Our doing "More with Less" is just living within our means. That means not buying things we really don't need (and add clutter down the road), not eating out often (and accumulating take home boxes and plastic bags), using what we've got to the full extent and sometimes fun and creative ways AND finding that life is less hectic and more enjoyable (not to mention manageable). We rent, we don't own. We drive an older but totally reliable and functional car. We don't have multiple TVs, video game systems, or items that will be outdated in a couple of years. AND this actually keeps us from having to maintain and constantly be on the lookout for the next replacement... It's definitely a "More" type of life with "Less".
We do more with less by entering all the contests we can! :)
And we also pack lunches for the kids instead of buying the school lunch. We can pack cheaper (and more healthy) than what the school charges and the kids have fun picking out what they want to pack when we go to Sam's.
My wife and I do more with less by cooking meals at home instead of eating out. We spend less money yet get more and better food. We spend more time *together* at our house instead of in a car going some place or in a loud restaurant.
That was my main concern about the meat. I work in a regulated industry requiring strict adherance to rules, regulation, procedures and monitoring of things like temperature and stability. I'm thinking about this meat truck thing and aside from the fact that we didn't know where the meat came from even BEFORE it got on the truck, what about once it was on the truck? Has the truck been sitting in a lot with the refrigerator off for two days? Does the temp control on the freezer work? When's the last time that thing was calibrated? If someone gets sick weeks later when they thaw, cook and eat that meat, what are the odds it gets traced back? There were just too many red flags to justify saving a few bucks when I can buy it through a larger chain with more oversight (and legal deterrant).
True, I'm always amazed by the diversity of thought and how something that works for one person is completely the opposite for another. It is personal, with a twist. I constantly learn new ideas and try stuff out based on others in the community. But I do tend to gravitate to the same persistent concepts.
I never thought of it, but I'd be curious to see if you can routinely measure your value just by how high it is in that massive container. I guess you could reasonably assume it's proportional to your last tally assuming you get similar ratio of coinage!
trying to make a lunch everyday for work helps save me money; and it's an easy way to control your portions, eat healthy, and be creative with what you eat!
To help me do more with less, I sell things I don't need, reuse everything as much as I can, make things homemade when possible (like laundry detergent, bread, soups), grow my own food, do my own basic car repair. Basically try to have some core values, and focus less on material accumulation. The new windows phone 7 would help do more with less because I'd only need one device to take care of lots of things!
I do more with less... removing items that have remained in boxes or drawers more than 3 months without touching by donating... this give me much more room and much less clutter.
Everyone will need to find their own path. I just had a guest post by my yoga teacher talking about how she started her own yoga business.
I'm working toward exiting the rat race early so I can pursue my interests.
Before buying any big ticket item or even moderate ticket item, I ask myself if I really need this thing. How is my life improving because of this? Is it worth it?
Instead of paying for cable or a dish, get an antenna instead. Besides the purchase of the actual antenna (about $40), there is nothing else to pay for. You'll get all the major networks and you can use the monthly savings to treat yourself to something fun!
My wife and I recently went to our local gym to sign up. They had mentioned how we could bring 2 free guests with us each time we went. With that news, we are the proud owners of one gym account!
We save $30 a month and we get to spend some quality gym time together!
One way we are doing more with less is our TV. We stopped satellite and put an antenna on the roof, we get PBS and the major networks anything else we watch online (hulu or boxee) through a HTPC we had in place already.
Saved $50 a month and we don't watch all the noise any more, just shows we really want to see.
Personality is certainly a key factor — if there isn't something about your blog that sets it apart from every other blog in your niche, you're going to have a hard time keeping readers around. Great post, Linsey!
@Daria, I'd definitely agree that bold can be useful, but I avoid changing the color of text. There are a whole stack of reasons (colors show up differently on different monitors), but the most important is that I never want to trip up a reader. I write for several sites that have an older readership, which means the clearer the text, the better!
We do more with less by NOT buying into all the baby "must-haves". We bed-share (no need for cribs), cloth diaper along with doing "elimination communication" (less diapers to wash, and no disposable diapers to buy), do "baby-led weaning" (no jarred baby foods to buy... in fact, no special preparations of baby foods at all), baby-wear (no expensive jogging strollers for us), ...
For toys, we scour Craigslist and Freecycle for free or inexpensive items. If we want new, we try to use gift cards and of course check for deals :-)
I do more with less by using the 48 hour rule for (potential) impulse buys. I wait exactly 48 hours before I buy. If I forget about it or lose interest- I don't buy it! Obviously I was not committed! If I'm watching the clock for the 48 hours to be up, I know it is probably something I really want and will use.
