SubscribeTen Commandments of Frugal Living
It’s been a while since I wrote about frugal living. I guess the reason is that at this time in my life, I am not really being very frugal :( How can I write about frugal living if I don’t practice it myself? Work is very hectic these days and by the time I come back home, I am too tired to cook. So, the number of times we eat out has gone up from just one or two times a week to at least three times a week. Add to that the addiction to blogging and I am starting to get backlogged on my regular chores around the house and am very tempted to have the maid service come over and help out (again). And with several block buster movies coming out this summer, we have been spending a lot on entertainment too. What makes it worse is that, instead of watching movies on Saturday afternoon (before 6:00 pm, when the tickets are less expensive), we have got into the habit of watching them on Friday/Saturday evening after supper (when the tickets are the most expensive).
Because of all this, my expenditure for last month went up quite a bit :( So, I decided it was time to remind myself the ten commandments of frugal living. Here we go -
Commandment 1: Thou shalt cook at home instead of eating out.
Commandment 2: Thou shalt not buy a new vehicle if you can make do with an old one.
Commandment 3: Thou shalt switch off the lights, fan, TV etc when you exit the room.
Commandment 4: Thou shalt not pay for services that you are fit and healthy to do on your own.
Commandment 5: Thou shalt not pay full price for any item that will eventually be available on sale. Thou shalt not pay anything at all for what can be had for free through nature or public offerings.
Commandment 6: Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor Joneses belongings.
Commandment 7: Thou shalt not waste – be it money, leftovers or time.
Commandment 8: Thou shalt entertain yourself through inexpensive means.
Commandment 9: Thou shalt live by the 3 R’s – Reduce, Reuse or Recycle.
Commandment 10: Thou shalt not confuse frugality with cheapness.
Update: Thanks to Matt's comment below, I have decided to add an eleventh commandment to my list.
Commandment 11: Thou shalt not buy something when its clearly a want rather than a need.
Update: And a twelfth (thanks Bill, Damsel and Debbie)
Commandment 12: Thou shalt not make any purchasing decisions while under the influence (of alcohol, hunger, toddlers, etc.)
6 Comments:
this should be on a poster, that I can hang in my kitchen. haha
I love the list, you should also put down thou shall not buy something when its clearly a want rather than a need
List is ok, but turning the TV or lights off when you leave the room is almost useless.
Turning the AC, heat and computers off when you leave the house is a much bigger deal.
Thou shalt stay away from Amazon when thou art drunk.
Thou shalt not do thy grocery shopping while hungry, nor while thou hast thy toddler with thou.
Nice list! You could make the first three of these broader:
1) (cook) Do it yourself when you can do it just as well. (This would incorporate #4 as well.)
2) (car) Don't buy anything if you already have something you can make do with.
3) (lights) Don't buy what you won't use.
And you need a #12 for Bill and damsel's additions: Thou shalt not make decisions while under the influence (of alcohol, hunger, toddlers, etc.)
Post a Comment