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A lot of us claim to be frugal, including me at times, but I wonder, are we all on the same page defining frugal?
Frugality is typically defined as a mindful approach to spending that prioritizes value, efficiency, and sustainability. It’s about making conscious choices that align with your financial goals and values.
That doesn’t sound like fun, seems like work.
Do we limit discretionary purchases in favor of necessities? Are we focused on finding the best deal or seeking low-cost alternatives? Do we consciously avoid impulse buying? Do we focus on living within our means? Does being frugal mean walking from room to room turning off lights?
Is our life driven by these decisions? Was there a time when frugality was necessary and you simply can’t change your ways?
For me the answer is yes, no, sometimes. We certainly live within our means. On the other hand, if we were to take a cruise, there would not be an inside cabin. For Connie’s 85th birthday my impulse buying got the better of me. I’d buy a brand name product at the dollar store, but not some unknown no matter what the savings.
Are you really frugal and why?
I am a CPA and my kids will tell you that stands for Cheapest Person Around. When times were tight, I probably was. But now in retirement, I am on the SKI trip (Spending the Kids Inheritance) and have been known to drive 2 hours for a pizza. And yes, it is that good.
Being frugal has never been an adjective or descriptive term used to describe me.
In my lifetime, I have truly been blessed. I come from a military family, growing up as an army brat. I barely graduated from high school with a relatively poor academic record. I joined the US Army and it was while in basic training, after taking all the aptitude tests, that I found out that instead of being “below average,” I was actually pretty darned smart.
Living up to the expectations established for me in the US Army, after my enlistment, and serving my year in Viet Nam, from 1969-1970, I started college. Over the years I earned 6 different degrees, and finished my education journey as ABD, All But Dissertation. in my doctoral studies.
From my very first job after the military, where I began for $500 a month with a company car provided, I spent 28 years in banking, finance, lending. Then I spent 12 years in financial services, as an agency owner, followed by 15 years as a college professor, teaching financial services.
I married at 23, just celebrated my 50th anniversary, and like I said…my life has been blessed. Never missed a meal, never paid a bill late, never went broke (got close a few times,) and basically bought whatever we need and paid for it, using credit at times. I did look for deals, and I was always inclined to buy “Better,” of the choices “Good, Better or Best.”
Like many parents, I gave my kids most of what they wanted. Thankfully my daughter never wanted a pony or horse, and my son loved his Ford Ranger Truck at 16, and thought it was great. My kids knew A’s & B’s drive to school. C’s took the bus. They both had new Ford Rangers.
Financially, I was never really highly paid, until my 50’s. In all of them money I earned from 1967-2024, over 59% was earned in 15 of those years, and as you might imagine, 14 of those 15 years were after 2009.
I retired in January, and 2 months ago I decided to write down every dollar we spent for the next 90 days, to get a better handle on our expenses. The results have shown that my profligate pending, common in the past, is still going full force, and it will be coming to an end. Over the next 30 days, as I finish my 90 days on recording all spending, I will be reestablishing out retirement budget.
The good news is we have more than adequate income and assets. So will I be becoming more frugal in the near future. I think to an extent yes, but not miserly. Additional good news is I am actually at the stage in life that if I really wanted something, I have probably bought it, so “cutting back” will not be a real sacrifice.
Thank You God for all the blessings you have bestowed on me in my lifetime. I will continue to share those gifts with others, as has been my practice for years. Amen
Kevin, what I can’t understand is why it took a 90-day detailed tracking of all spending to show you that your spending was too high? Surely you know as you spending that well, you are spending and where and how.
For the first 10 years of professional life frugality was a necessity and not necessarily fun, but as time has passed the balance is now more fun frugality than necessity. Some things are habit, some have been learned from the wisdom of others: the Swedish Death Cleaning and Marie Kondo books made big impacts on our materialism. We had an enormous amount of books and when Kondo recommended dividing the number of books by likely years of life remaining, it didn’t take mathematical genius to see we were serious self-deceivers. I then went crazy applying this same exercise to clothing, streaming services, food and items stored for a rainy day, etc. We aren’t extreme minimalists yet, but we’re closer to that now than we were in our 20s.
Yes, I have been accused by many of being frugal…or cheap is the impolite way of describing me!! But, finally, I’m changing….last week made a major purchase for wife, family and me that is the opposite of being frugal. After weighing all the pros/cons (spreadsheet and all!….can’t get away from that approach!!), I just said the hell with it and made the purchase!! I justified it by telling myself if I did not make that expenditure, it just goes to the kids. So, the hell with the kids and for once my wife/I decided to do what we want to do!!
The source of being cheap? That’s easy. Growing up, we did not have 2 nickels to rub together!!! Although things have changed, fortunately, that early approach to spending is difficult to change!!!
Garrett..On of my mentors in the financial services world was a marvelous gentleman, Tom Hegna.
Tom trains advisors after decades management and supervision in large financial institutions. He is a trained economist and a Retired Colonel in the US Army Reserves.
On the subject of seniors being frugal, and not spending the money they have and could afford to spend, he has a few lines that goes something like…
“Join The country Club, Buy That Boat. Take that Cruise, Buy the Car you always wanted. If you don’t, Your children will. They will be driving their new car, to lunch at the country club, on their way to the Airport. leaving on their Trip or Cruise.”
We used to be a lot more frugal but our portfolio grew by a lot.
There are several things we still frugal about and make sense to us
1) We always preferred cheaper B&B hotels
2) We buy new vehicles since 1994 starting with Honda,Toyota, and now Hyundai and Kia. The last 2 are very quiet and drive well as vehicles which cost a lot more which I tried too.
3) Electronics are the ultimate to be frugal. Many of them cost a fraction of the price of the expensive ones and they do almost everything. My track watch costs me $25 instead of Apple at $350.
Just bought a refurbished business laptop for $250 instead of $1500. This laptop is better than a new retail one for $600-800.
Also bought a refurbished Pixel for $170 instead of $800-1000. I used to think that refurbished isn’t for me until I tried it. Of course you need to know where to buy it.
4) We always buy the cheapest airline tickets direct or with on stop if we fly to Europe.
There are so much more.
I refused to give up the good stuff but I keep finding frugal ways to get it.
I am more than frugal: I am cheap. I am happy with what I have, which is mostly useful items. I do love traveling, cruising, tours, etc and that is what the pennies saved goes to. For me, that’s the best value.
I agree with most everyone that we splurge on those things that are meaningful for us (in my case grandkids 529s, upscale travel places, hosting friends at our home, and some concerts and events). As we age paying others to do the chores that we physically can no longer do is a wonderful thing. Yet I still channel my dad by shutting off lights, getting every gram of toothpaste out of the container and using the soap till it’s a nub.