Breathe-Smile » frugal living

Self Improvement – Why Bother?

Ash — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 19:45:10 +0000

“The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” – Lao Tzu

Have you ever read a wonderful piece of advice and then completely failed to implement it?

I’ve recently been looking a lot of advice in the face and asking, “Why bother?”

All those gurus sitting in their white castles don’t know the details of your life. You might be a single mom with two young children, or a young graduate desperately trying to get noticed at work and with the ladies. You’re going through so much in life already that you don’t see why you should waste time trying to implement someone else’s advice, no matter how sound it seems.

In addition, most advice is uncomfortable to implement. It takes time, energy and resources, and you already have enough demands on them: from work, family and friends. You weigh the pros and cons subconsciously, and come to the decision it’s not worth it. The advice you nodded along with gets forgotten. “It sounds great,” you say, “but I couldn’t do it.”

We don’t bother to analyse why we’re not trying to implement those tips the gurus say are worthwhile, and we put it down to laziness. But it’s really not laziness, it’s just a lack of motivation. We don’t do anything till we decide that we really, really want that thousand-mile journey. And self development is a really long journey, so why bother? No matter how much other people say that it’s important to be better, richer, healthier, smart, more productive… you shouldn’t bother unless you think that goal is important.

Take waking up early, for instance. A few years back this was the rage among productivity bloggers, and then someone came along and said it doesn’t work for him. Do you wake up early? If you answered no, it’s probably because you’re not sufficiently motivated: there are lots of things that can be done at night or on the commute, and sleeping in is so much fun! However, it’s easy to wake in time for something that can only be done early in the morning: that’s why most people who love sleeping in still manage to catch their early morning flights, and most employees make it to work by 9.

Some things just don’t seem worth it. I’ve read lots of house cleaning tips, but my place stays a mess: I can live with mess as long as it doesn’t attract bugs or get underfoot – my day is too crammed to make room for obsessive mopping.

You can never go down the road towards self-improvement till you identify what you love, and what your own goals are. It doesn’t have to resonate with anyone else: if you’re a recent grad you can admit to yourself that you want to get a job in an investment bank, make lots of money, work heaps, and retire early; you don’t have to join a non-profit, you can make the world better just by being yourself. It’s your life, you don’t have to justify your dreams to anyone else. Someone else might be on a weight-loss journey, but if you’re fine with being slightly overweight for the moment, don’t feel guilty: understand why it’s like that (other priorities maybe) and whether you plan to tackle your weight later. Don’t feel the need to be like someone else; another person’s goals will never matter to you.

The first real step in a journey is introspection: deciding what journey you want. I’ve done some soul-searching myself, before deciding to take baby steps down the self-improvement path. These are the areas that I’ve decided I want to improve upon, and that I’ll be discussing in my blog. Check if any of these goals fit in with your own goals:

Career Optimization
Unless you’re acting immorally, there’s nothing wrong with wanting to earn money – it lets you raise children, support your family, donate to the needy and enjoy life a little. However, my primary motivator is working at something I’m passionate about, so I’m happy making a small income that allows me to survive without handouts.
I write about following your passion, and it’s a wonderful life when you can merge your career and passion. For some people (including me) this may take a while to achieve, and it’s ok to build up a nest egg by working hard at a job you don’t dream about. Your job will take up most of your life, and it’s important to try to enjoy it, do well at it, and leverage it as much as possible without dying inside.
Frugality
I equate wealth with freedom. Money doesn’t mean a flashy car for me, it means time to devote to work I love rather than work that just pays. Wealth can bring security, comfort, experiences… and income generation is only one part of the equation.
I was forced to be extremely frugal after a lifestyle change led to two people living on a tiny income, and it’s taught me a lot – mostly that frugality isn’t painful. When you have a vision of what you want from life (travelling, being with your kids, starting a business) wasteful consumerism fades into the background. That’s not to say that you should live a miserable stingy life. It’s just that I believe that frugality can help you achieve your longer-term goals by eliminating the stuff you don’t really want.
Healthiness
This is one of the more difficult goals since it involves abstaining from foods you love and undertaking strenuous activity when you’d rather do something else. This is something I’ve thought long and hard about, and I’ve talked about how I do it. It’s totally worth it for me – I feel more energetic, and tend to fall ill less often. However, without sufficient determination, it’s difficult to try to be healthier.
Happiness
Gretchen Rubin says her year of trying to be happier did, in fact, make her happier. The surprising thing is that being happier is not necessarily easy: it involves an amount of restraint, selfless giving, work and social interactions. At the end of the day though, I’d rather be happy and exhausted.
Productivity
What is the point of doing meaningless work quicker?
I was totally disinterested in productivity hacks until I discovered what I really wanted to do with my life. Sure, you can apply some tips to improve your social life, but most tips are work related – and before trying to go through tips for working better, make sure you want to be doing that work. Of course, if there’s something you look forward to doing outside of work you can try to work more efficiently to have more time to devote to that activity. Productivity is closely tied with career optimization.

