What is the most frugal thing you learned this year?

The Frugal Village members are discussing: What is the most frugal thing you learned this year?

My answer to the obvious question: I bought a bread machine at a garage sale and learned how to bake with it. We like that gadget!

My answer to the bigger question: It was an interesting experience adapting Monroe on a Budget content during 2009 to public speaking engagements, community education classes and media interviews or mentions in the Monroe and Toledo areas. These public appearances have really opened my eyes as to what families in the region know – and don’t know – about frugal living and stretching their dollars.

One example: at almost every public appearance I give, at least one person in the audience is surprised to learn that Angel Food Ministries is available to help with their grocery bill. Angel Food has been available in Monroe County, Mich., since at least mid-2007, and has received lots of attention via the area print, broadcast and digital media. I personally learned about it via a front-page story in The Monroe Evening News. How and why could Angel Food stil be a “best kept secret” trick?

On the other hand, I would have never thought of using a coupon binder instead of a coupon box until I saw the binder my friend Candy set up. Now when I’m doing public appearances, I explain both systems of organizing the coupons because I’ve seen that the method that works for me does not make sense to everyone.

I’m constantly on the lookout for new ideas, links and headlines of interest to southeast Michigan families on a budget. So if you have something you’d like to share, feel free to post on a comment board on that topic or email me at paula@monroenews.com.

The third year of Monroe on a Budget starts in January. In the coming year, there will be more public appearances, another community education class, probably more Twitter chats, and yes, lots of headlines, links, and discussions here at the main blog.

I’m hoping we all learn a lot more frugal things in 2010!

Continue reading What is the most frugal thing you learned this year? …

From Monroe on a Budget.

2010 Resolution #4: Reduce My Entertainment and Hobby Spending by 50%

In an effort to talk about the power of goal-setting along with some methods of setting and achieving goals, I’m going to discuss my four resolutions for 2010 this week.

In 2009, I really overspent on my hobbies. My board game collection expanded significantly. I picked up several new video games and computer games. I picked up several new items for the kitchen that were fairly pricey (Le Creuset isn’t inexpensive). Perhaps worst of all, I purchased quite a few books that I probably could have easily checked out at the library.

These purchases weren’t impulsive and they weren’t things that I could not afford. We still spent far less than we earned for the year. My concern is that I don’t really need this much stuff and, more importantly, that I’m subscribing to lifestyle inflation, something that’s dangerous to our long term financial health.

Just before Christmas, I used some statements and totaled up my entertainment and hobby spending in 2009 – and the total was shocking to me. I need to make some changes, and 2010 is the right time to do it.

Making the Goal Specific
My total entertainment and hobby budget for 2010 is going to be exactly half of what I spent in 2009 on such expenses. That’s going to be a fairly dramatic change, especially given that I’ve already committed about 30% of my 2010 total to a year’s worth of piano lessons.

For this, weekly and monthly budgets and spending limits won’t work all that well. Even in 2009, I usually would go for weeks without buying a thing, then buy one or two fairly expensive items. The real trick for me is to spread out the gap between buying those expensive items and find other ways to pick up items I’m interested in for my hobbies.

Breaking It Down Into Microgoals
So, how can I reinforce this big goal with microgoals? Mostly, it’s just a matter of channeling the things I might spend money on into less expensive channels.

For example, I intend to visit the library with my kids every other weekend. In the past, our visits would be monthly – or even less frequently. These longer gaps between library visits meant that I would run out of borrowed reading material much more frequently and would then turn to other sources for books – some of them expensive. By going to the library more often, I head this desire off at the pass. Similarly, my first stop for book shopping will be PaperBackSwap, not Amazon.

I also intend to get more involved with board gaming groups in Ames and Des Moines, which will give me an outlet to trade some board games I don’t play for others I might play instead of just buying them on occasion. I’ll also focus more on video game swapping instead of just picking up new, interesting titles.

Just giving up hobbies and activities I enjoy is a route to failure. Instead, I just need to find less expensive outlets for those hobbies and activities.

Feedback and Adjustment
Each month, I’ll total up my entertainment and hobby spending and compare it to where I should be at that point in the year. This will give me a very good idea as to whether I’m spending more than I should or if I’ve really got my spending in check.

If I find that I’m spending too much, that’s a good time to try a “thirty day plan” and completely go on a hobby spending diet. This will encourage me to enjoy the things I already have instead of striving for new things.

If I’m spending well below my target (and I’m happy about it)… isn’t that a good thing?

Good luck with your 2010 goals!

Continue reading 2010 Resolution #4: Reduce My Entertainment and Hobby Spending by 50% …

From The Simple Dollar.

