Does thrift have anything to do with poverty?....I dont think so....
By kiran8
@kiran8 (15348)
Mangalore, India
December 19, 2009 9:01am CST
The other day I was watching one of my relatives, as she cut the pages of an old calender into neat strips and bundled them up, to use the blank side of the pages for making her daily shopping list. She is very rich and lives well, but, this,it seems is a habit that has been cultivated from her childhood. She is careful about everything, never wastes or throws away food, clothes, notebooks, magazines etc; she is always able to recycle them and find some use for them ...I liked her attitude and listening to her I felt that she was right in saying that we need to be careful with what we have.
I guess we all need to be thrifty and careful in our daily lives and it has nothing to do with poverty. It is a habit we need to cultivate and inculcate within our family.One sees ample examples of very wealthy families going bankrupt mainly because of their indulgences and over spending...
Friends what do you all think? Please share your own experiences and feelings about the subject here....
5 people like this
19 responses
@sid556 (30953)
• United States
30 Dec 09
I have to agree with you here. I am far from rich but I try to be very careful not to waste things and to take care of what I have. It is habit. I, too, was raised to not be wasteful. I would like to think that even if I fell into money (not too likely) but if I did, that I would not change my ways. I agree that it is not about whether you are rich or poor. It is a way of living. I know a woman who has plenty of money and she is extremely frugal.
1 person likes this
@kiran8 (15348)
• Mangalore, India
2 Jan 10
Hi sid, I agree when you say that it is a way of living. I too have seen that some of the richest people are the most careful when it comes to spending money.I guess thats how they are able to hold on and multiply their money.I too have known a very poor family that won a lottery and wasted the entire amount on trivialities within a matter of a month and were back to where they started , in their hut...It is the attitude and way one is raised that makes all the difference...
1 person likes this
@suspenseful (40192)
• Canada
19 Dec 09
I heard that many rich people are that way because they were like your relative who did not throw away things. I really should do that more myself. I do use the envelopes for shopping lists and I really should keep the pages that have only one side typed on as well. I do recycle and I do use the cottage cheese and soft milk containers for a while, but find that they wear out after a time and I use the long lasting light bulbs. I will give my old clothes to the Value Village and if there is a good cooking item, I will buy there rather then get it new.
It is not about saving the environment or helping nature, but it is about not spending money when you do not need to.
@suspenseful (40192)
• Canada
21 Dec 09
I intend to. I have always been careful with my money. It sure helps it to go a little farther. Now if only I wrote neater and smaller so I could read the grocery list for once. I am always forgetting something. 
Maybe the next thing I should do is to take the money out of my regular savings and put it into my high no interest interest savings account..
Maybe the next thing I should do is to take the money out of my regular savings and put it into my high no interest interest savings account..@kiran8 (15348)
• Mangalore, India
28 Dec 09
You really are careful and why not? thats how you will be able to make money and enjoy life.I wish I were a little more careful where money is concerned. I am a little better now, but when I think of the missed opportunities I do feel bad...All the best and happy mylotting
1 person likes this
@kiran8 (15348)
• Mangalore, India
20 Dec 09
Hi suspenseful, What you say is true, it is only when we are careful with our money can we save more ....Spending money unnecessarily where it can be cut down,recycling stuff and looking for bargains definitely helps..All the best and have a great day
1 person likes this
@cutepenguin (6430)
• Canada
28 Dec 09
I think it's important not to waste things, not just for frugality's sake but also because we shouldn't waste things. It's not good for the environment to have landfills everywhere.
At any rate, I have to be frugal and resourceful because I have very little available income.
@kalav56 (11464)
• India
19 Dec 09
My father inlaw used to do this kiran and I feel that this is a quality of people who have come up the hard way[ they would not have been born with a silver spoon in their mouths.] .I am a person of the second category of being born of an affluent home but I am not too extravagant though I admit that this sort of thrift would never have struck to me first. I do appreciate this habit; but I cannot have the patience to do this.Ohterwise I FEEL, ONE ought to know the value of money.
@kalav56 (11464)
• India
20 Dec 09
Very true Kiran.Once you start dipping into whatever you have and get used toa lavish style there would be no end to it.I too believe in simplicity and being careful.Only thing is this kind of bundling up and stitching unused calendar sheets activity calls for alot of patience and diligence.My fil used to do this.But I use opened envelopes to write my green grocery accounts.[the white ones which we receive from companies].I just stuff them in a bucket and keep pulling waste ones at my will and pleasure, and throw them away after writing accounts after shopping.