Everyone’s journey is different. Before you read about how to have a more efficient journey, it’s important to think about which journey you want. Hopefully this post will inspire you to do that.

Costs, Part 1 – Opportunity Costs

Ash — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 06:29:57 +0000

Every time you travel down one path, you miss out on the path you didn’t take. It’s something we rarely think out, because missing something causes regret. We want it all.

But it’s a fact: we can’t have it all. We have limited resources, and it’s good to accept that. At any given time, there’s only so much money (or net worth) we have, but there’s an unlimited number of things we could spend that money on.

Once you can accept the “limited net worth, unlimited stuff to buy” dilemna, you can take steps to deal with it, i.e. by making good choices.
This is where the concept of “opportunity costs” comes in. An opportunity cost is the next best alternative you give up: so if you turn right at the bend, the opportunity cost is the opportunity of walking left.

If I decide to buy lunch at work, I may pop into McDonalds to pick up a cheap, convenient meal for $6. My other choices may have been a more expensive meal, chips and lollies from the vending machine, or a nutritious but time-consuming $3 home-cooked meal. Let’s assume of the remaining choices, I prefer the home-cooked meal: that’s what I’ve given up in favor of the McMeal.

What have I given up? Well, in my list of priorities, the first thing I sacrified was nutrition value. I’m desperately trying to eat healthy on a budget, and McDonald’s is the easiest way to blow both – more expensive, and more unhealthy. The second thing I sacrificed was $3. That’s not much money, but if I think of it in terms of something more tangible – maybe a coffee with a friend, a nice time spent chatting in a cosy cafe – I realize that I did give up something else of value. Finally, I gave up the inconvenience of making a home-cooked meal, which is really the only reason I’d only ever eat at McDonalds (I make a meaner burger at home ). So it really might be worthwhile to give up a cheaper, healthier home-cooked meal in favour of McDonalds if I’m going through a particularly busy time and can’t make time to cook.

That was an easy choice. A more difficult one may be, you want to buy your partner an expensive, romantic dinner. It would be a sumptuous meal and an experience that you’d both remember, and would cost $70 for two people. The next best option for spending that money would be to save towards a holiday. You could, of course, save the money for retirement, but I’m assuming you also want to live a little, strengthen your relationship and create some memories. It’s a tough choice, because both the dinner and the holiday are things you want. How you decide to ultimately spend that money is really up to your priorities. However, the important thing is identifying what you’re giving up. If you pick the dinner, you’ll have to wait a little longer before going on holiday. If you pick the holiday, that’s a special evening you’ve sacrificed.

I think that’s what the importance of opportunity costs really boils down to: acknowledging that they’re there. That you’ve given up something to get something. That your new car represents a new furniture set you didn’t buy. Accepting that opportunity costs exist means admitting that you can’t have it all, and that you’re being realistic about the fact that you need to make choices.

Costs, Part 2 – Sunk Costs is coming soon!

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3 Less Common Ways of Using the Internet to Save Money When Shopping

Ash — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 04:19:42 +0000

There are so many ways that the internet can help you save money when shopping. There are online shops that are cheaper than brick-and-mortar ones, there are comparison sites, and there are coupon sites. Here are three less ordinary ways I use the internet to save money when I go shopping:

1. Online catalogues
I don’t get some of the catalogues that shops send out, and you may be in the same position, especially if you live a bit further away. Most major stores upload their recent catalogues onto their websites, so you can browse through them before you go shopping.

2. Online stores as a comparison tool
I tend to buy my groceries in store, because the postage is usually quite expensive. However, the three major groceries in Australia (Safeway/Woolworths, Coles and Aldi) all have online stores where you can see the prices of products, and this may be the case for your local grocery as well. This is a neat comparison tool – you can usually rank the product you’re looking to buy in order of unit cost, so you can decide in advance which brand you want to buy. It saves the hassle of trying to do the math in your head at the store. This is especially useful if there are sales on certain items and you’re wondering if the branded item will be cheaper than the generic one.
In addition, you’ll know whether the store actually carries the item you’re looking for, instead of having to wander around the store or trying to track down a sales assistant to ask.

3. Price matching
You can see the price that Store X is offering on their website or their online catalogue, but it’s too far away for you. If you’ve got internet on your mobile phone, walk into your nearest retailer, and show them the price that their competitor is offering. Most of them offer price matching (check the website beforehand to be sure) and they’ll give you a discount. Easy peasy.

Does anyone have any other unusual ways of using the internet to save money when shopping?

