Dear Frugal Upstate,I decided that this year would be the year that I begin my journey to becoming frugal. I have read several of your posts and I have enjoyed them all. I was glad to see that one I came across was one were you stated that this was a five year journey for you and did not happen over night.
Some of the posts are extreme to me but I am willing to try anything once. I would like for you to give me a little push in the right direction for starting out, if you would not mind. I look forward to your reply, and anticipate the excitement that this journey will bring me as I join you and many other in this quest.
Alan
Any lifestyle change works best if done in increments. If you try to change everything at once, it is too difficult-to hard to maintain-and many people just get discouraged and give up. A series of small things added in to your routine and then built upon are more likely to result in real change. Meredith has a great post over at Frugal Hacks showing examples of how “Movie Date Night” can be incrimentally scaled down and made more frugal over time.
So back to Alan’s question-how to start. First off, I am going to assume that Alan is not in a crisis situation*, but rather one of the following; #1 the typical person who consistently spends more than he makes, slowly racking up a “liveable”, but worrisome amount of debt or #2 a slightly more atypical person who is making all ends meet, but doesn’t have anything left to save. A crisis situation would require much more stringent methods implemented immediately.
The two items that people seem to be able to deal with the most quickly and easily are to learn to differentiate between wants and needs, and to cut the food bill. Entire books could be written on those two subjects! Let’s start today with the wants v.s. needs issue. I’ll discuss the food bill in the future.
Personally I never actually did the recording exercise. I tried several times, but after a few days always forgot! (Bad, bad frugality writer). What I did instead was to jump right in and start evaluating each purchase on a “want vs. need” basis. Do I really need it? What would happen if I don’t buy it? Is there something else I can substitute for it that I already have? Can it be repaired instead of purchasing a new item?
Let’s she how this works by looking at the gas station example above. First of all, do you really need that coffee or candy bar? If it is just a habit, and you aren’t really hungry/thirsty you may be able to simply skip the whole thing. Being a coffee drinker myself, I totally understand the lure of a hot cup of Joe in the morning, even if you aren’t actually thirsty. So I am on board with coffee being a morning “need”. Is there another way to acheive your caffine jolt without purchasing it at the gas station? Maybe there is a coffee pot at work where you could have free (or cheap) coffee if you just waited. Or you could brew a pot before you left the house and use a travel mug.
Similarly with the snack issue, you could buy quick and easy snacks to bring along with you in the mornings (or even to LEAVE in the car-thereby avoiding the whole “I forgot” thing) such as a box of granola bars, or even a family pack of candy bars bought in the store. You could go more whole hog and bake up some of your own goodies to bring along (a cheaper option) or even make a little extra time in the morning to eat some sort of breakfast before you leave the house.
On a totally different tact-let’s take a look at clothing-a frequent impulse buy for women. Do you actually NEED new clothes-chances are you have unworn stuff in the closet! Have you considered waiting to see if the item goes on sale, or buying it at a thrift store? If it is an item you absolutely must have and that can’t be found used (a new suit for a man in a business enviornment for example) have you comparison shopped?
Many items you can simply do without. Advertisers spend tons of money trying to convince us that we need the newest and shiniest version of (fill in the blank). I myself am susceptible to the “wants” sometimes. I admit that a girlfriend had one of those new, classy looking digital oval crockpots. I cook frequently and would LOVE one like hers. My large crockpot was MY mother’s. It has a brown liner, and is printed with a pattern of 1970’s style wheat like this one:
Photo by Oribital Joe via Flickr.com
The truth is, as much as I may ooh and ahh over the other one, mine works just fine. Buying a newer one would truly be because it was prettier and newer-it wouldn’t function much differently from what I already have. So I have resisted the impulse to buy one. Now, when Mom’s crockpot finally DIES-well, that will be another matter. . . but you can bet that I’ll be looking for one on sale, and comparison shopping.
So Readers-Please share with Alan! What do you see as the most important areas to start with when learning to become frugal?
*A crisis situation requires much more stringent measures, and the “slowly adding” thing goes right out the window. I hesitate to write too much on that because I have not personally been in that situation. You can read this article on Getting out of Debt over at the Motherload which goes over the basics, or this one over at Zen Habits.
I had to laugh at the needle-nose pliers. I’ll have to ask my Dad what he uses – he has some epoxy, moldable stuff that he used to replace the rail-end on Mom’s dishwasher (to keep the top rack from rolling right off the track). It can withstand a good amount of heat, and would mold nicely into a new knob. For me at least, a lot easier than tracking down those pliers.
Amy-ahhh! but I have a special pair of pliers that I keep in my kitchen desk for just such emergencies!
hahaha on the pliers. We used pliers for months instead of a knob on our dryer. Then I found one that fit (but the markings were wrong) and painted markings on in nail polish.
I would recommend starting with a list. Do not buy anything unless it is on your list. If you see something at the store you *NEED*, go home, put it on your list. Then buy it next time you go, if you still *NEED* it. This seems stupid at first, and possible wasteful (more trips to the store!) but it is crucial to finally, really realize the difference between wants and needs. You are not saying “I can’t have that” but rather, “I will plan to have that”. Also, it nips the impulse purchase habit in the bud.
The MOST important areas to start with?
– Find the best price for your gasoline! For me, the BEST price is on the reservation, but that’s a good distance. If we’re out that way, then we fill up. Next best price is BJ’s club, but again, only if we’re out that way. Third best price is Walmart–buy a gift card inside and get 3 cents off per gallon at the pump.
– Combine trips as much as possible.
– Change movie night from dinner-out-and-a-movie to lunch-out-and-a-matinee. You still get to feel like you’re going out without the higher ticket prices, and lunch menus are often cheaper at restaurants.
– Instead of weekly date nights, do monthly. Home-cooked meals can be special, too.
– No impulse purchases. Go home, think it over. If you still *need* it in a day or two, then get it. Otherwise, you didn’t really *need* it.
– For free entertainment for kids, check out the local library, and see when local bookstores have free kiddie events.
FYI, Jenn, the newer crockpots are much hotter than the older ones. You have a treasure there because you can actually put a pot roast in early in the day and come home to something that does NOT resemble a brick. I inherited one of the oval digital ones when I married DH and I ruined a nice pot roast with it before I realized how hot it gets! 🙂
Lissa in FL
Definitely spend some time really researching how to be frugal. Read blogs, visit websites, read books and hang out with people who are frugal. Once you begin reading and surrounding yourself with like-minded people, things start to move into place.
As for simple ways to start-
Evaluate your grocery budget. This is the most flexible part in your budget and I have found the most area for improvement by starting here. Learn to make convenience foods, start keeping a price book, and move in a positive direction with your budget.
– Make your own cleaners
– Replace nights out with nights in. Learn how to cook so you don’t have to go out for food.
Those are some simple places to start. Just don’t get overwhelmed and give up 🙂 These things take time and growth!!
Please help keep me in line too. It is difficult at times with all of the cute stuff to buy. All day long I heard some women say I am over drawn. No can do!! I go through all of the sales adds in the sunday paper and try to match them up with coupons. I got buy one get one free laundry soap and ect.. That is very helpful. I love the stock up sales. Take care. Annette
Hey, that sounds a lot like my crockpot! Only mine still has the knob intact.
Amusingly, amongst the crockpot circles.. those old old ones are hotly coveted because they cook at a cooler temperature and are less likely to burn when you leave stuff in them all day long! Newer is not always better! 🙂
I have the same crockpot, bought at a thrift store for $4. It gets insanely hot on the outside, which the newer do not. That is my only beef with it. I love how big it is. We have a large family, so we make use f a few different slow cookers!