Smart Spending: Is Modern Frugal for You?

Have you foraged for edible plants along the roadside lately? How about recycling your dryer lint? No? Well, you will be happy to know that modern frugality doesn’t involve radical or extreme methods for saving a buck. Today’s frugal involves living within your means and enjoying a comfortable lifestyle with movies, dining out and vacations. Of course, the movie might be a $1 rental from a grocery store kiosk, the restaurant meal bought using a www.restaurant.com gift card and your hotel paid for with credit card reward points (or booked for an off-season stay).

My question to you is this: Do you consider yourself a frugal person? If not, why? What lifestyle choices have you made that keep you from being able to say you live frugally? For some, the word frugal has a negative meaning. They may associate it with a way of living that is so meager they can’t imagine it for themselves. These days, though, modern frugal is cool. It’s one of the most effective ways to live within your means and keep your family out of debt – all very cool things. Why pay more than you need to? The peace of mind that comes from living debt free is definitely worth the small steps it takes to live a modern frugal life.

A huge debt-free movement is spreading and there are many people out there who are completely out of debt – even their mortgages are paid off. We’ll have our only debt – our mortgage – paid off before our children go to high school in three years, which is really exciting! We have been living a modern frugal lifestyle for 10 years now and I can’t imagine living differently.

Can you say YES to any of the following? If so, you probably want to consider a modern frugal lifestyle:

· Are you struggling with debt (or have any debt at all, really)?
· Are you concerned that your job may be at risk?
· Are you unemployed and searching for a job?
· Are you living on a fixed income?
· Are you unable to afford health insurance?
· Are you worried about having enough money when you retire (aren’t we all?!)?
· Do you simply want to have more money at the end of each month?

Well…. Did you say YES to any of the above questions? My guess is that most people would say yes to at least a couple of them. In the coming months, I’ll be writing about how to live a modern frugal life from every angle. I encourage you to consider the suggestions and try at least a few. You’ll be surprised at how easy it is to spend less, save more and live just as comfortably. Maybe you’ll even be proud to call yourselves modern frugal. Next time, we’ll start uncovering all the great ways to cut your grocery bills in half including couponing, meal planning and store promotions.

If you are proud to be frugal, feel free to speak up and post about those things you do to live within your means. I love to learn new frugal techniques and I am sure other readers would like to read your ideas as well. As I always say: It’s Your Money – Spend It Wisely!