When you need to be frugal.

Wondering if you need to be frugal?

Do you have credit cards that don't get paid off every month?
Do you have unpaid student loans?
Do you have to make car payments every month?
If you missed more than one paycheck would you be in serious trouble?
Do you have three months worth of expenses saved up in case of an emergency?
Do you have a mortgage?


These days people think it's no big deal to have credit card balances and car payments. Student loans and mortgages are looked as as safe nuisances that everyone must endure. Being free of all debt is a dream that seems unreachable and practicing frugality seems like an exercise in pure boredom and drudgery.
Being free of debt is only unreachable if you think it is.

As I write this, I am not yet debt free. But, my husband and I are working on it and we have a plan. We have two decent paid off cars, credit cards that get paid off every month, and no loans except for a mortgage which we are working on whittling down. And we are a one income family.

We started our life together about $30 G in debt. I had student loans and credit card debt. He had a lot of credit card debt. Our first priority was paying off those loans before we bought a house, a nice car or started a family. We both worked full time and sent any extra money we had to our debts. Eventually we were debt free and we started to save for a home. We bought a tiny starter home, saved some money, and I was able to quit my job to have children because we could afford our lifestyle on my husband's income.
How did we do this?
By putting paying our debts and bills as a priority. We wanted those gone before we could start our adult lives.
We got by with doing little things like hanging laundry to dry, cooking at home, doing without cable tv, using the library, using coupons, planting a vegetable garden, shopping sales, buying second hand, shopping the clearance rack, not buying new furniture, going to garage sales, picking up curb side treasures, not buying new cars.
We still went on vacations. We still had some new clothes. We still ate out (sharing entrees and salads and drinking water). We still gave nice presents. We still went to movies (the matinee and shared a small popcorn). We never felt poor. We never live beyond our means.

So, how do you know if you need to be frugal? If you think you need more money you need to be frugal. If you have any kind of debt you need to be frugal. If you worry about how to pay your bills you need to be frugal.

So, how do you go about it. There are a thousand different websites and books that I could point you to. I could tell you a hundred tips on how to save money. If you make it a priority then you will gain the knowledge that you want. If you make having extra money and being debt free a priority you can make it happen.

Everyone loves the The Complete Tightwad Gazette for a reason. You could start there. Or you might prefer Dave Ramsey.
Don't go out and buy these. Use or get a library card.

There are all types of frugal lifestyles and you don't have to give up everything you love to make it work for you. But, you should try to make it work.