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No Fear - Baby stepping into a frugal lifestyle

© C. M Snyder

Benjamin Franklin once said, “A penny saved, is a penny earned.”, and while I respect his point of view, I often find myself cringing at some of the commonly accepted practices of “tightwads” and “frugal fanatics”. Let’s face it, if I started buying one gallon of whole milk and diluting it with one half gallon of powdered milk I would have a mutiny on my hands. I wouldn’t even drink it. for that matter and I certainly wouldn’t spoil my cup of coffee made from generic brand grounds. Life is too short to save every snippet of aluminum foil and string that comes my way. The possibility exists that perhaps those thrifty practices save families money, but I don’t see how that would inherently increase my happiness or the quality of my life.

One is not required to embrace EVERY idea ever presented as frugal, to be a “tightwad”. Because your family is a unique entity, there probably are some areas of your life that you can invent your own ways to save money. I would not even go so far as to suggest that you embrace every idea that I present. I would even be pleased if you take one-sixteenth of one of my ideas, added a twist and a ribbon and invented your own. Every “tightwad” is an island, a lifestyle in a world that moves at the speed of light, presenting a million “wants” on any given day via the television, newspaper, and radio.

The biggest obstacle people who need to be frugal face is “Poverty Mentality”. This is the state of mind that says you need to keep everything that comes your way because you might not get another. What does this equate to in dollars and sense? It means having a bigger house for the room you need to keep your “stuff”, more laundry to do (which costs money) because your children will invariably drag out every piece of clothing they own and throw them on the floor making them indistinguishable from the dirty laundry. This catch twenty-two dilemma causes more headaches then help!

A good first step in the right direction is to assess what you currently own for three values.

Usefulness - Can you use this item NOW? Is it something your child may grown into in the rights season three years from now?

Quality - Is the item in good condition? Is it re-usable or recyclable? (No fair saving your prom dress for your three year old daughter.)

Purpose - Is this an item you have that does not “match” anything in your house, but you are keeping for “someday” when you can afford to redecorate your home?

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