@kiran8 (15348)
• Mangalore, India
20 Dec 09
Hi kala, What you say is true, Thrift probably starts with a lack of means , but goes on to become a habit. We hear about Maharajas who have 30 dishes each day for their meals, and one wonders if they can do justice to it...Unless there is constant income the wealth is going to dry up at some stage...We have to be careful about our money , so that it grows...
@kiran8 (15348)
• Mangalore, India
27 Dec 09
Hi cher, It is indeed absolutely essential for all of us to be thrifty and careful with money as well as other things. It is nice to know that you make your own paper. I too am very careful with papaer now, knowing that it directly effects eco balance....All the best and have a great Sunday .. @Hatley (163772)
• Garden Grove, California
2 Jan 10
kiran8 hi well I grew up during the big depression years and myh moms motto that she drummed into our heads, use it up,wear it out.make it do or do without. In other words do not be wasteful of money, time, and resources, use them do not waste them, if you cannot pay cash for a big purchase, make what you have do until you can or push comes to shove just do without.use all of a product, squeeze that last bit of toothpaste or lotion out of the container before you toss it.wear out your clothes before taking money to buy new, use what you have, and if nothing else, just go without til you can afford whatever you ran out of. these are really good rules to live by in this bad economic times.
@kiran8 (15348)
• Mangalore, India
3 Jan 10
Hi Hatley,
Your mom's ideas are super. I think we all need to follow them.As you say good rules to live by in the bad economic times....I too hate waste of any kind, it simply isnt fair, whether you have plenty or not...all the best and have a great day
@happythoughts (4109)
• United States
20 Dec 09
I think that frugality is something that many people do because they need to to get by in life, but I also think that many people that may not need to do it know the value of things in life. We all have things we want that we just cant afford, no matter how much we make or how well off we are in life. If we spend less then we make it feels like we are living a richer life and if we spend more then we make we get stress. I think it is more of a habbit then poverty or not.
@kiran8 (15348)
• Mangalore, India
22 Dec 09
Hi, I agree that some people have certain notions wherein they would rather spend lots of money to go in for designer lables even if they cannot afford it, rather than go in for cheaper clothes and apparels. They feel that it gives them a certain status. There are opposite cases as well who would rather go for the cheapest possible stuff even if they can very well afford better quality stuff ...all the best
@agv0419 (3021)
• Philippines
20 Dec 09
I think when you grew up nothing and you become rich you know how to value money and things unlike when you grew up with silver spoon you don't know how value them. Right now that many people are suffering because of the crisis so it is not appropriate to throw the things that you don't want because you can recycle it and give it to other people. Rich people sometimes also thrifty like Chinese that's why they are very rich businessmen now.
@kiran8 (15348)
• Mangalore, India
20 Dec 09
Hi agv, thanks a lot for your response. Money begets money.If we are careful with our money and over spend we can become prosperous in time.I have seen some very affluent families where children are not given too many comforts, so that they learn to appreciate them rather than take them for granted - all the best and have a great day
@sublime03 (2338)
• Philippines
20 Dec 09
Being thrifty is definitely not because of poverty but because for other people it is something that they are used to and would like to go on with it. I have to admit I use up other materials because its nice to use it for other things. I want to save more money for this coming 2010 so that I can achieve what I am aiming for for next year. Hopefully I get to save up so much money so I do not need to worry about tomorrow or next week.
@kiran8 (15348)
• Mangalore, India
20 Dec 09
Hi sublime, thanks a lot for your response. I agree that every one needs to be careful regarding money no matter how rich or poor the person is.One can be comfortable only when there is enough to spend and take care of all our needs - all the best and have a great day
@dorannmwin (36392)
• United States
21 Dec 09
I think that it is common for us to take things from our upbringing into our adult lives and that is why some adults are more frugal than other adults. What I mean is my family didn't come from a really privledged background, but we also weren't poor. However, both of my parents came from families whose parents grew up during the depression era. Therefore, both of my parents had signs of a frugal lifestyle in the way that they raised us and now I have some of those same aspects in the way that our family goes. I buy clothing for my children from second-hand stores and I also am not stuck on name brand anything. Plus, I always try to look for the way that my dollar is going to go the furthest.
@kiran8 (15348)
• Mangalore, India
22 Dec 09
Hi dorannmwin, thank you so much for your response I think frugality is a quality cultivated from the home environment. I too come from a middle class background and seeing such habits in others make me happy. I try to be careful most of the time, but i do have my moments lol, when I let go...All the best and Merry Xmas
I think frugality is a quality cultivated from the home environment. I too come from a middle class background and seeing such habits in others make me happy. I try to be careful most of the time, but i do have my moments lol, when I let go...All the best and Merry Xmas 
@madteaparty (2748)
• Japan
20 Dec 09
I agree with you. Just because of having money doesn't mean we have to use it without using our heads. Also, reutilizing newspapers like that is a way for not to destroy our natural resources. I think is a very intelligent idea, and I try to do so as much as possible too.
