Frugality does not mean to scrimp on food or to live like a miser. Frugality is finding clever ways to save and to live well within your means. It is being mindful of where you spend your money and making a conscious effort to find less expensive alternatives.
Ever wonder how Filipino-Chinese become rich? It’s because they have a frugal lifestyle. If you also dream of achieving financial independence, then perhaps you should also start having a frugal lifestyle.
- Know the Basics of Budgeting – most of us don’t have a budget because we are scared of what we’ll find out. Budgeting is merely figuring out hhow to spend your money and deciding if that’s how you want to spend it. Keeping track of your expenses can be daunting but if you want to improve your finances, it’s the first thing to do. You’d be surprised at what your budget can tell you of your spending habit. The first time I made a budget I was surprised to see how much I spent on unnecessary things such as dining out and magazine subscriptions. In order to save, I but down going out on weekends and subscribed to free magazines.
- Avoid Debt Like the Plague – If you are already in debt, well just like me, you have to make some serious efforts in paying off your credit card debt and avoid making more. While not all credit is bad, the trick is to know what contributes to your over-all financial goal and which one drags you down. A loan to start a business that will earn more than what you pay for the loan is a credit worth taking. If you know yourself to splurge on consumer goods, better keep that credit card at home.
- Increase your Savings – As they say, it’s not how much you earn but how much you save. Unfortunately, Filipinos are not brought up to save first then spend but we are taught the opposite. You will be motivated to save if you have a goal in mind like, buying a house, starting a business, or investing.
- Live Within Your Means – Easier said than done but if others can do it, so can you. Changing your lifestyle is hard if you are accustomed to an extravagant life. But if you want to improve your finances, desperate measures are needed. Living below your means can even help you accomplish several things. You learn to be creative in reusing and repurposing things and you become an expert on where to get the best bargains when shopping.
It’s always hard at the start but little progress accumulates. We may not all end up as rich as Henry Sy but to achieve financial independence is perhaps more achievable than we all thought.
Photo by: alamosbasement
Article by Glady
Glady has a fulltime job but always on the lookout for rakets or any money making experiments to achieve financial freedom.
