping part-time contracts (out of one and into the other) and often concurrently. In this case, two costs that are usually not realized should be watched closely: on the one hand, double and triple contributions to Social Security when you have more than one contract or when you rotate a lot (be careful! because Social Security is equivalent to 36% of salary!!). And, on the other hand, income tax because when you have more than two payers it becomes a problem which can lead to significant expenses in the following year when the income statement is made.

What advice would you give a freelancer without a vacation right now?

How to curb inflation with back-to-school spending. The recipe is simple but complex at the same time: find a place where books are cheaper, stagger non-essential shopping the following month so you don’t have to spend it all at once, find ways to share other materials, books, and schooling. items with colleagues from different years… Nothing different from what was done last year and that we all or almost all done.