I never quite understood it. My goals went more like this – “I want to make and save enough money so that it makes no difference whether I spend an extra $200 on groceries and makes no difference that I’m buying $10 shampoo versus $2 shampoo.” In other words, I don’t want to work so hard to pinch every single penny I’ve earned.
Instead I want to work and save so that I don’t have to spend two hours to save $5. Life is short and I’m just not willing to do that.
Cutting Back is Only Half of a Solution
Let me clarify something – I do not recklessly spend money. I live on a fairly low budget but it’s not because I analyze every single thing I purchase. Instead, it’s because I know what I want. I have strong goals and so I’m not tempted to buy a new outfit every week or take out a loan so I can get granite countertops. That stuff just doesn’t matter to me.
Instead I spend where it is important. For instance, if I want to go spend $200 on rubber boots for the girls and me so we can wade through the creek a little more comfortably then I’m going to do it. No regrets about it.
It’s taken me awhile to get to this point. And the reason that I can now spend money on the things that I truly want without going bankrupt is because I realize that cutting expenses is only half of a solution. Or really, a third of a solution.
You can only cut your expenses back so much. And after a while of cutting back your quality of living will start to suffer. I know there are many people who love to spread the idea of extreme frugality but I am just not willing to go as far to save a couple of bucks.
I am not going to spend my time in this world obsessing that coffee prices just went up $10 per year. Instead I’m going to pay the extra $10.
This is my three part financial approach:
- Spend on only what truly matters. (This will automatically keep your expenses low.)
- Have strong goals.
- Earn more money.
Money is Infinite
Man oh man, has my mindset changed about earning money over the past couple of years. I used to think that making $30,000 per year was all I’d ever make and so I focused on living as cheaply as possible.
But then after starting an online business and literally doubling that $30k mark while working half the hours my mindset has changed. You guys, money is infinite. There is more money out there than you’d ever be able to spend in a lifetime, even if you tried really, really hard.
And the thing is, you’re just as able to go out and grab that money as anyone else. Money doesn’t discriminate. Once you figure out how to make money work for you you’re set.
You just need to find your thing. Figure out how to make money work for you.
Change Your Mindset, Change Your Life
And so, that is why frugality is only one third of the battle.
Frugality is important and should be your first step if you’re a natural spender. However, once you get your spending on auto-pilot you need to focus on more than just frugality if you want to meet your long term goals.
If you can change your mind set about money you’ll be able to change your life.