You can often cut your monthly expenses without changing your lifestyle one iota.  Sure, making changes in your behavior is often the best way to curb costs, but there are ways to reduce your cost of living without altering your habits at all.

The only expense involved is a little time and analysis.  You’ll need to do a little research, yank out your monthly bills, jot down some phone/account numbers, and make a few calls.  That’s it.

It’s all about getting a better deal on the things for which you’re already paying.  You might look at these as fixed expenses as you plan your spending, but they’re not necessarily fixed.  In fact, they’re often quite flexible.

You can get a better deal from your existing service providers just by asking.  Trust me, these folks aren’t going to call you to tell you that you can save money.  You must ask.  It helps if you have an idea of potential alternatives when you make the request, too.  When companies find out that you’re shopping around for the best possible bargain, they’re often willing to cut a deal to keep your business.

If you’re willing to do a little homework and to make a few phone calls, you can cut your bills considerably.  Here are a few prime examples of how to save money without changing your lifestyle by making a simple phone call:

Cell phone providers.  Call your cellular telephone provider and tell them that you’re looking for a way to cut your bill.  You might discover that they have a plan that better suits your needs than the one you’re currently using.  If your contract is almost up, the fact that you could opt to take your business elsewhere might also qualify you for some discounting.

Insurance agents. You don’t want to reduce your coverage below what you need, but you do want to get the best possible deal on the policies you’re carrying.  Call your agent and ask them what you can do to reduce your bill.  Your agent makes a living based on commissions and he or she won’t be seeing a commission if you decide to move to a different company or agent.  It’s often possible to tweak your coverage in a way that provides adequate protection at a lower cost.  If you’ve been claim-free for several months, you may also qualify for rate deals.

Cable companies. Do you remember what you were paying for cable television when you first signed up?  If you’re like most people, it was considerably less than what you’re paying now.  Cable companies are always offering great deals to new sign-ups.  Call your cable company and find out what you can do to lower your bill.  It might involve dropping a few channels that you don’t even watch.  It could be a matter of bundling your Internet or other services with your cable.  I once discovered that mentioning a competitor’s deal and alluding to the fact that I might consider a switch suddenly “qualified” me for a better deal.

Credit card companies. Are you paying your bills regularly?  If so, give your credit card companies a ring and ask about getting the interest rate knocked down a peg or two.  It sounds ridiculous, but sometimes you really can score a better deal just by asking.  Are you having a tough time getting those payments to them in a timely fashion?  Call them.  Sometimes, they’re willing to flex a little bit to get you in a position where you’re more likely to keep the money coming their way.

You shouldn’t be overpaying for anything.  Cutting your bills and expenses is a great way to develop greater leverage as you pay down existing debts and avoid future ones.  When you decrease your costs, you increase the availability of funds for smart investment.

Nonetheless, if you’re like most people you probably are spending more than you should.  One way to correct that deficiency is to pick up the phone and to ask for a better deal.