"$18/hour. Well you can live on it but it does not leave a lot extra. Extra there is no extra I am going broke!" This was a conversation I had with a client. She came to my clinic for help with stress. Her big stress was not men, career or family, like many people it was money.

I asked her where she thought her money was going and the first thing she mentioned was coffee. I have written previous articles about this expense but I explained it to her a little differently and here’s what I said.

There are several challenges with buying an overpriced coffee most mornings. One is the coffee is not good for you, most coffee houses use the very cheapest coffee available. I always laugh when my European friends come over to visit and they want a good cup of coffee, I tell them to bring it with them. They insist we go out for a cup and they are shocked at what we have been convinced it good coffee.

Another thing about coffee houses is the cost, $5.00 for a cup of coffee is nuts. Even $2.50 for a cup of coffee is way too much. I remember traveling and seeing signs in shops, ‘coffee 4 cents a cup’. We are obviously a long way from those days but it is increasing in value a lot faster than gas. Can you imagine paying $5 for a cup of gas?

I expressed to my client going to the coffee house is not a great idea for your wealth. When you buy a cup of coffee and drink it that money is gone and so is your coffee, all you have left is the nifty take out cup that you will throw away. Many people spend up to $1,800 per year on coffee.

How much does a fancy and I mean fancy home coffee maker cost, $100. You could even get a professional one starting at $500. Okay then how much is some really good coffee, $10 per lb. You can have it flown here from around the world and drink the best any time you want for a fraction for what you're paying for the coffee house brew

You see for less than half of what you might spend going out for so-so coffee you can have the best and you know that at the end of the year you still have a top quality coffee maker that will last for many years.

This technique of buying the best and doing it yourself can be applied to many things. Start looking at your spending habits to see where you can apply it and start having some money left over at the end of the month. Gotta go now, my coffee's ready.

Ward Willison is a self-made millionaire who went from growing up poor to being wealthy and debt free. Did you find those tips on debt elimination useful? You can learn a lot more about how debt elimination can help you reduce debt here.