A few timesaving tricks

photo by Joe Shlabotnik

You try to get a lot done in a day. Maybe you make lists, label, set reminders, or create shortcuts to save some time or make the best use of it. Often, you do some tasks so frequently that you start to perfect them. It gets to where you can streamline your actions and do them as efficiently as possible.
What timesavers or household hacks do you use at home?
Here are a few ideas.

NEVER GO EMPTY-HANDED: If you’re making a trip upstairs, downstairs or room to room, carry anything you need to put back in its place. You won’t have to make an additional trip hauling things. It helps to have small baskets on a landing or near a staircase, too.

OVER-THE-DOOR ORGANIZERS: These work well in almost any room. You can put socks, winter hats and gloves, bathroom supplies such as shampoo or hairspray or even stockpile supplies into each pocket. It makes those items simple to put away, you can see them at a glance, and they’re easily accessible. Saves space, too.

DO IT NOW: Procrastination makes many jobs harder. Address mail (handle it once), dishes, making the bed, sinks and tubs right away. One reader, D.D. in Missouri, admits: “OK, don’t laugh. Before I get out of bed in the morning, I arrange the pillows and pull the covers straight up, then slide out of bed. This way, I am not running from side to side to make the bed. Then I place the decorator pillows on the bed. The cat continues to sleep on top of my bed while all this is happening.” If you have large tasks, break them into smaller, more manageable chunks of time.

MULTITASK OR COMBINE TASKS: You can watch television while folding laundry or do dishes while talking on the phone. Try creating a list that includes tasks you can accomplish in fewer than 10 minutes. If you’re boiling water for pasta, for example, empty the dishwasher. Your short tasks might include making a salad, setting the table, watering plants, or sorting mail. Another reader, Denise in Illinois, shares: “I use my Crock-Pot. It saves cooking dinner time after a hectic day at work. I always carry a project with me, such as mending, crocheting or knitting, to do when I get stuck in line somewhere or when waiting at the doctor’s office. I clean the junk drawer, wipe down the sinks, etc., while on hold for phone calls, too.” When combining tasks, you can plan your errands, make more than one item, such as a dessert, when using your oven or make planned leftovers to get ahead on your cooking for the week.

GROUP: Place similar items together. This can be cleaning kits in each bathroom or on each floor and organizing grocery bags as you unpack groceries, cookware or pantry supplies. So you’re not taking extra steps. Grouping also works well when you have multiple tasks that are similar, for example, making lunches or mending.

DELEGATE: Don’t try to do it all if you have able bodies to help you. Even young children can sort laundry or pair socks. If your spouse is heading to a store, get into the habit of having him ask if you need anything while he’s there.

PURGE: The less clutter you have, the easier it is to manage. Purging can apply to keeping a basic wardrobe, too. Keep items that require dry cleaning or ironing to a minimum.

Continue reading A few timesaving tricks …

From Frugal Village.

The Other Side of the Frugality Fence

In a recent post at Get Rich Slowly, J.D. defined the “basic law of frugality” as this: “Decide what’s important to you. Give yourself permission to spend on these things. Pinch pennies on everything else.” That’s a pretty spot-on definition, in my opinion.

The more I thought about it, though, the more I realized that it speaks to the problems that both overspenders and cheapskates have.

Overspenders?
In most situations, it is easily possible for a person to spend substantially less than they earn. So what causes a person to spend more than they earn?

The answer is hidden in that phrase. Overspenders stretch their definition of what’s important to them to cover a lot of things.

I’ll use myself as an example. Back in my overspending days, there were a lot of optional things in my life that I defined as being important enough to throw my money at. I went golfing a lot. I bought gadgets by the truckload. I bought more video games than I could ever possibly play. I bought carts full of books.

The end result was twofold. First, I often didn’t have time to actually enjoy all of the stuff I had bought. Second, because of all of the spending, my life was in a rough place.

My definition of what was important in my life was skewed. I had elevated too many things to the threshold of “permission to spend freely.” Because of that, I spent much more than I needed to spend, but I had too many things in my life to actually thoroughly enjoy the things I was spending money on.

The solution? Cut back. Ask yourself what things you most enjoy doing and toss the rest of it. Look for ways of minimizing the costs of the things you do enjoy.

Frugality is often said to be miserable because you have to give up so much. In reality, frugality means not giving up the things that are actually important to you. The trick is stepping back, looking at your life, and figuring out what things are important and what things are not.

Cheapskates?
On the other side of the coin are cheapskates, a role that I’ve almost fallen into a time or two over the past few years.

Cheapskates apply principles of penny-pinching to every aspect of their life, even the important ones. Although they have financial stability in their lives, they do it at the expense of other elements of their life that could add a great deal of value.

Here’s an example from my own life. I love to read books. I read several books a month beyond what I review on The Simple Dollar.

