Why be frugal???

[myself]

Re: Why be frugal???

Most doctors are poor money managers. They have expetitis. They expect to graduate from medical school making big bucks and start spending like they do. They forget about their medical school loans, start fee for a private practice, etc. Instead they drive fancy cars, wives stay at home, send kids to private school etc. Classic example two doctors from the millionaires next door. One was a PAW the other a UAW.

My mom drives me nuts with this, she thinks that people who drive fancy cars and big houses have a ton of money. She's like "all the doctor's your age have this and this and this." I say to her, gee "wish I were driving a BMW, benz, etc" and a huge home too but too bad I have to save my money. SHE doesn't get that people don't miraculously have money to spend once they start earning it.

Just make sure to pay yourself first (like "Richest Man in Babylon" and "Millionaire Next Door" suggest), and you can laugh all the way to the bank.
I'm not a doctor, and my wife stays at home with our 4 kids, and we're now saving 12%-13% of my gross salary every year now (since we recently started a 401K plan at work).

[myself]

Re: Why be frugal???

My mom drives me nuts with this, she thinks that people who drive fancy cars and big houses have a ton of money. She's like "all the doctor's your age have this and this and this." I say to her, gee "wish I were driving a BMW, benz, etc" and a huge home too but too bad I have to save my money. SHE doesn't get that people don't miraculously have money to spend once they start earning it.

And, a car is merely a method of transportation to get from point A to point B.
I recently bought a Toyota Corolla, and stopped driving my old (1994) Ford Escort. I didn't particularly care to drive the Escort, however I also didn't want to have a car payment that I was uncomfortable with either. And I could actually "afford" to make the payments on a new BMW if I were so inclined .

[LuxLiving]

Re: Why be frugal???

As I am prone to saying, it's like fat girls wearing lycra spandex - just because you can, doesn't mean you should!

[PrincessPerky]

Re: Why be frugal???

On the genetics topic, I think some things are trained in, I couldn't imagine spending amounts some people do daily, I was pretty much raised that malls were for window shopping and people watching, which means it is easy for me to go and not spend.

On the other hand if I were raised to shop..I might have a hard time fighting the urge.

Same with many household things, it really doesn't occur to me to use paper towels for everything, I was raised to think they cost their weight in gold...same with foil, or saranwrap, if you needed a lid for a lidless container, you used a plate!

So while someone who was raised on those simple conveniences might find it hard to get away from them, being raised into them I find it odd to use the 'modern stuff'.

And that is one reason why I will be semi frugal even if we win a lifetime of luxury, I don't expect that lifetime to include my kids, I would rather they had habits of simple frugality, than had to force themselves to learn as early adults (and I certainly don't expect my kids to want to live off my luxury!)

[JanH]

Re: Why be frugal???

Hubby was recently told that his old job wanted to offer him BIG bucks to return. Does it improve our quality of life? Not if he doesn't want to be there. We could do all kinds of things, but the day to day living would diminish. I'm learning to love the little things again. I think we just want to be frugal to be better stewards of what we have been blessed with. And we both come from frugal families that are retired now, so we see how the quality of life in the future can be added to by choices today.

[Thrif-t]

Re: Why be frugal???

This has been in my mind since this thread started.

If you were raised frugal and then tried to get away from it, could you?

I was raised in the Frugal Cult and have the Frugalicious Gene (TM) deeply implanted I guess. I don't know how to NOT be frugal. It's like seriously ingrained and those infinitely small frugal decisions are just already made before I ever give it much serious thought. I just AM frugal. It's not necessarily a concious choice I make at each and every decision point, it already seems a done deal.

Anyone else care to voice any thoughts??

No I can't get away from it, it is just who I am. I cringe at any kind of waste no matter how I tell myself not to worry about it. I see it as money being caught on fire and I can't stand it. It can sometimes be a sickness really.

[pearlieq]

Re: Why be frugal???

Interesting question, Lux.

I was raised semi-frugally. My mom frugality was driven partly by nature but mostly by necessity. As a single mom, resources were thin. Still, she spent (and continues to spend) more than I do on small luxuries like groceries, books, movies, and home decorations. But she's also never been on vacation (except for the one DH and I took her on), has a 19" TV, and used American car.

She splurges on small things and I splurge on big things, but we net out in about the same place. What I took from her the absolute necessity of a budget and the insistance on value in anything I buy. I guess the apple didn't fall too far!

[Aleta]

Re: Why be frugal???

By being frugal, you learn good survival skills that you can use to save and maybe one day will be necessary. It takes time to learn these skills and it's great when you have a forum like this to learn new frugal ideas that others have used successfully.

[JanH]

Re: Why be frugal???

By being frugal, you learn good survival skills that you can use to save and maybe one day will be necessary. It takes time to learn these skills and it's great when you have a forum like this to learn new frugal ideas that others have used successfully.

That's a great point! Learning skills.....for some people, being frugal is very natural. For others, it is a learning process that we are learning over time and with help. Working on living the lifestyle is definitely worthwhile. Those that have retired in my family are making their dollars last longer and work better for them because they have the frugal skills.

[lrjohnson]

Re: Why be frugal???

By being frugal, you learn good survival skills that you can use to save and maybe one day will be necessary. It takes time to learn these skills and it's great when you have a forum like this to learn new frugal ideas that others have used successfully.

Having lived the way I have the last year, I'm much less scared of being low income, because I could handle it. I also know that even if i save less for retirement than would be perfect, that's okay, because I know I can live a satisfying life on low income. I'm not saying being strapped is great, but if you have a toolbox of frugal skills it's at the very least a lot less painful, if not actually satisfying.

[nanamom]

Re: Why be frugal???

I try to be frugal becasue it (to me) is the right thing to do. We were given the earth to take care of and I believe part of frugality is not wasting resources. We were also told that everyone is our brother and we are to look after them. That means I must be frugal in order to help someone else. I like helping and if that means my haircut waits an extra month or my house is still in need of a couple repairs in a few years, that's ok with me. In fact that's great with me.

[Joan.of.the.Arch]

Re: Why be frugal???

Thank you, nanamom.

[ericmedem]

Re: Why be frugal???

Its harder for a richman to pass the gates of heaven than to pass a camel through the eye of a needle. EM 6;332

This is the only bible verse I know but I like it.

[myself]

Re: Why be frugal???

I try to be frugal becasue it (to me) is the right thing to do. We were given the earth to take care of and I believe part of frugality is not wasting resources. We were also told that everyone is our brother and we are to look after them. That means I must be frugal in order to help someone else. I like helping and if that means my haircut waits an extra month or my house is still in need of a couple repairs in a few years, that's ok with me. In fact that's great with me.

That's OK with me too (regarding your house needing a couple repairs for a few years). As long as it's not termites or water damage, or electrical problems.

[ericmedem]

By being frugal, you learn good survival skills that you can use to save and maybe one day will be necessary. It takes time to learn these skills and it's great when you have a forum like this to learn new frugal ideas that others have used successfully.

Instead of learning survival skills to save money, why not get ahead of the game, and learn the skills to make more. Then instead of practicing being broke, you can practice making money, and live a bit better. I guess instead of learning to save, I would rather learn to make