I liked all of those, and the best thing is they are all fairly easy to work into your own life. I'm pleased that I'm doing a lot of them already, but will have to work harder on others.
The one I won't give up is the credit card. Due to cash back it actually makes me money to use it. Just remember to pay it off every month!
A lot of these are not only dishonest, but also mean-spirited. #25 is the worst - making someone mop up your spilled drink so you can get a free beer? Ick.
I *hate* tips, that in the name of frugality encourage people to rip others off. Thanks for ripping me off in the paint store! All those costs get passed on to future customers.
I saw a tip once on how to save on landscaping: Take plants out of other people's lawns. Great Tip! They'll feel violated, and you'll have a plant.
I seriously can't wait to spend a few hours putting the contents of my ripped off ketchup packets into a bottle. Whee!
When my husband and I met, I was a spending fool in thousands of dollars of debt, and he was frugal with thousands of dollars in savings. Eventually he paid off my debt and taught me his frugal ways, and I am so much happier now. Before, I would buy everything that caught my eye, I'd end up feeling so guilty and worried about my debt that it wasn't worth it. Now I feel good about saving and proud of myself for resisting temptation. I think of being frugal as a fun game. I also think that life is often more interesting when you have to come up with creative ways to entertain yourself or travel on a budget. For example, I have had a lot of fun adventures riding subways while on vacation, getting lost and ending up somewhere really special by accident, or seeing good performers in the subway stations. You also feel a sense of pride when you think your way out of a situation instead of just throwing money at it.
Love it! In my network of friends are many African Immigrants. I swear, they work harder than anyone I know..multiple jobs, in a shop and taxi driving at night. Their kids study hard in school, and they take good care of what they own.
They are excellent role models and the kinds of people I want my
family to be around--they remind us not to take the opportunity we were born into for granted.
The National Investment Club Conference 2009 takes place at the QE2 Conference Centre in Westminster, London, England on 31st October 2009 and runs in association with The World MoneyShow
The conference is FREE to attend and brings together investors and investment clubs from all over the UK, providing a unique opportunity to meet other investors and share ideas, experiences and strategies.
The presentations are led by volunteers from the leading investment clubs in the UK and cover everything from the legalities of setting up a club and managing club accounts; to portfolio management, stock selection techniques and general hints and tips based on their many years' of experience.
Not as big a deal as some of the others, but I've done it. Not necessarily as a way to save money, but because I wanted lemonade and it either wasn't offered, or had way too much sugar in it. Not sure why it should bother the waiter, unless I don't tip him/her - which is a completely different issue.
Lots of those envelopes are barcoded to go back to the company that sent them. You need to cover it up if you don't want your letter making a bunch of unwanted stops.
I love your first bit of advice "save like you have no job and 6 mouths to feed"! My urge to save is what causes me to be more frugal in every aspect of my budget. With that said, I also look for larger ways to cut my costs (no cable, no salon mani/pedis, no clothes when I don't need them) as opposed to cutting out all of the smaller indulgences I enjoy on occasion.
I was drawn to this article for two reasons. First Fight Club is one of my all-time favorite movies and second I have a degree in finance.
I thought the article was good but simplistic. If you are going to write an article with this title it should delve deeper into the movie or the book and give more examples and advise. For this I was left wanting more at the conclusion of the article. A follow up article would be appreciated.
#19 - For anything under 1 minute you're probably wasting more money than saving. Unnecessary wear and tear on the starter alone would likely cost more than the 1-2¢ in gas savings. For longer periods over 1 minute you'll start to save money.
REALLY!?!?!? You can actually convince yourself that what you describe is not stealing? Just because a restaurant charges more for soda than it costs them doesn't justify stealing it! That's like trying to sneak into an all-you-can-eat buffet the next day. "Well, the food is overpriced, and the minimum wage employees are too scared to say anything about it, so it MUST be ethical!"
#20. Be very careful, with the increasing rise of identity theft going through someones trash is illegal in some areas. Where I live the cops cannot go through the garbage unless they have permission or a warrant.
#50. At my house on Wednesday and Saturday nights. I do not cook for anyone. Everyone picks out what left over they want to eat. I always have left overs,so that they do not get thrown out or go bad, 2 days out of the week is leftover night. I know I could cook less at meal time buteverytime I do some one wants more. So when planning meals I only plan 5 a week and we do not have to starve ourselves for a day which is not healthy.