For the better part of a year, I refused to buy a single book. Instead, I just reserved books that interested me at my local library and patiently waited for them.

Several titles came out that I was eagerly anticipating. I was able to read some of them fairly quickly (within three months) of their release. Others? I’m still waiting.

Even more noteworthy is that at least two of the books I checked out and read during that period were books that I strongly fell in love with and wanted to read again (and I was quite sure I would read them many times in the future, as I love returning to books that really make me think).

But I was cheap. I didn’t buy these books. I resolved to just check them out at the library when they became available again.

One Saturday afternoon, I was sitting at home, having just finished a book. I looked at my unread books and realized that the book I most wanted to read wasn’t there – a book I had read before and returned to the library after thoroughly enjoying it. The library didn’t have it, either. I checked on Amazon and realized I could have the book for just $7. And I talked myself out of buying it.

That’s when I realized I was being a cheapskate. I was avoiding spending $7 on something that I knew would give me many hours of enjoyment now and quite a few hours of enjoyment later on, plus it would be a book that I could recommend to friends and loan to them while they loaned me books as well. To not spend $7 on something I cared so deeply about – and it was a $7 I could easily afford – was pure cheapness.

It’s okay to spend money on things that are truly important to you. In fact, it’s good, because spending money specifically on things truly important in your life directly raises your quality of life much more than any other way you could spend your money.

Reading is important to me, so I’m no longer afraid to spend money on it. Yes, if I see a book I want to read, I’ll check to see if the library has it and read it from them first. Yes, I use PaperBackSwap religiously. But if those outlets don’t connect me with a book I’m passionate about, I’m no longer scared to go to the bookstore and pick up that book that I want. Doing so raises my quality of life quite a lot.

The Winners Are in the Middle
The best place to be is at that place between the overspenders and the cheapskates. People who know what’s truly important to them and aren’t afraid to spend money on it enjoy a higher quality of life than people who spend themselves into debt (adding a lot of stress and challenge to their lives) and people who never spend a dime (missing out on things that they truly value in life).

What are your central values? What’s really, truly important to you? Give yourself some permission to spend in those areas without worry – but then lock down the ship in the other areas of your life.

Continue reading The Other Side of the Frugality Fence …

From The Simple Dollar.

USA Today: Laid-off executives struggle to find jobs

USA Today has this report Laid-off executives struggle to find any job.

A snippet:

Jeff Boose has sent out 300 résumés, mostly for CFO jobs, answered hundreds of online ads and enlisted top executive search firms. He’s come in third place for two spots, second place for four and was the lead candidate for a job that was put on hold.

His main obstacle? “There’s only one CFO position” at a firm.

Meanwhile, so many executives are job hunting that employers are being extraordinarily specific about their requirements. Boose lost out on a CFO job at an ad agency because he didn’t have “interactive media” experience.

Are you surprised that there are 700+ comments on the story?

The point I want to make is that it’s difficult for anyone, in any industry, to find a job right now. Financial recovery tricks for a layoff that were easy to do during a good economy – such as the spouse picking up a second job, transferring your skills to another company, selling the house in order to downsize or move, selling the second or third vehicle, holding a garage sale – don’t necessarily bring quick results when there is a recession.

I’m not so naive as to think the frugal and resourceful living tricks that I write about will get families out of such a mess. They still have to get income back in the house, a health insurance policy on the table, and some financial stability regardless of the income bracket.

I’m just trying to give ideas and tips on how to get a bit of financial breathing room until more permanent solutions are possible.

Continue reading USA Today: Laid-off executives struggle to find jobs …

From Monroe on a Budget.

Six Resolutions

I think goal-setting is extremely important, and the New Year is a convenient time to make measurable goals for the upcoming year. Writing down your goals as a reminder is wise. Telling over 1,500 people, via a blog, is a sure way to be kept accountable.

Frugal/Green/Health Goals:

1) I want to go “no poo“. I want to end my and my husband’s shampoo addiction and stop my kids’ before it takes hold. My husband has oily-ish hair, where my hair is rather dry, so this will be an adventure.

2) I want to start soap-making. I’ve wanted to for a while, but we had a large stash of store-bought soap that we’ve been working through. When that’s used up, I am going to start churning out my own soap.

3) I want to start cheese making. This is not a frugal undertaking, but a hobby. I think I’ve figured out a way for it to not cost more than store-bought cheese, but I’ll save those details for another post.

Personal Goals

1) I want to be a better wife. Mainly, I want to be a better forgiver. My husband is very forgiving, and I would like to reciprocate with Christ-like forgiveness.

