Gallery: 11 Easy and Great Ways to Save Money in 2013

Fool contributor Sean Williams has no material interest in any companies mentioned in this article. The Motley Fool owns shares of Johnson & Johnson, ExxonMobil, and Starbucks, as well as puts on Starbucks. Motley Fool newsletter services have recommended buying shares of Coca-Cola, Johnson & Johnson, and Starbucks, as well as buying calls on Johnson & Johnson and writing covered calls on Starbucks.

The article 11 Easy and Great Ways to Save Money in 2013 originally appeared on Fool.com.

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I'm sort of ashamed to admit that a baseball game between the San Francisco Giants and Colorado Rockies was the inspiration for this article. As a sidebar to the actual August 10 game itself, the broadcasters noted that someone had built a replica DeLorean hovercraft and was riding it around McCovey Cove in San Francisco, Calif.

This got me thinking (yes, a replica hovercraft DeLorean inspired me; laugh all you want), what if we could travel into the past, or better yet, into the future to see what products, concepts, and ideas survived and which ones drifted away. Back to the Future II wasn't exactly the best predictor of what the future would be like. According to the movie, in three years we're supposed to have flying cars and a Pepsi is expected to cost close to $50. Neither of those predictions looks even remotely feasible, although I will give the movie credit for correctly predicting a baseball team in Miami.

So today, I'm going to give you my best Doc Brown and highlight seven products, concepts, and ideas that won't exist by the year 2025. I could well be wrong, but these seven things are a long way from hitting 88 MPH and sending themselves back to better times.

Gallery: 7 Products, Concepts, and Ideas That Won't Exist by 2025

Sean Williams has no positions in the stocks mentioned above. The Motley Fool owns shares of Best Buy. Motley Fool newsletter services recommend Dolby Laboratories, Monster Beverage, and NXP Semiconductors.

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Gallery: 10 Ways We're Losing Superpower Status to China

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Charlie [Munger] and I are the managing partners of Berkshire. But we subcontract all of the heavy lifting in this business to the managers of our subsidiaries. In fact, we delegate almost to the point of abdication.

On my death, Berkshire's ownership picture will change but not in a disruptive way. ... At my death, the Buffett family will not be involved in managing the business but, as very substantial shareholders, will help in picking and overseeing the managers who do. ... Essentially my job will be split into two parts. One executive will become CEO and responsible for operations. The responsibility for investments will be given to one or more executives.

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Opportunities to overspend are everywhere. Unless you're armed with a healthy helping of self-control and a fair amount of common sense, it's easy to overpay for most things we need in our everyday lives.

Given the way capitalism works, we're all bound to overpay sometimes. The key is to avoid making it a habit.

Here are 10 common things you're most likely paying too much for, and tips for keeping more of that cash in your pocket.

Gallery: 10 Common Things You're Probably Overpaying For

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Over the past few weeks, it may seem like no matter what moves you've made in your portfolio, they've been all wrong. Down markets have an uncanny habit of sucking the will to invest out of even the most long-term-minded of investors.

But just as your body needs to be reinvigorated from time to time, your portfolio could benefit from an occasional "energy realignment."

Find Balance by Adding Yin to Your Portfolio's Yang

To realign your portfolio, think further outside the box than you ever have before -- beyond just a company's balance sheet and against the grain of traditional investing. Just as the old adage dictates that "opposites attract," embracing night-and-day investment opposites can bring balance to your portfolio and serenity to your mind.

Here are four portfolio pairings that under normal circumstances may make traders scratch their heads in disbelief, but might bring balance to some investors now.

The Adventurist and the Couch Potato

Chances are you fall into one of two walks of life. You either lead an active lifestyle, or you fall into the category where I'd likely place myself: one step away from clinically lazy. Both camps have corresponding stocks that can offer balance to a portfolio.

For the adventurous there's Polaris Industries (PII), a company that manufactures everything from snowmobiles to all-terrain vehicles. Polaris grew revenue by 27% in 2010 and has rewarded shareholders with 15 consecutive years of dividend increases.

Consider pairing Polaris with GameStop (GME), the one-stop shop for the dedicated couch potato. Featuring myriad video games and consoles, GameStop is the go-to for the video game industry. With video game sales cratering 26% in July -- the industry's worst performance since 2006 -- now may be the time to consider adding it to your portfolio while it trades near its lowest earnings multiples in years.