This won't work in every state, only those that have cash refunds for bottles and cans. I took a small garbage bag full of pop/soda cans and bottles up to the outoor recycling machine. I always recycle my plastic bag, but also found 5 very good quality heavy duty garbage bags that other people had left behind in carts after putting their cans/bottles into the machines for cash back. Most people are going into the store to shop or cash in their receipt for the bottles/cans and don't want to take a big plaastic bag with them. These normally get tossed out as litter by the stores than manage the machines.
Ahh... Paul. You made my day. Hubby and I just made another batch of chili last night, and plan on eating on it for the next 3 days or so. This is one thing that we have found we enjoy doing together. Sometimes, he cooks -- sometimes, I cook. Our chili's are a bit different, but what we do with it is ALWAYS the same. We have chili on day 2 (never eat it on day one, it needs time to marinate in the fridge), eat it over some good pink-skinned hot dogs with onions and mustard on day 3, eat it in a cornbread casserole on day 4, and sometimes, after a late night of working hard on the farm, we'll just eat what's left while watching British comedies when the kids are in bed. It's the ultimate date night :) I know that I married my soulmate -- thanks for the reminder!!
I'm someone who needs my comfort. I just buy my toiletries in bulk and I buy eco-friendly as it is significantly cheaper. A lot of that stuff is either crazy or not worth the effort. I did get a good laugh though.
I just have to chime in on this. Most of this list is dishonest or unethical or just plain theft. I hope every idiot who tries this stuff gets arrested.
According to legend, Merv Griffin used to do that. By all accounts, he was very frugal. When staying in a hotel (even his own), he would donate his clothes to a charity rather than have room service pick them up for laundry service. He'd go back to the charity the next day, his shirts would be clean and pressed. He wouldn't have a steep room service bill (or have to tip). Don't know if it's true, but I've heard it.
I liked all of those, and the best thing is they are all fairly easy to work into your own life. I'm pleased that I'm doing a lot of them already, but will have to work harder on others.
The one I won't give up is the credit card. Due to cash back it actually makes me money to use it. Just remember to pay it off every month!
Lee
A lot of these are not only dishonest, but also mean-spirited. #25 is the worst - making someone mop up your spilled drink so you can get a free beer? Ick.
I *hate* tips, that in the name of frugality encourage people to rip others off. Thanks for ripping me off in the paint store! All those costs get passed on to future customers.
I saw a tip once on how to save on landscaping: Take plants out of other people's lawns. Great Tip! They'll feel violated, and you'll have a plant.
I seriously can't wait to spend a few hours putting the contents of my ripped off ketchup packets into a bottle. Whee!
#50 is unhealthy and most likely will not save you money or help you lose weight -- if you fast for one day, you're likely to binge the next day.
#32 sounds like a good way to get lice. Gross!
When my husband and I met, I was a spending fool in thousands of dollars of debt, and he was frugal with thousands of dollars in savings. Eventually he paid off my debt and taught me his frugal ways, and I am so much happier now. Before, I would buy everything that caught my eye, I'd end up feeling so guilty and worried about my debt that it wasn't worth it. Now I feel good about saving and proud of myself for resisting temptation. I think of being frugal as a fun game. I also think that life is often more interesting when you have to come up with creative ways to entertain yourself or travel on a budget. For example, I have had a lot of fun adventures riding subways while on vacation, getting lost and ending up somewhere really special by accident, or seeing good performers in the subway stations. You also feel a sense of pride when you think your way out of a situation instead of just throwing money at it.
Love it! In my network of friends are many African Immigrants. I swear, they work harder than anyone I know..multiple jobs, in a shop and taxi driving at night. Their kids study hard in school, and they take good care of what they own.
They are excellent role models and the kinds of people I want my
family to be around--they remind us not to take the opportunity we were born into for granted.
@Margaret
So a man should happily turn over his money for a relationship? There's a name for women that feel this way, they're even legal in Nevada.
Perhaps #46 should be changed to "Guys, don’t get married to the wrong woman"
I challenge someone to try all 51 of these for a year and then report back the results. Here are my questions for whoever does it:
What kind of irritations are you noticing from wiping with newspaper?
How many times have you been asked to leave McDonald's?
How calls have you gotten after a first date? (or even phone calls from former friends)
How often do you have to rescue your cat from drowning in the toilet?
Is it hard to sleep with newspaper crinkling all night long?
The National Investment Club Conference 2009 takes place at the QE2 Conference Centre in Westminster, London, England on 31st October 2009 and runs in association with The World MoneyShow
The conference is FREE to attend and brings together investors and investment clubs from all over the UK, providing a unique opportunity to meet other investors and share ideas, experiences and strategies.
