I have similar habits. No papers. Hardly any time spent searching. Never buy foods I wouldn't normally eat (even if they're just about free). Particularly the processed stuff.
But I do use coupons. I have a great local resource who lists great local deals and includes urls to links for online coupons. I look at her deals and most weeks / months don't print any coupons. But sometimes the basics can be had for great deals: berries, pasta, yogurt, butter, cheese, milk, chicken breasts, etc. Also if I find good coupons deals from the store's ads (she also summarizes these) then watch out... I have at times stopped at stores 4 times a day (there's a chain that has a store a block away from home and near my office so I stop at both on the way out and on the way home) for a week to stock up on nearly free food. So in-store coupons would be my main coupon use.
I save a lot on groceries, but its from watching for deals and stocking up, not usually from coupons.
I agree that people can become more entrepreneurial. And, sometimes, finding something you are excited about can provide enough motivation to get you on the path to becoming an entrepreneur. Many people start their businesses after they stumble over a challenge or an opportunity - or find themselves turning their hobby into a business. In many cases, those people wouldn't have fit the original entrepreneur profile but they've found some sort of spark that allowed them to go above and beyond.
Life circumstances can create entrepreneurship too. At my blog, I often get messages from people who say they started a business because they were between jobs, wanted to semi retire, wanted to stay home with their kids or just couldn't find the kind of work they loved to do.
1. Ask friends and relatives for their inserts if they do buy the Sunday paper. Also, some public libraries have free will coupon exchanges where you take what you need and drop off what you don't. Plus, more and more coupons are online now. Many times there is an option to have them mailed to you so you don't even have to waste ink printing them yourself.
2. Don't be brand loyal. I don't care how good of an ice cream was to me if I discovered it with the aid of a coupon, I won't buy it again if it's regular price is too high for my budget. I see this a lot with Tide detergent. It is NOT 100 times better than all the other brands, yet there are Tide loyalists who spend a ridiculous amount on it because of good marketing (and the coupons Procter and Gamble usually offer are only for $.25 cents off a $10 bottle. No wonder people get discouraged about couponing)
3. If you've never tried a product before, there's no reason to buy multiples of a product. So don't clip the coupon. If, however, it's a product you use, why not? Buy enough to last until the next sales cycle. Which can be anywhere from 8-12 weeks (generally speaking).
4. Buy an organizer from the dollar aisle at Target. As for the time it takes, I clip and organize my coupons when I catch up on the one show a week that I watch on television. One hour a week to save my family at least 40% off my grocery bill. Very little effort goes into it. If I tried harder, I could save 60%. And I don't buy a lot of pre-processed foods.
5. I do not like generalizations and this is the one that drives me up the wall the most. But as the author mentioned, he's blinded himself to it. So how does he know for sure? He doesn't. While there are many processed food coupons out there, there are TONS of organic and healthy food coupons out there, too. Eggs, produce, milk you name it. Check out MamboSprouts.com for organic coupons (of course, there are organic junk food coupons out there, too) There are coupons for almost everything out there now.
Lots of people have taught me both well and poorly about personal finance, but the one that rocked my world and forever changed my views was Joe Dominguez in "Your Money or Your Life'. Nothing else has ever come close.
My parents; their examples of exactly what not to do with money showed me that I needed to do some reading and other research to find the proper way to deal with my personal finances. My parents have always fought with money problems from cashing out their retirement to wrestling with credit card debt. I knew there had to be a better way. I read books like the Total Money Makeover, The Cheapskate Next Door, and Your Money or Your Life I also read personal finance blogs like this one. I am now proud to say that I am financially literate! I am debt free and staying that way my car is payed off and I am working on the house situation.
From all of the financial mistakes I've made, like excessive credit card debt, I learned the hard way and taught myself not to do it again! Reading Wise Bread and Savvy Sugar also helped me along the way.
I always work with a professional on my taxes -- for me, the peace of mind is worth it. Now I just need to live in one state long enough to meet a tax preparer I can go to every year. =)
I have to thank, and shake my head at my mother for teaching me the most about personal finance. Her knee injury a few years back caused a complete change in my household. No longer working, she somehow managed to book vacations, order out every night, and become addicted to tv shopping networks. Her irresponsiblity became my responsibility. Her mistakes were my lessons. I learned grocery shopping on a budget, i got a low balance credit card to build my credit, i had both a checking and a savings account. So i have her and myself to thank for my personal finances. 4 years later and the only downside is now i'm the one who everyone asks to borrow money from!
Many times I've clipped coupons out of the free ads we get sometimes. I'm very picky and only clip for items I already use. I don't use much in the way of prepackaged meals, so that eliminates a lot of coupons right there, but I do use things like ketchup and various other condiments. Then I go to the store and discover that I can usually get that same item (different brand) cheaper without the coupon. I always think using coupons sounds like it should be a great thing, but like you, I found it not worth my time.
My parents have definitely taught me the most about personal finance. They have always been very purposeful in their teaching, too. They told us little lessons all the time and also live by example. They told us to always pay off your credit card in full, don't take more debt than you have to, know the difference between needs and wants, and most importantly: that money is a gift, not a right. You should use it wisely to live well and help others prosper as well.
My family sucks at personal finance, so I thank Dave Ramsey for showing me a better way to do things!
I have similar habits. No papers. Hardly any time spent searching. Never buy foods I wouldn't normally eat (even if they're just about free). Particularly the processed stuff.