The Dumpster-Diver and the Neat Freak

Every investor would be wise to own companies that supply the basic necessities of life. One of those necessities that people will use regardless of the health of the economy is electricity, which comes in "dirty" and "clean" forms.

Coal, often referred to as a "dirty fuel" because of its contributions to poor air quality over many decades, is still the primary energy source for the United States. It's responsible for approximately half of all power generation, so it makes sense to consider a company such as Arch Coal (ACI), which supplies coal used by electric utilities. Arch is expected to grow by 26% annually over the next five years.

Coal is just one way to produce energy, so to prepare your portfolio for the world's future, think green -- specifically solar power. A perfect pairing with Arch Coal is First Solar (FSLR), which manufactures environmentally-friendly solar cells. With sales having grown annually at more than a 100% clip over the past five years, it's clear that solar power is set to become a large component of electrical generation in the intermediate future.

The Lounging Smoker and the Carb-Conscious Salad Eater

Some people are better at taking care of themselves than others. Regardless of where you fall on the health-hedonism spectrum, there's a perfect portfolio pairing in Philip Morris International (PM) and Teva Pharmaceutical (TEVA).

Focusing on markets entirely outside of the U.S., tobacco product manufacturer Philip Morris is able to avoid the negative effects that domestic anti-smoking legislation has had on its products, while providing shareholders with consistent growth and a juicy 3.7% dividend yield.

Teva -- one of the largest manufacturers of generic drugs, and arguably one of pharmaceuticals' most impervious pipelines -- is going to see its drugs only increase in demand as baby boomers continue to age. People are living longer nowadays, and Teva's more than 1,300 generic drugs under patent are going to be the driving force to growing revenue.

A May-December Coupling

Generational and ideological differences tend to doom May-December romances. But in your portfolio, a pairing of the elderly and the youthful can bloom into a successful long-term marriage.

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Last year, an octopus named Paul proved quite adept at predicting winners in the FIFA World Cup. While his stock-picking prowess never was tested, his skills do suggest an interesting idea for investors -- consulting the domesticated animal kingdom for investing ideas.

It's not as far-fetched as it might sound: Historical returns have shown that growth in pet products has proceeded at a steady pace. And more than half of households have a built-in product focus group -- a furry, fuzzy or scaly pet that is probably more than eager to test the latest and greatest pet products.

Want to throw your portfolio a bone? Follow your dog's nose and see what pet products make his tail wag in delight.

The cost of unconditional love

According to the American Pet Products Association, Americans spent $48.4 billion on their pets in 2010, and as of 2008 more than 62% of households owned at least one pet.

Almost $20 billion of that amount was spent on pet food, $14 billion on veterinary care, and $11 billion on supplies and over-the-counter medicine, according to the APPA. These revenue figures have nearly tripled since 1994 and are even more reason to consider investing in the pet products sector.

Cashing in on Fido and Fifi

Pets.com is long gone, but thankfully we're left with a few highly profitable places to dig for investment opportunities:

Company	5-Year Estimated Growth Rate	Forward P/E	Dividend Yield
PetSmart (PETM)	14.6%	16.2	1.2%
PetMed Express (PETS)	13.5%	13.7	4.2%
MWI Veterinary Supply (MWIV)	16.5%	22.4	N/M
VCA Antech (WOOF)	14.6%	13.6	N/M

Source: Yahoo! Finance.

Note that all of these companies have strong double-digit growth expectations, yet none are trading at a ridiculous valuation. As gravy, PetMed Express pays a very delectable dividend -- currently yielding north of 4% -- while PetSmart also pays out 1.2%, a figure I predict could rise in the coming years given its dividend growth rate of more than 100% in the past two years.

Also, don't discount what owners are willing to do to ensure the health of their four-legged family members. A typical visit to the vet usually costs hundreds of dollars and translates into healthy margins for pet companies like MWI and VCA Antech, which supply various products to veterinary clinics.

Big retailers hopping on the gravy train

The appeal of high-margin pet products is even attracting large names that want a piece of the pie. Wal-Mart (WMT), Target (TGT), and online retailer Amazon.com (AMZN) have expanded the amount of pet food and toy products they carry in the hopes of cashing in on this high-margin gravy train.

Have you bought into the pet products sector because of the animals you own? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Motley Fool contributor Sean Williams has no material interest in any companies mentioned in this article. He regularly consults his obese dachshund for stock advice. The Motley Fool owns shares of PetMed Express and Wal-Mart Stores.

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