14 Ways to Trim Your Grocery Bill

Ash — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 03:56:42 +0000

Groceries are often an area where we spend more than we need to – sometimes, without even realizing it. Trimming down this bill can often result in major savings, without impacting your lifestyle too much. Some of the major ways to spend less on groceries are:

1. Buy Less Processed Foods
Processed foods are usually more expensive because the effort of processing them has been priced in. It’s cheaper to just process food at home yourself.

2. Buy Less Meat
Meat is incredibly expensive compared to other foods, so try to plan meals that require less meat, such as chicken salads instead of roast chicken.

3. Try farmer’s markets for fruits and veggies
Farmer’s markets are cheaper and have higher-quality produce. If you have one nearby, it’s worthwhile to frequent it.

4. Butchers are cheaper
I’ve found that meat at the butcher’s is usually cheaper than supermarket meats. This may not be true in your area, but it’s worth exploring.

5. Buy cheaper cuts of meat
This is another meat-related tip! Since meat is one of the most expensive components of a grocery bill, I’ve found it worth paying attention to. Don’t always buy steaks and expensive cuts of meat, try the cheaper mince for hamburgers or diced meats for curries and stews.

6. Coupons are good
Don’t be shy to use them if you have an opportunity to. Here in Australia we don’t usually have too many coupons, but they do help in cutting down the cost of food.

7. Make a list and stick to it
This has been helpful for me on so many levels. Now I no longer run out of staples or forget to buy something. I don’t pop in to buy milk and bread and walk out with a bag of kiwi fruit instead. A list prevents impulse buys and over-shopping.

8. Incorporate sale items
When making the list, try to incorporate items on sale that you really need. For instance, if you need coffee, check if it’s on sale. When choosing which fruits and veggies to buy, if you’re not going to the farmer’s market, buy some that are on sale.

9. Stock up on sale items
If it’s something you eat a lot of (dried apricots for me) and it’s deeply discounted, don’t be shy to buy a lot. As long as it has a fairly long shelf life, you’ll be saving a lot, especially if the item doesn’t go on sale often.

10. Buy less fresh produce
In the same vein, don’t buy too much perishable food. Earlier on, my biggest grocery sin was buying way too many fresh fruit and veggies. I still buy the occasional tub of yoghurt that I can’t finish, but I’ve gotten much better at buying perishable food more frequently and in smaller amounts.

11. Buy generic brands
Don’t be shy to try the supermarket brands. Often they’re just the name brand goods in a different packaging, and usually they’re just as good quality at a much cheaper price.

12. Make your own convenience meals
Instead of buying those expensive microwave meals, make your own. Cook big batches of food, and freeze a few portions for later. Instead of buying microwave rice, cook your own and freeze a few individual servings.

13. Try different shops
Don’t be scared to try different places to see if you can buy something for less. Ethnic shops are often cheaper for certain items – for instance, Indian groceries tend to offer cheaper rice and spices. In Australia we have the Reject Shop and Not Quite Right which sell unpopular or discontinued lines – I’ve picked up cheap Wasabi peas, and a friend has gotten great deals on herbal teas. By law, these foods must be well within the use-by date and of good quality. If there’s a similar store in your area, it’s often worth exploring.

14. Don’t waste food
This is the most important tip of all. Waste leads to bigger bills. Never eat food that’s gone bad, but if you see food that’s about to go bad, cook it up and freeze it. If you realize in time that there’s no way you’ll be able to use up the food, even if you cook and freeze it, give it away to a food bank.

These are the basic ways I try to save money on my grocery bill. In addition to this, I also use the internet to save money on my groceries (I’ll talk about this in my next post).

5 Ways to Practice Extreme Frugality

Ash — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 20:55:03 +0000

There are two types of frugal people.

There’s the person who’s living quite comfortably, and doesn’t really need to worry about money for basic needs like food or medicine. He/she chooses to live this lifestyle in order to enjoy the benefits of frugal living, and is more concerned with saving for retirement or enjoying life. The other person does need to worry about money: because for some reason or the other, they don’t have as much money as they think they need. It may be that they’ve lost a job recently, or had some kind of emergency. This is forced belt-tightening.

Many of us may have been in the second category at some point in our lives (or may still be there). It’s that stage where you ask, “what else can I do?”

Having lived through the second stage, I’ve found that my approach to money was very different when I had to pinch every penny. This situation is basically all about going minimal.