2) I want to blog with reckless abandon. Whenever I try to make this blog less controversial, it becomes more and more of a battleground. Believe it or not, that is not what I am aiming for. So, I’m going to stop trying to avoid the the controversy and blog however I want.

3) I want Daniel to be able to write his name by the end of the year. He can recognize maybe half of the letters of the alphabet. I would like him to know them all by the summer, and start writing enough for his name by the end of the year. If he writes “DAN” and not “DANIEL” that counts as success.

What are your goals?

Continue reading Six Resolutions …

From Under $1000 Per Month.

Free 2010 Calendar Printables {Lovely}

Some fantastic freebies here! Many of the designs shown below are just a sample of what each calendar offers and there’s quite an assortment here to suit everyone’s preferences. You’ll find monthly calendars, year-at-a-glance, desktop cd case calendars and even a wall pocket. Don’t miss the bottom section where I have a lot of resources [...]

• Also See These Tips:
• 2009 Calendars: Freebie Printables
• Seed Packet Printables & Templates {Free}
• Buncha Cool Free Printable Calendars + DIY Calendar Projects

Continue reading Free 2010 Calendar Printables {Lovely} …

From TipNut.com.

How Do You Ring In the New Year?

Yesterday on Facebook, we had a great conversation about how each family rings in the New Year. I asked each of them and they have agreed to let me post how their family spends New Year’s Eve. Maybe you can use some of these ideas for your own party!

• Carol: Our church has a celebration every year. Last year was a carnival theme and this year we are doing a luau. Every year we have a slideshow of pictures of everyone throughout the year at the church activities. It’s great fun.
• Lynda: We traditionally spend it with some close friends – when by ourselves, we ring in the new year with communion & then lots of noise! NY’s Eve is my spiritual b-day, so very special to me…
• Heather: We go to bed! Our theory is it will happen again next year so we don’t want to lose sleep.
• Joycelyn: This will be the first year since our kids were born that my husband and I will go out to dinner on New Year’s. We will also watch New Year’s Rockin’ Eve with my kiddos and open champagne at midnight.
• Jenny: As a family we make a list of different family activities then put them each on a slip of paper. We take turns drawing a slip and then we all do the activity together. The kids and I make all kinds of party food to eat too. Some of the activities have been playdough (toddlers here), board game, Wii game, trace hands and decorate the paper, write resolutions, do a puzzle race (each person has a 100 piece puzzle to do). It’s not complicated but it’s about family so it’s really fun for all of us. And it’s the one night of the year the kids stay up late!
• Heather: We will being going to a friends house for games and goodies. The kids enjoy playing games too. We usually ring in the new year with Dick Clark on tv. We will toast and kiss our spouses!
• Candy: Pizza party at home with the kids.

Thanks guys for sharing those wonderful ideas for celebrating New Year’s Eve!

Continue reading How Do You Ring In the New Year? …

From Econobusters.

Scholarship twitter chat highlights

If you did not get a chance to check in on Twitter tonight for the personal finance chat hosted by myself and Craig from Budget Pulse, here are some of the tweets I was able to capture and copy off TweetGrid.

We did have issues tonight with not everybody being able to see everybody, which meant I had multiple sites open trying to see and respond to the twitter posts. @budgetpulse was the main host and he is one of the participants whose feeds were not showing up on TweetGrid. I was only seeing him under his other account, @craigkessler. So I looked for the @budgetpulse posts on another viewer and then retweet (RT) so all could see.

It’s not supposed to happen that way. I follow chats on TweetGrid all the time. Then again, sometimes the Internet is funky.

Twitter chats use hashtags, which are computer codes, so that twitter members can follow the conversation they want to see while everyone else is talking about everything else. The hashtag for this conversation was #bp. When you see the @ sign in front of a screen name, that means someone is responding to a post or directing a comment to that screen name.

If you want to get the jist of this .. what you need to do is scroll down to the bottom then read it upwards. It would be too time consuming for me to re-arrange the posts in order.

MonroeOnABudget: RT @BudgetPulse: I would like to thank everyone for coming out tonight. Great chat, and everyone have a happy and healthy new year #bp
Wed Dec 30 20:00:22 2009

breakingeven: @MonroeOnABudget Does your daughter have help in applying at her school or is this left to parents to help kids navigate the process? #bp

Continue reading Scholarship twitter chat highlights …

From Monroe on a Budget.

College students share their budget-cutting tips

Saint Mary’s College in South Bend, Ind., invited some of its senior business majors to share their budget-cutting tips with other students.

A snippet:

“Before the start of each semester set a monthly budget based on what you spent the prior semester and try to identify the areas where you can cut back.”—Amanda Huthwaite ‘10, Little Silver, New Jersey

Continue reading College students share their budget-cutting tips …

From Monroe on a Budget.

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