The best frugal living tip? Save for the future!
In your efforts to save money, you might be overwhelmed by all the free financial advice you hear.
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"Fresh activity is the only means of overcoming adversity.”
- Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe |
Some of these so-called experts provide tips that sound elaborate or complicated. Some of them sound unnecessary. (Yeah, you can make your own envelopes out of scrap paper, but c’mon, a box of 100 envelopes only costs 89 cents anyway!)
So it’s important to remember WHY you’re seeking out a frugal living tip here and there, in order to further cut your expenses to the bare bone.
The point of living frugally now, is so that eventually you won’t have to. The goal is to later be able to relax and enjoy your money; to take trips; to have nice things, and to never have to worry about your finances. Won’t that be an amazing feeling?
It’s getting to that point of person and financial independence, that will take some discipline and sacrifice today, and yes, it can be hard.
Keep your eye on the ultimate prize. When the going gets tough, remind yourself how great it will be to have peace of mind; to never have to worry about money.
Remember, following a frugal living tip, or two, doesn’t have to be awful. A lot of the money we spend in our everyday lives is a waste, pure and simple.
Cutting out those wasteful expenditures - the daily stop at Starbucks, the frequent visits to restaurants for lunch or dinner, the gas-guzzling SUV - shouldn’t be too much of a sacrifice, especially when you add up how much money you’ll be saving in the long run.
Adhering to a frugal living tip now and again, are things everyone should be doing anyway.
- To reduce heating costs, make sure your home is well-insulated and weather-stripped.
- Do your banking and pay your other accounts online and save a few dollars a month in stamps.
- Buy store brands instead of the more expensive brands when you shop for groceries, and your food bill will go down dramatically.
Other frugal living tips might take some self-control to stick with. You might be tempted to overspend, especially once you start saving some money.
“Yeah, I decided not to stop for a snack at McDonald’s anymore,” you’ll think. “But I’ve been doing so well on my budget! Surely I can afford to splurge just this once!”
You must remember that while your savings might be increasing, your goal is for the long term, not the short term. Keep living frugally and wisely, and the rewards in the end will far outweigh the sacrifices required now!
"What's money?
A man is a success if he gets up in the morning
and goes to bed at night and in between
does what he wants to do.”
- Bob Dylan |
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Debt is NOT your friend. It's not a wonderful "tool" for building wealth. That's a myth.