But I do use coupons. I have a great local resource who lists great local deals and includes urls to links for online coupons. I look at her deals and most weeks / months don't print any coupons. But sometimes the basics can be had for great deals: berries, pasta, yogurt, butter, cheese, milk, chicken breasts, etc. Also if I find good coupons deals from the store's ads (she also summarizes these) then watch out... I have at times stopped at stores 4 times a day (there's a chain that has a store a block away from home and near my office so I stop at both on the way out and on the way home) for a week to stock up on nearly free food. So in-store coupons would be my main coupon use.
I save a lot on groceries, but its from watching for deals and stocking up, not usually from coupons.
I agree that people can become more entrepreneurial. And, sometimes, finding something you are excited about can provide enough motivation to get you on the path to becoming an entrepreneur. Many people start their businesses after they stumble over a challenge or an opportunity - or find themselves turning their hobby into a business. In many cases, those people wouldn't have fit the original entrepreneur profile but they've found some sort of spark that allowed them to go above and beyond.
Life circumstances can create entrepreneurship too. At my blog, I often get messages from people who say they started a business because they were between jobs, wanted to semi retire, wanted to stay home with their kids or just couldn't find the kind of work they loved to do.
1. Ask friends and relatives for their inserts if they do buy the Sunday paper. Also, some public libraries have free will coupon exchanges where you take what you need and drop off what you don't. Plus, more and more coupons are online now. Many times there is an option to have them mailed to you so you don't even have to waste ink printing them yourself.
2. Don't be brand loyal. I don't care how good of an ice cream was to me if I discovered it with the aid of a coupon, I won't buy it again if it's regular price is too high for my budget. I see this a lot with Tide detergent. It is NOT 100 times better than all the other brands, yet there are Tide loyalists who spend a ridiculous amount on it because of good marketing (and the coupons Procter and Gamble usually offer are only for $.25 cents off a $10 bottle. No wonder people get discouraged about couponing)
3. If you've never tried a product before, there's no reason to buy multiples of a product. So don't clip the coupon. If, however, it's a product you use, why not? Buy enough to last until the next sales cycle. Which can be anywhere from 8-12 weeks (generally speaking).
4. Buy an organizer from the dollar aisle at Target. As for the time it takes, I clip and organize my coupons when I catch up on the one show a week that I watch on television. One hour a week to save my family at least 40% off my grocery bill. Very little effort goes into it. If I tried harder, I could save 60%. And I don't buy a lot of pre-processed foods.
5. I do not like generalizations and this is the one that drives me up the wall the most. But as the author mentioned, he's blinded himself to it. So how does he know for sure? He doesn't. While there are many processed food coupons out there, there are TONS of organic and healthy food coupons out there, too. Eggs, produce, milk you name it. Check out MamboSprouts.com for organic coupons (of course, there are organic junk food coupons out there, too) There are coupons for almost everything out there now.
Lots of people have taught me both well and poorly about personal finance, but the one that rocked my world and forever changed my views was Joe Dominguez in "Your Money or Your Life'. Nothing else has ever come close.
My parents; their examples of exactly what not to do with money showed me that I needed to do some reading and other research to find the proper way to deal with my personal finances. My parents have always fought with money problems from cashing out their retirement to wrestling with credit card debt. I knew there had to be a better way. I read books like the Total Money Makeover, The Cheapskate Next Door, and Your Money or Your Life I also read personal finance blogs like this one. I am now proud to say that I am financially literate! I am debt free and staying that way my car is payed off and I am working on the house situation.
"Your Money or Your Life"
Suze Orman
I'm a big fan of yours on Facebook as well!
https://twitter.com/#!/missluckybreaks/status/182165812126289920
My aunt taught me the most, she is a very successful VP and is very smart about her money. Always has enough for herself and to help others
From all of the financial mistakes I've made, like excessive credit card debt, I learned the hard way and taught myself not to do it again! Reading Wise Bread and Savvy Sugar also helped me along the way.
My parents taught me a lot of frugal lessons they'd learned during the Depression.
Uh, YUM. Do you have a recipe you could link to?
I always work with a professional on my taxes -- for me, the peace of mind is worth it. Now I just need to live in one state long enough to meet a tax preparer I can go to every year. =)
my parents! and the world wide web.
I have to thank, and shake my head at my mother for teaching me the most about personal finance. Her knee injury a few years back caused a complete change in my household. No longer working, she somehow managed to book vacations, order out every night, and become addicted to tv shopping networks. Her irresponsiblity became my responsibility. Her mistakes were my lessons. I learned grocery shopping on a budget, i got a low balance credit card to build my credit, i had both a checking and a savings account. So i have her and myself to thank for my personal finances. 4 years later and the only downside is now i'm the one who everyone asks to borrow money from!
Oooh, I've never heard of that method, Trish -- how does it work?
Many times I've clipped coupons out of the free ads we get sometimes. I'm very picky and only clip for items I already use. I don't use much in the way of prepackaged meals, so that eliminates a lot of coupons right there, but I do use things like ketchup and various other condiments. Then I go to the store and discover that I can usually get that same item (different brand) cheaper without the coupon. I always think using coupons sounds like it should be a great thing, but like you, I found it not worth my time.
My parents have definitely taught me the most about personal finance. They have always been very purposeful in their teaching, too. They told us little lessons all the time and also live by example. They told us to always pay off your credit card in full, don't take more debt than you have to, know the difference between needs and wants, and most importantly: that money is a gift, not a right. You should use it wisely to live well and help others prosper as well.
https://twitter.com/#!/starkeee/status/182146901448196096 - Twitter post!
Liked you on Facebook!
I definitely learned the most from my parents about personal finance.
Also check with your power provider.Some are paying and removing old frigs and freezers..Plus may other saving enerygy rebates
Commented an Facebook and liked the post too! I really do!