@kiran8 (15348)
• Mangalore, India
22 Dec 09
Yes I guess we all have a responsibility towards the world we are born into and towards our immediate society.We should try to be careful about everything that we come across. Money is to be used wisely, otherwise you will be left with none...thanks a lot and all the best
@fsll518 (304)
• China
20 Dec 09
Some people maybe naturally relate thrifty to poverty, but actually their relationship is not like showed in the shallow level.
Thrifty is a virtue, and it deserve appreciation, instead of bad impression. Everything that was produced consumed energy and resources, if you can recycle them, then people don't have to make new things. That is the concerving the resources. With those conserved resources, we can do many good things, like donating to people who really need them.
When we want to get rich, we especially need to respect money and resource. Only if you respect them, you could be respected by them. When they all get around you, then you become rich and wealthy. If you waste whatever you have, then they would leave you and surely you become poor.
Being thrifty is a virtue, let's all have it in our lives :D
@hoodwinks (157)
• United States
20 Dec 09
it would have to depend, like you said you can lose a lot of money on over spending. some people spend money and don't worry about their bills. can be scary thing to do, not pay your bills end up being on the street. HOMELESS! that would suck. it is good to save and recycle can save a lot of money. I have done the math as to how much we spend on diapers annually and we spend about 1600.00 dollars with a two year old and a three year old. trying to get the potty training down so we can spend less, seen on the news they said it can cost up to 212,000.00 dollars for one child up to the age of eighteen. count your pennies. :P
@kiran8 (15348)
• Mangalore, India
20 Dec 09
Hi hoodwinks, those figures are astounding. The amount we can save just by cutting down on some minor expenditure goes a long way. I was reading the other day about a woman who had saved just 50 rupees a month depositing it in the postal savings for nearly 42 years , and she never withdrew it all the while. It is a whopping 36+ lakhs now and came in very handy in her old age...All the best and have a great sunday
@rameshkumaar57 (5908)
• India
19 Dec 09
Kiran, I have seen a lot of elderly people cutting the old calender and making it into a neat book, and keeping accounts on that. When I was young, even though we were not poor, and can be called as middle class, it has been drilled into my brain by my mother, that nothing should be wasted. We always recycle things. I still remember my mother exchanging the old clothes with a vendor to buy some stainless steal utensils.Now days, my children will not eat from a stainless steel plate, and they will take their food only in a bone china plate. We always used to grind coffee beans to make our coffee, but today it is only instant, which is nearly four times the price of a filter coffee. Things have changed. The new generation, does not care about thrift.
@kiran8 (15348)
• Mangalore, India
20 Dec 09
Hi ramesh, Thanks a lot for your response.My own home background has been something similar, where things were used to their fullest extent. My children do like the Good life , but they are learning to be careful now. I guess it comes when they have to take care of themselves...All the best and have a great Sunday
@ronnyb (6113)
• Jamaica
19 Dec 09
Well there is a link between being thrifty and poor but that is becuase being poor forces you to spend your money more careful.On the other hand however that doesnt mean that wealth people shouldnt eb thrifty too.In fact this may be the reason why they are wealthy and teh easiest way to get back poor because if you dont spend your money wisely you could easily waste away even a billion dollars
@kawalnarang (1095)
• Trinidad And Tobago
19 Dec 09
What's wrong with that,, I wish I 'd do it more regularly,, There was a time PAPER was scarce,, I learned to re use many items we normally would just discard,, Now I will re use more items,,Thanks ,it's a reminder
I am sure in time to come there will be a lot of things that are going to get scarce, so better to be careful now...All the best , have a great Sunday
@Sandra1952 (6047)
• Spain
19 Dec 09
Just because we can waste resources, it doesn't mean we should. I think your relative has the right idea, and it's a shame more people don't think that way. We've become a throwaway society, and everything is easy come, easy go. I'm not rich, but I don't waste anything. I was brought up that way, but I'm also very conscious that we need to cut down on waste.
@kiran8 (15348)
• Mangalore, India
20 Dec 09
Hi Sandra well said ! It is only when we are careful not only with our personal resources, but also with what nature has provided us, can we think of being responsible citizens. It is painful to see people wasting water , which is fast becoming a rare commodity in some countries...All the best and have a great sunday