The presentations are led by volunteers from the leading investment clubs in the UK and cover everything from the legalities of setting up a club and managing club accounts; to portfolio management, stock selection techniques and general hints and tips based on their many years' of experience.
For more information:
National Investment Club Conference
Click here to book your FREE ticket online >>
Not as big a deal as some of the others, but I've done it. Not necessarily as a way to save money, but because I wanted lemonade and it either wasn't offered, or had way too much sugar in it. Not sure why it should bother the waiter, unless I don't tip him/her - which is a completely different issue.
Lots of those envelopes are barcoded to go back to the company that sent them. You need to cover it up if you don't want your letter making a bunch of unwanted stops.
# 14 about scoring free umbrellas is a theft.
I love your first bit of advice "save like you have no job and 6 mouths to feed"! My urge to save is what causes me to be more frugal in every aspect of my budget. With that said, I also look for larger ways to cut my costs (no cable, no salon mani/pedis, no clothes when I don't need them) as opposed to cutting out all of the smaller indulgences I enjoy on occasion.
I was drawn to this article for two reasons. First Fight Club is one of my all-time favorite movies and second I have a degree in finance.
I thought the article was good but simplistic. If you are going to write an article with this title it should delve deeper into the movie or the book and give more examples and advise. For this I was left wanting more at the conclusion of the article. A follow up article would be appreciated.
#19 - For anything under 1 minute you're probably wasting more money than saving. Unnecessary wear and tear on the starter alone would likely cost more than the 1-2¢ in gas savings. For longer periods over 1 minute you'll start to save money.
What a fine and hilarious list! I'm thinking this post will get 100 comments easy!
At some point, one has to wonder what constitutes scamming, and when does trying to save money go too far.
Great post. Love it.
@Amber
REALLY!?!?!? You can actually convince yourself that what you describe is not stealing? Just because a restaurant charges more for soda than it costs them doesn't justify stealing it! That's like trying to sneak into an all-you-can-eat buffet the next day. "Well, the food is overpriced, and the minimum wage employees are too scared to say anything about it, so it MUST be ethical!"
As a woman I'm not offended by #46. If a man values his cash over meaningful relationships, he should stay single! Forever!
#20. Be very careful, with the increasing rise of identity theft going through someones trash is illegal in some areas. Where I live the cops cannot go through the garbage unless they have permission or a warrant.
#50. At my house on Wednesday and Saturday nights. I do not cook for anyone. Everyone picks out what left over they want to eat. I always have left overs,so that they do not get thrown out or go bad, 2 days out of the week is leftover night. I know I could cook less at meal time buteverytime I do some one wants more. So when planning meals I only plan 5 a week and we do not have to starve ourselves for a day which is not healthy.
This won't work in every state, only those that have cash refunds for bottles and cans. I took a small garbage bag full of pop/soda cans and bottles up to the outoor recycling machine. I always recycle my plastic bag, but also found 5 very good quality heavy duty garbage bags that other people had left behind in carts after putting their cans/bottles into the machines for cash back. Most people are going into the store to shop or cash in their receipt for the bottles/cans and don't want to take a big plaastic bag with them. These normally get tossed out as litter by the stores than manage the machines.
Ahh... Paul. You made my day. Hubby and I just made another batch of chili last night, and plan on eating on it for the next 3 days or so. This is one thing that we have found we enjoy doing together. Sometimes, he cooks -- sometimes, I cook. Our chili's are a bit different, but what we do with it is ALWAYS the same. We have chili on day 2 (never eat it on day one, it needs time to marinate in the fridge), eat it over some good pink-skinned hot dogs with onions and mustard on day 3, eat it in a cornbread casserole on day 4, and sometimes, after a late night of working hard on the farm, we'll just eat what's left while watching British comedies when the kids are in bed. It's the ultimate date night :) I know that I married my soulmate -- thanks for the reminder!!
Linsey Knerl
I'm someone who needs my comfort. I just buy my toiletries in bulk and I buy eco-friendly as it is significantly cheaper. A lot of that stuff is either crazy or not worth the effort. I did get a good laugh though.
There are a lot of corporate shills in this thread
I just have to chime in on this. Most of this list is dishonest or unethical or just plain theft. I hope every idiot who tries this stuff gets arrested.
According to legend, Merv Griffin used to do that. By all accounts, he was very frugal. When staying in a hotel (even his own), he would donate his clothes to a charity rather than have room service pick them up for laundry service. He'd go back to the charity the next day, his shirts would be clean and pressed. He wouldn't have a steep room service bill (or have to tip). Don't know if it's true, but I've heard it.