Frugal.....Starting Now!

@maezee (42003)
United States
June 22, 2017 5:55pm CST
I think some of you will be great at offering advice on this. Ive been a spendaholic as of late. Target online orders for household items that I have way more than enough of, thrift shopping excursions for unneeded clothes, casino trips that I can hardly afford, Amazon orders for essential oils or books (like I need moee of either!) Im planning a trip to Denver and Utah at the endof next month and so far my total without fun stuff like food and drink is near $700 with a hotel, rental car and flight. I am terrible at saving money and of course prefer to spend it. Starting now until my trip (July 25th) I am going to try like heck to be frugal. NO shopping unless its for groceries or necessities and no casino trips. Those are the big ones! For other spendaholics out there how do you doit? Any advice for the likes of me?
10 people like this
8 responses
@Essjayd (1568)
23 Jun 17
Plan how much you have to spend each week and withdraw that amount from bank! Then give your bank card to a friend you trust til the next week! Only take the amount you need to the store for groceries! It saves getting tempted by stuff you don't need!
2 people like this
@AkoPinay (11546)
• Philippines
23 Jun 17
@Essjayd ok but I'd rather spend all my money
2 people like this
@AkoPinay (11546)
• Philippines
23 Jun 17
To a friend? No way!
2 people like this
@Essjayd (1568)
23 Jun 17
@AkoPinay You're only giving them the card!! Just cover the security code on the back and don't give them your pin
2 people like this
@NJChicaa (115611)
• United States
22 Jun 17
1) Plan your meals for the week. Don't just "wing it". Do this looking at the weekly sales circular for your grocery store. If chicken is on sale, plan to include a lot of that. If it is pork or beef, same goes for that. Plan to make most of your meals. No convenience pre-made stuff, no fast food garbage, etc. 2) Make a shopping list of things that you need as you run out of them and things that you need/want for the coming week. . . and stick to it when you go to the grocery store. 3) Eat before you go shopping. That will eliminate any impulse food purchases. 4) Don't be afraid to buy store brand items. Most of them are just as good as the name brands. 5) If you already have 1 backup of the item (cleaning product, personal care item, etc), you don't need to buy another one. That is OCD. You can always run to the store and get it the same day you need it. Don't buy it ahead of time. 6) Use your local library system for books. If you have a Kindle, look into their digital offerings. I can borrow books from my county library system for my Kindle very easily. New releases, older ones, there is a huge variety available. If you are a member of Amazon Prime, you also get one Kindle book free per month as well I believe. (I've never looked into this but I should because I am a Prime member) 7) You can only wear so many clothes each week. Stop buying new ones if you don't genuinely need them. Wear what you have until you can't any longer. ****I'm no angel with money. But I follow all of the pieces of advice above. They are some of my contributions to trying to save money for our household.
2 people like this
@KristenH (33355)
• Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio
22 Jun 17
1 person likes this
@maezee (42003)
• United States
23 Jun 17
I love it! Thank you! You totally nailed me on the houshold thing. I have like 5 laundry detergents, 5 big shampoos and tons of shower gel and other things at any given time . Like do I really need this much? Agh. Thanks for your tips, im going to try to adhere to them!!
3 people like this
@NJChicaa (115611)
• United States
23 Jun 17
@maezee I am a huge fan of personal care products like body wash, bath bombs, etc. I LOVE LUSH products. I stick to the store brands, though, because they are much easier on my wallet. I totally understand the desire to want to stock up on fun stuff! Been there, done that.
2 people like this
@PatZAnthony (14752)
• Charlotte, North Carolina
23 Jun 17
It seems just not spending will be a big help. Can you find a cheaper place to stay? Would it be use Uber or Lyft than renting a car?
1 person likes this
@maezee (42003)
• United States
23 Jun 17
Nah for the trip I am going on a 5 hour roadtrip. Everything is so expensive out there. Even a motel is over $100!
1 person likes this
@KristenH (33355)
• Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio
22 Jun 17
I think that's a good plan to buy what you need and save money for later. I'm not a big spender. I do one big shopping trip for food and one stop at Target for miscellaneous items once a month, which is usually cat food and litter and other stuff. You can do it.
1 person likes this
@maezee (42003)
• United States
23 Jun 17
Nice. I shoupd try to do that. I usually do a Target online order once every couple of weeks Even if I know I need mainly one thing, Ill buy other household items just to reach the $25 for free shipping. But now I have tons of shampoo, detergent, dish soap etc because they are order fillers. I appreciate your advice!
2 people like this
@KristenH (33355)
• Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio
24 Jun 17
@maezee You're welcome. And @NJChicaa's was really good too.
@Courtlynn (67002)
• United States
23 Jun 17
Can only say to plan based off of sales, and make lists and stick to them. Like everyone else said.
1 person likes this
@maezee (42003)
• United States
23 Jun 17
True. Thank you!
2 people like this
@JohnRoberts (109865)
• Los Angeles, California
22 Jun 17
You have to learn financial discipline. It is something requiring practice and effort. You have to learn to say no and ask yourself do I really need that?
1 person likes this
@maezee (42003)
• United States
23 Jun 17
Yes! I need to learn adulting essentially. Haha. When did you grasp this concept? At what age?im probably far behind the norm. Lol
1 person likes this
@silvermist (19706)
• India
25 Jun 17
Whenever you are on the verge of buying or ordering something,just remember about this discussion.You will know what to do.
@just4him (303392)
• Green Bay, Wisconsin
24 Jun 17
It's easy to spend money and hard to save it. I wish you luck in saving before your trip. I have no pointers, though I'm not a spendthrift. I just haven't had the money to spend so I'm frugal by necessity.