Another Frugal Repeat for you… originally published February 14, 2008.
I am reading The Complete Tightwad Gazette
In the book, Dacyczyn writes about passive frugality. I have always thought about this but didn’t really have a name for it. Passive frugality is about what you are not doing in order to live frugally. Many people talk about the money they save on groceries, cars, insurance, etc… but they are only able to save money because they are spending it in the first place. For example a 2 for 1 dinner coupon is great if you can afford to pay for the one meal. But truly, you save more money by not eating out at all.
When my husband and I decided to get rid of our debt, we realized that sometimes it is the things that you don’t do, that can save you the most money. Here are some things we didn’t spend money on last year.
We didn’t involve our kids in expensive extra curricular activities. Sports, dance, art, gymnastics, music lessons and the like are very expensive. Fees start around 50 dollars a month and go up from there. I am not saying that any of these are bad choices, but if you are going into debt in order to
We didn’t go out to eat. We stopped all the little trips through the drive thru, just to save time. We planned ahead and either packed lunches or just toughed it out until we got home.
fund these things you might want to rethink your investment.
We didn’t make little trips to the store. We made a weekly shopping list and shopped once a week. Those little trips to Target, just to get diapers, added up to a couple of hundred dollars a month, because there was always something else that we had to have while we were there.
We didn’t go to the mall. My opinion is that going to the mall creates an appetite of consumerism in me and the kids. At the mall we are inundated with images of the latest styles that are presented to us in a way that make it hard to say no. We actually enjoy shopping at the thrift store and yard sales. We love the thrill of the hunt and calculating how much money we save.
We didn’t take a vacation. Even a cheap vacation is more expensive than none at all. During that time, we explored the area were we lived and enjoyed as many free activities as we could find.
We didn’t use our credit card. Sure we didn’t rack up miles or cash back, but we spent a lot less when we paid with cash. Dave Ramsey and others claim that people spend between 12-18% more when paying with a credit card. I don’t know if that is true, but I do know we were able to pay off over $10,000 in student loans in under four months after we stopped using our card.
We didn’t run our air conditioning unless the temperature rose above 90 degrees. Sure there were a few days when it was slightly uncomfortable but we cut our bill by about 30%.
We didn’t go to the movie theater or rent movies. We utilized the library for movies or we borrowed from friends.
These are just some of the things we didn’t do to save money. Sometimes we forget that the best way to save money is to not spend it in the first place!
{ 25 comments… read them below or add one }
I do not have any suggestions except to say great job and I love the Tighwad Gazzette. That book has really changed my life!
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I’m impressed with how much you paid off on your student loans. We are working on getting rid of them right now. I enjoyed your blog – its the first time I’ve found it.
S.B.
http://bethriftylikeus.blogspot.com/
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We do many of the same things… I didn’t know it had a name, though! I do actively frugal things like stockpiling and couponing and thrift shopping, too, of course, but some of our biggest savings comes in NOT taking a vacation, eating out, etc.
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Hi! Thanks for the reminder that even if it’s a cheaper option, it’s still not going to save you money… you’re still spending! We’ve opted to not go to the movies because it’s cost prohibitive for 5 and started renting more movies. I figured we were saving alot of money. Yes, were saving money but I needed to be reminded (thank you) that the libary also has videos, not to mention our Interlibrary Loan System. We are homeschoolers and frequest our library often. We roam the stacks but we’ve always stayed away from the audio video section… school, ya know.
Well, thanks for the reminders! Great posts!
Babsi
http://www.gigglepeas.blogspot.com
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Great ideas! We do all of them EXCEPT we do run the AC in the summer because I have a heart condition that’s aggravated by the humidity. Other than that, we’re right there with ya!
Have to say that I have a very good friend who has MAJOR credit card debt and is trying to get debt free. I’ve tried talking with her about her girls’ gymnastic lessons, MickeyD’s two or three times a week, Disney vacation, etc. I think you have to make up your mind that you’re NOT going to try to keep up with the Joneses because they’re up to their eyeballs in debt!
Just my $.02…
Dana
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Wow, it sounds like your family has a lot of fun!
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Most people think we’re insane, but we happened across a great way to save thousands and thousands of dollars. We live ten miles from my husband’s place of employment. He’s in radio news. Seventeen years ago for his 40th birthday I bought him a bicycle. Shortly after receiving it, he decided to try to bike to work one day. That began an incredible 17-year habit! He has literally biked tens of thousands of miles. Today at age 57, he’s in incredible shape and we’ve saved a fortune by not requiring a second car. We have raised three kids with one car. It can be done!
