Most Important Reasons Why You Should Be Frugal Too

Why not be frugal?

First and foremost, if you can get by on less, then anything more is just wasteful. I think about this often when we get back from a camping trip. After going a week without showering, sleeping in a tent or a truck bed, and being disconnected from cell service we come back to a running water, high speed internet, and an oversized bed in an oversized room. We don’t NEED all this stuff in reality, but we’ve allowed lifestyle creep to take over just enough to justify it. “Keeping up with the Joneses” is the ultimate sin in frugality. What does it hurt to save a little extra money here and there? Simply test yourself to see what you can live without, why not be frugal?

Bring value not struggle

When being frugal, it’s important to determine what means the most to you in life, what brings you value, and splurge (a little) on that area. Some people enjoy Starbucks for more than just the coffee; it’s the experience, the socialization, the interaction, the feelings and emotions associated with the barista calling out your customized venti mocha latte by surname. Personally, I don’t mind day old gas station coffee so I can save ~400% in that category. The point is not to make yourself vomit at the thought of burnt bean water, but to understand that not everybody gets the same value from everything that we spend our hard earned money on. If it brings no true value to your life, skip it. Spend it on the right few things and you’ll easily save while still enjoying the things you love.

Since I’ve already picked on the starbies fans, I’ll come right out and admit that my overspend category without a doubt is Cars/Automotive. They enable our travel, camping, visits with family, and meeting new like minded people, as well as utility for daily and DIY tasks. Vehicles are also a platform for me to practice DIY projects, improve my mechanical aptitude, and have a creative outlet with a physical and tangible result. While I spend far more than others in the personal finance arena on cars, it’s also a great place for me to practice frugality in other ways. I go into further detail here in a pros and cons of the DIY lifestyle. Then even a step further in How to Get Started on Becoming a DIY’er.

Stop trading your time for money

I don’t mean right now. By no means am I instructing you to draft your resignation today (although this could be cathartic for some). But you are considering “retirement” at some point in life…aren’t you? The least you can do for yourself is make a plan and put it into action with realistic goals and milestones. Otherwise you’ll work just enough to cover your monthly payments until the day you die. “Retirement” is in quotes because we all know that anyone dedicated to save up enough money to quit their day job in their 20’s/30’s/40’s/50’s is probably going to take on some other money making ventures post “retirement”. I simply mean the target date to stop trading your time for a base salary or hourly rate that keeps you stuck in the rat race.

You won’t make it otherwise

So you want to retire early? Spend your 30s on out sailing on your yacht around the Caribbean? It’s possible, but highly unlikely. Given American spending and saving habits, chances are you’re already at a disadvantage to ever get there. It’s not about how much money you make, it’s about how much money you save. If you make a billion dollars in your lifetime and spend it all (on non-appreciating assets) you’re still broke. In order to enjoy the things that bring value to you in your life, you literally have to be frugal in the other areas in most cases to afford it. Check out another one of my posts on why monthly expenses are the most important metric to manage.

Now if you’re actually reading this from your yacht in the Caribbean and think I’m full of it, congrats! You set yourself up for success (or someone else did, or you got extremely lucky) but that doesn’t mean all personal finance goes out the window. Everyone needs to learn financial literacy and there’s always room for improvement. Start setting up generational wealth management and philanthropic investments. Lottery winners often lose it all, poor people stay poor, the rich keep getting richer, and all those sayings about why it’s so difficult to get rich and even more difficult to stay rich.

Summary questions to ask yourself about of the most important reasons why you should be frugal too

• Do you really need that purchase anyway?
  • Probably not
• What brings value to your life?
  • Focus there, frugalize the rest
• By trading time for money are you limited in time, or limited in money, or both?
  • Sufficient time and money are needed to provide the most value to your life
• Can you afford to not be frugal in all aspects of your life?
  • There’s always room for further optimization

See another one of my posts on Frugal Fill’s top personal finance resources for more background an inspiration from others.