Even if you don’t have to go so extreme, here’s how I approached extreme frugality:

Buy nothing.
If you have no extra money, there’s no way you can spend on extras. Don’t buy things on credit either. Of course, the caveat is, you’ll have to buy it if it’s an essential (food, medicine, etc). But never buy something that’s not absolutely necessary, and try to pare down the essentials. I don’t consider alchohol an essential – the good stuff is insanely expensive, and the bad stuff makes you ill.
I’ve found that this approach has worked best for me when I physically restrict myself from entering a shop unless I have a shopping list, and of course, if I block ebay on my browser. It’s an unpopular piece of advice, but this is the one way I’ve saved the most money.
I am actually an impulse clothing buyer. I’m ashamed to say that I used to buy cheap clothing on sale… and then never wear them. I also used to buy random things from the Dollar Stores, in the belief that they’d come to use someday. Obviously, they hardly ever did.
I realized I was being wasteful and cluttering up my house, but somehow I just couldn’t stop. However, now that I just don’t allow myself to even enter a store (especially not clothing or Dollar stores) I haven’t managed to buy random, unusable items recently.
Do everything yourself.
Stores charge more for the services they add, so if you’re looking to save money, you should ideally try to provide those services yourself.
How so? Well, I’ve found that eating out is always a more expensive event than cooking at home. Processed vegetables are more expensive than those you have to wash and cut. Plumbers are expensive. And so forth.
So basically, if you have the time, try to do things from scratch by yourself. Since we need to eat everyday, cooking at home from scratch would definitely be on the list. There are other services that you can do yourself too. Learn sewing and fix up or even make your own clothes. Learn haircutting and cut your own hair. If you’re a girlie girl (I am, at times) learn how to give yourself a home facial and pedicure.
However, don’t mess with things that, if botched up, will be expensive to fix. For me, this includes things like plumbing: I could never fix my own toilet. At the same time, it may be worthwhile to build up such skills, especially home repair skills if you own your own house.
Get used items.
If you need something that’s a reusable item (furniture, clothes) try to get it used. Ask you friends and neighbours if they’ve got something to give away, join freecycle, try to get by with borrowing (especially in the case of books), or buy second-hand. It’s really worthwhile to learn to fix things so that you can use something old with confidence – this applies heavily in the case of clothes and furniture.
Don’t stock up with cheap or free items, though. Instead…
Do with less
Use less house and pay lower rent/mortgage/utilities. Use solar power, or at least try to use less electricity and water. Use a smaller car, or take public transport. Living in Melbourne, I don’t love peak hour trains, but I’m saving almost $900/month by not buying a car.
Similarly, buy less stuff for yourself and your house. This will help prevent waste, and will help you to…
Maintain things.
This is actually one of those things that’s expensive in the short-run, but cheaper in the long run, so we’ve got to do a bit of a balancing act. Which is one of the reasons I like minimal living – if it’s not something you really need, give it away because it’ll need maintaining.
For me, maintaining things means keeping them usuable. Do things like run a virus check on your PC, mend your clothes (before they rip even more), clean your house (before it becomes pest-infected and you need to spend even more on pest control).

These are the things that have worked for me, and the kind of things that make people believe that frugal people are boring and have no life. However, this is not how most frugal people spend most of their lives, it’s more like an emergency plan. For someone who’s really worried about money, “having a life” is generally not on their list of priorities.

If you’re not in an emergency belt-tightening situation, these actions can still help you, because they form the basis of most forms of frugal living. You can just look at the extreme money-saving options, and then try to modify them so that you can have some more fun, a bit more time, and less stress. For instance, you may like to incorporate and modify the rule about doing it all yourself, so that you almost always cook at home, but use some pre-prepared time saving items, and occasionally splurge out on fancy dishes.When you’re not in an emergency belt-tightening situation, you also have more leeway and can afford to buy good quality items that will last longer, and make you happier.

Hopefully, some of my future posts about frugal living will be less extreme, and I can talk about how I incorporate frugality into my life without feeling like I have no life, as well as how I spend money to be happier.

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How Does Money Affect Your Life?

Ash — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 01:59:12 +0000

Studies show that money makes you happier.

If you’re really poor, you don’t doubt that. Even if you’re quite well-off, you still don’t doubt that, but now you want a yatch and a BMW, not just a functioning car. So we all want more money.

But apart from its uses, where does money fit into your life? Well, you can either inherit it, marry it or win it. However, chances are you’re not a Rockefeller, you’d rather marry for love, and your chance of winning the lottery is less than your chance of getting struck by lightening. So you’ve got to earn it.

Most of our adult lives are spent trying to make money. However, every moment spent at a job is a moment lost.

In reality, most of us could live on very little. But there comes a point when we want time more than we want money – time to enjoy life, and to spend with our families. But – d’oh! – we don’t have that time because we’re at work.

As adults, most of us have to do a delicate balancing act between work and play. Unless your work is your play, which makes life easier, but even then you need to carve out time for yourself and your family.

This is why frugality is important to me – it’s not so much a way of saving money, but a way of life. Being frugal gives you the ability to quit the high-paying, high-stress job and do that lower-paying job you love. It gives you money to spend on the important things in life. Being frugal can buy you freedom.

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