I am pleased to announce that this week’s article was written by guest writer, Aiden White. Below is a little bio about him:

Aiden has a keen interest in writing. After completing graduation he has started blogging as a full-time activity. He has started to contribute articles on various platforms. He has interests in financial topics including creative ideas, the frugal lifestyle, and DIY ideas. During his free time he loves gardening and baking.   

Hope you enjoy the article. Happy reading!

Due to the huge debt burden, many people fail to secure their financial future. Most people are now the worshiper of credit cards. They live beyond their means by swiping their credit cards. But most of them ignore the credit card bills. Soon they fall into huge credit card debt. A large number of people are not able to pay their monthly payments due to the debt burden.

However, some people are serious about their financial health. They believe in frugal living to stay out of the debt mess in their life. They prefer to save money to secure their financial future. They agree that living a frugal lifestyle help to live financial life peacefully.

What is frugality?

Frugal living means giving up on your impulse buys and lowering your expenditures. The main concept involved in frugal living is “waste not, want not”. Thus it helps you to put a rein on your debts and set aside money for securing your financial future. Frugal living strategies help you save more than you usually do after meeting all the monthly expenses.

However, some people misunderstand frugality and mix it with miserliness, loss of desire, unhappiness etc. But, it’s not. Being frugal doesn’t mean depriving yourself. Remember, frugality is about getting the maximum value for your money.

Frugality is prioritizing quality over quantity and being mindful of purchases that bring joy. For instance, if you enjoy swimming, and it keeps you healthy, then you shouldn’t cancel your swimming membership. This is because it helps you to maintain your fitness and you’re saving money on your health-care cost in the long run. However, people, who have a gym membership that they hardly visit, are losing money in reality.

In this context, you must know some habits that frugal people follow:

A frugal person understands money very well

A frugal person knows how much he/she earns and how much money to spend. Thus, the person can create a budget worksheet to meet all the monthly expenses and save a certain amount.

Following a budget helps to understand where the money is going. Budgeting is a scary task for most of the people. Because they spend the entire monthly income without giving a second thought. But, for a frugal person, sticking to a budget is as easier as making a sandwich. Because they cut down all the unnecessary expenses that they don’t need while creating the budget. Once you start following a budget successfully, you will see the difference in your monthly savings.

They avoid the debt trap

Credit cards are definitely convenient. But you should use credit cards responsibly. If you can’t repay the bill, you will be in debt trap. Also, using the credit card to only earn the reward points is not recommended. Use the credit card when you know you can afford the bill. Thus you can use a credit card calculator.

Frugal people avoid using credit cards for every purchase. They prefer to carry cash while shopping to avoid impulsive shopping. Using a credit card for daily items can pile up debts. They know that using credit cards for only reward points can create debt trouble. So, pay all the monthly bills on time. This is the secret of a frugal person to stay away from debt forever.

They can distinguish between a want and a need

Frugal people master this skill. They never fall in advertising trap. They’re the wise buyers and able to differentiate what ‘wants’ and ‘needs’ are all about. 

You can differentiate a cheapskate, a miser and a frugal person if you observe them closely. A cheapskate is more concerned about the cost of an item than it’s value. For instance, a cheapskate person may avoid the tipping in a restaurant while a frugal person may not order an extra item so that he/she doesn’t look cheap at the time of tipping. Misers will try and avoid spending any amount because they want to save every dollar which may come at the expense of quality.

Frugal people make conscious expenses

Frugality isn’t living miserliness. A frugal individual will probably take better care and prioritize upkeep over spending more money to replace the item. For instance, a frugal person may choose a bag of better quality costing $100 instead of one that costs $50. They prefer to use a $100 bag for next 3-4 years instead of replacing the $50 bag every 6 months. Frugal people prioritize the value of an item. They buy less but the item should be worthy. Also, they buy when they need the item. They don’t believe in repetitive buying. By following this rule, you can afford a higher quality item if you’ve saved for it and have made a more conscious decision of buying that item.

Frugal people always live within their means

For a frugal person, it is important to choose the best path to become a dollar-wise person. Frugal people always try to live within their means.They apply many tricks to trim expenses and increase savings to secure financial future.

For example:

• Cutting down the cable
• Unused memberships
• Not taking out the max credit you are approved for

They prioritize the saving for an adequate emergency fund to prevent financial panic. They know that ditching the lavish lifestyle can actually help them to obtain financial security in the near future.

Frugal people practice DIY actions

Most of the frugal people prefer DIY concepts. They make gifts, wrapping papers, diary, bath gels, bubble baths liquids, baby food, and home decorating stuff on their own. They also love to grow veggies on their own garden to cut down grocery cost. These can help you to save a lot in the long run.

Lastly, you need to be focused and motivated while following a frugal lifestyle. Thus, you’ll stay happy throughout your frugal journey. Don’t let the other people’s word rule you. They might try to intimidate you because they might be fearful and might not understand your lifestyle or may think you are “cheap”. Let it be; take one step at a time and stick to your frugal lifestyle to secure your financial future.