Combined coupons with weekly sales. I have found some sights that list the weekly sales items that have printable coupons with them. It has saved me tons and barely changed what I buy.
mix and match to create new outfits! this keeps your wardrobe fresh and you don't have to keep buying new clothes! [lyndagp at gmail dot com]
Our doing "More with Less" is just living within our means. That means not buying things we really don't need (and add clutter down the road), not eating out often (and accumulating take home boxes and plastic bags), using what we've got to the full extent and sometimes fun and creative ways AND finding that life is less hectic and more enjoyable (not to mention manageable). We rent, we don't own. We drive an older but totally reliable and functional car. We don't have multiple TVs, video game systems, or items that will be outdated in a couple of years. AND this actually keeps us from having to maintain and constantly be on the lookout for the next replacement... It's definitely a "More" type of life with "Less".
We do more with less by entering all the contests we can! :)
And we also pack lunches for the kids instead of buying the school lunch. We can pack cheaper (and more healthy) than what the school charges and the kids have fun picking out what they want to pack when we go to Sam's.
My wife and I do more with less by cooking meals at home instead of eating out. We spend less money yet get more and better food. We spend more time *together* at our house instead of in a car going some place or in a loud restaurant.
Watch your favorite shows online instead of when its on..no DVR needed.
I do more with less on Twitter - life happening in 140 characters or less! ;)
That was my main concern about the meat. I work in a regulated industry requiring strict adherance to rules, regulation, procedures and monitoring of things like temperature and stability. I'm thinking about this meat truck thing and aside from the fact that we didn't know where the meat came from even BEFORE it got on the truck, what about once it was on the truck? Has the truck been sitting in a lot with the refrigerator off for two days? Does the temp control on the freezer work? When's the last time that thing was calibrated? If someone gets sick weeks later when they thaw, cook and eat that meat, what are the odds it gets traced back? There were just too many red flags to justify saving a few bucks when I can buy it through a larger chain with more oversight (and legal deterrant).
True, I'm always amazed by the diversity of thought and how something that works for one person is completely the opposite for another. It is personal, with a twist. I constantly learn new ideas and try stuff out based on others in the community. But I do tend to gravitate to the same persistent concepts.
I never thought of it, but I'd be curious to see if you can routinely measure your value just by how high it is in that massive container. I guess you could reasonably assume it's proportional to your last tally assuming you get similar ratio of coinage!
Wow, very similar appoach then - it works!
trying to make a lunch everyday for work helps save me money; and it's an easy way to control your portions, eat healthy, and be creative with what you eat!
I stay organized with Microsoft OneNote, which helps me do more with less time.
To help me do more with less, I sell things I don't need, reuse everything as much as I can, make things homemade when possible (like laundry detergent, bread, soups), grow my own food, do my own basic car repair. Basically try to have some core values, and focus less on material accumulation. The new windows phone 7 would help do more with less because I'd only need one device to take care of lots of things!
I do more with less... removing items that have remained in boxes or drawers more than 3 months without touching by donating... this give me much more room and much less clutter.
Everyone will need to find their own path. I just had a guest post by my yoga teacher talking about how she started her own yoga business.
I'm working toward exiting the rat race early so I can pursue my interests.
I quit working to stay at home with my baby. Less income, but more quality time together.
Before buying any big ticket item or even moderate ticket item, I ask myself if I really need this thing. How is my life improving because of this? Is it worth it?
Instead of paying for cable or a dish, get an antenna instead. Besides the purchase of the actual antenna (about $40), there is nothing else to pay for. You'll get all the major networks and you can use the monthly savings to treat yourself to something fun!
My wife and I recently went to our local gym to sign up. They had mentioned how we could bring 2 free guests with us each time we went. With that news, we are the proud owners of one gym account!
We save $30 a month and we get to spend some quality gym time together!
One way we are doing more with less is our TV. We stopped satellite and put an antenna on the roof, we get PBS and the major networks anything else we watch online (hulu or boxee) through a HTPC we had in place already.
Saved $50 a month and we don't watch all the noise any more, just shows we really want to see.
Personality is certainly a key factor — if there isn't something about your blog that sets it apart from every other blog in your niche, you're going to have a hard time keeping readers around. Great post, Linsey!
@Daria, I'd definitely agree that bold can be useful, but I avoid changing the color of text. There are a whole stack of reasons (colors show up differently on different monitors), but the most important is that I never want to trip up a reader. I write for several sites that have an older readership, which means the clearer the text, the better!
We do more with less by NOT buying into all the baby "must-haves". We bed-share (no need for cribs), cloth diaper along with doing "elimination communication" (less diapers to wash, and no disposable diapers to buy), do "baby-led weaning" (no jarred baby foods to buy... in fact, no special preparations of baby foods at all), baby-wear (no expensive jogging strollers for us), ...
For toys, we scour Craigslist and Freecycle for free or inexpensive items. If we want new, we try to use gift cards and of course check for deals :-)
We have a coupon for a nice restaurant this Friday. We're going to be eating more for less!
I do more with less by using the 48 hour rule for (potential) impulse buys. I wait exactly 48 hours before I buy. If I forget about it or lose interest- I don't buy it! Obviously I was not committed! If I'm watching the clock for the 48 hours to be up, I know it is probably something I really want and will use.
Combined coupons with weekly sales. I have found some sights that list the weekly sales items that have printable coupons with them. It has saved me tons and barely changed what I buy.