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I am so encouraged by the frugal tips you have offered, and by the responses posted. This is a God send, I don’t event know how I came accross this website!
My husband and I have been discussing finances a lot lately, and the only solution I could come up with was getting a part time job, instead of staying home with our 2 year old. I am now encouraged to focus on saving money which could easily add up to the income I’d receive on a part time job. Thanks again!
Khalilah
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Khalilah-
I want to encourage you to look through your budget (and if you don’t have a budget make one) and find ways to cut your expenses. I bet if you dedicated a half an hour a day to finding ways to cut costs around your house you would not have to get a part time job.
The Happy Housewife
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I have several friends who think I’m weird because I don’t even LIKE to eat out. i just can’t sit there comfortably, looking at my $9.95 meal of chicken alfredo (because I’d be eating at Olive Garden of course), thinking all the time that I could have made this meal at home for under $2!
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This is AWESOME!!!!!!!
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So good!
I had a flashback into my childhood days… my Mom used to say the same stuff!
It’s funny, but the things we don’t do in order to save are never really missed anyway.
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We just got rid of cable and our DVR. Quite a significant savings. I agree with you on the mall. Advertisers are very good at what they do. We rarely go.
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We are also passively frugal! We have never had cable since we got married, we don’t have cell phones (that’s a big deal for most of our 20 something friends), we don’t even have a movie rental thing like Netflix anymore, let alone a second vehicle.
I saw on Oprah (didn’t watch the whole show) that people should be living on half their incomes. We do that! Of course, we have been using the other 30% to double pay the mortgage and pay off other debt (20% goes to tithing/charity and retirement savings). Now that we are {almost} down one debt payment a month, I think its time to move some of that money into a short term savings account in case times aren’t so plentiful in our neck of the woods in the future.
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Again now I know I am doing a great job…only need to get hubby in line….he is getting there the older he gets and closer to retirement….
I do alot of the same things except for cable but I did swtich from directv to dish network and will be savinf 400 this next year…(i can not ask my hubby to give everything up)….we are now paying off a few little cards and then on to the truck then house….only problem is our plow for winter needs to be replaced so we have to look what it will be to buy another one….
But if we stick to our budget we can pay things get a plow,put money in savings and I can still stay home…..my kids go to public school so that gives me the day to do my job of the house etc….
I love this site and find myself addicted to it….I see myself not getting alot done because of time on computer ha ha ha
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What I love most about passive frugality is that it really involves no work at all. Often I just requires procrastination!
Annie Kate
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My TWG is pretty worn. It’s a great book. In another book, I believe Miserly Moms but I’m not sure, she described ‘contentment robbers’. It was something I have thought about often, and your mention of going to the mall again reminds me of it. What things cause you to feel less content with your situation? she had mentioned catalogs in the mail, and that she tried to avoid receiving them at all, but if she did she immediately tossed them because looking at them made her want the things in them. Prior to looking at the catalogs, she had been content, so looking at them robbed her of contentment. It was an excellent observation and is something I try to be aware of in my life.
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I loved that book too. I read it, all bagillion pages of it, and I still use the quiche and muffin “guides” regularly
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Great pointers! I’ve got that book. I need to go through it again. Thanks!
God bless,
Amanda
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Thanks for this great reminder…. right before i was going to wonder around the grocery store for dinner.
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Last week my husband and I paid off one of our two remaining credit cards. It felt AWESOME! I called to make the last payment so that I didn’t have to wait even two days for it to post. After I was through the customer service rep. told us congratulations! If being down to one credit card (and NO car payments) feels this good I can’t wait to pay off the last one
Thanks for the encouragemnt to keep at it. I am going to find more ways to cut so I can have that great feeling again
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We practice passive frugality in our house, but we still could do better! I am going to be on the look out for the Tightwad Gazette. Thanks for all the great posts!
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mom post the menu please =-)
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TheHappyHousewife Reply:
July 16th, 2009 at 9:46 pm
you are on your own this week son…
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I discovered that book during the year that my hubby was out of work (for 364 days!). It was such a help.
I totally agree that we’re always looking for what we can “do” to save money, but we should be looking at what not to do!
You gotta wanna. You know? You have to want it bad enough to make the change. Great post as usual!
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I love that your son posted and you posted back to him. hahahaha
I guess being anti-shopping is really being frugal! WOOHOO!
(I hate to shop…unless it is a yard sale!)
We also go to the drive in for a movie treat. It is $14 for the whole family, and you get to watch two movies!
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