23 Frugal Habits

EP 64 - 23 Frugal Habits

[00:00:00] Before we get started today. Let me ask you a question. Have you ever wondered how some people seem to effortlessly manage their finances and achieve their financial goals? While, other struggle to make ends meet. The truth is folks. The answer lies in adopting frugal habits. Frugality isn't about being cheap. Or depriving yourself of the things you enjoy.

It's about making intentional choices. That align with your values and help you live a more fulfilling and financially secure life. So if you're ready to discover 23 frugal habits, keep listening as we jump into this today.

 [00:01:00] Welcome back to another motivational Monday episode of the ask Ralph podcast, where we try to master your finances with a Christian perspective. Today we have an exciting topic to discuss that can have a profound impact on your wellbeing. Frugal habits. You know, I had this discussion yesterday with my son. He said, Dad, I know you're an accountant.

I know you help people with their financial, what are some things that I can do dad? Because I'm really struggling right now. And he's not alone. We've all been there. we all want to make the most of our money. And as Christians, we also want to be good stewards of what God has given us. So in this episode, we're going to explore 23 frugal habits that can help you achieve financial success While aligning with your Christian values.

Are you ready? Well, let's dive in. Let's get started with the first batch of five frugal habits.

Number one. I can't stress this enough, create a budget and stick to it. I mentioned this in my book, mastering your finances. Which you can find on, [00:02:00] askralphpodcast.com/store. I highly recommend you read it.

It's 47 pages. But it will change the dynamic of your financial life. Well, here's the deal. A budget is a powerful tool that allows you to track your income and expenses. It helps you to prioritize your spending and save for the future. If you don't have a budget that's number one, create a budget and stick to it. I said this to my son yesterday.

I said, what's your budget? Well, dad, I don't have a budget. I said, okay, well then you broken the first one, get a budget.

Number two. Meal planning and cooking at home. Hey, it's simple to go out and eat. It's simple to order door dash or something like that, but eating out can quickly drain your wallet. So if you plan your meals in advance, make a grocery list and cook nutritious meals at home, you can save money. Said the same thing to my son yesterday.

I said, son, how often do you eat out? Well, dad, it's easy on my way home from work to just stop at the Wawa or stop at the McDonald's or something like that. I said, yeah, but it's hurting you financially.

Let's move on to number three. Embrace the art of do it yourself. Well, Some of us [00:03:00] like me are not mechanically inclined to be very careful when doing this, but the truth is instead of outsourcing tasks and services, learn to do things yourself. It could be home improvements. Car maintenance.

Be careful. Don't mess up your car. Or even making your own cleaning products. My wife does this. She makes cleaning products at home. They're better for us. They last longer and they're safer, for the environment. If you take on a do it yourself mindset, you can save significant amounts of money.

Let's move on to number four. This one is a complicated one, and this is practice delayed gratification. Hey, we live in a generation where nobody wants to be waiting for gratification.

My wife calls it the immediate gratification generation Before making a purchase each and every time ask yourself it's a need, or if it's a want. If it's a want, give yourself some time to think about it. And evaluate if it aligns with your financial goals, if you've got goals to save money, if you've got goals to improve your finances, then ask yourself before you [00:04:00] make every purchase.

Is this something that I need, or is this something that I want.

Let's move on to number five comparison shop. And the truth is, we live in the Amazon generation. How often do we really sit down and comparison shop? And it's real easy to go onto your computer or go into your phone and say, I need X. Oh, let me go to amazon.com.

Oh, that's what I not. Oh, I get about tomorrow. Fantastic. But the problem is you're not comparison shopping. Don't settle for the first price you see, take the time to research and compare prices before making a purchase. You'll be surprised, even if you look at things like my wife does this all the time, she'll say to me, okay, I'm getting ready to do an order for Walmart.

What do you need? I said, well, you know, I can just order that on Walmart. She goes, Ralph, listen to me. I've got time. Let me look at this, let me look at the different online stores and you could save money by doing that. So that's our first five. Let's move on to the next six through 10.

Number six. Prioritize experiences over material possessions.

This one's kind of cool, actually. And I did an interview which played on Saturday of a person who has this, [00:05:00] experiential retail shop. And the truth is I agree with what she's saying. So instead of focusing on acquiring more stuff or what my wife or I would call junk. Invest in experiences that create lasting memories, the experience is somebody going to take with you? you go to one of these, all of us have been here even to the souvenir shop somewhere out traveling.

Oh, I gotta get this shirt. Oh, I gotta get this knickknack. And what do you do with it? It sits on the shelf and collects dust. What a waste of money.

Let's move on to number seven. Use coupons and take advantage of discounts. Now. Again, this takes a little bit of time and a little bit effort. you can go online on all kinds of websites and look for coupon codes and promo codes and deals before making a purchase. He just got to invest time in doing it.

Let's move on to number eight. And that's practice mindful spending. Kind of goes along with the same. are you buying stuff for your intentional financial plan before you buy something and yourself, it aligns with your values? And if it truly will bring you joy and fulfillment. if you can say yes, this is going to bring me joy fulfillment, then by all [00:06:00] means maybe it's the right decision to make, but you have to think about it. And practice mindful spending.

Let's move on to number nine. And that's negotiate and haggle. I don't know how much of , that you can do when you're online shopping. Unfortunately. So maybe this is a time to support small businesses and don't be afraid to negotiate prices, especially for big ticket items or services. You might be surprised at how much you can save just by asking you if you're having a service done in your house. ask the service provider. Hey, do you offer any coupons?

Do you offer any discounts? If I agree to write a review for your company, will you give me a discount? It doesn't hurt to ask so negotiate and haggle.

And number 10. And minimize waste and practice sustainability. Now, listen, I'm not a big fan of this, to be honest with you, but the older I get, the more it makes sense to me from a frugality standpoint, reduce, reuse, and recycle whenever possible. It's not only going to save you money, but you're also taking care of God's creation.

So there's a Christian component to that. If you minimize your waste and practice sustainability, you're taking care of God's [00:07:00] creation. And that's our goal here. That's what we need to do.

So let's move on to habits 11 through 15. I know this is a big list. They're all going to be available on the show notes at askralphpodcast.com.

Let's move on to number 11, automate your savings now. A good friend of mine said, Hey Ralph, you talked about doing an emergency savings plan, but you didn't say how to do it.

So here's one way you can do it. And that's automate your savings. Set up automatic transfers from your checking account to your savings account and ensure you consistently saving money. Think about this for a second. This is huge. So as soon as your paycheck, everybody's on direct deposit for the most part now. As soon as your paycheck hits your bank account. You've got to set up to automatically pay yourself first.

And what I mean by that is you put the money in the savings account right away.

Let's move on to number 12. Borrow or rent instead of buying. Well, this one I thought was kind of cool. I found this online. If you only need something temporarily consider borrowing and renting it instead of purchasing it. I think this is great for those.

 home improvement project, you can go to these stores that rent equipment, [00:08:00] rather than buying something you're going to use once or twice in your whole life. Go rent it. Or maybe you have a neighbor that has, that you can say to them, Hey, we have a little barter arrangement.

Listen, can I borrow this? Oh, you have that? Oh, I could use that. work that out between the two of you

let's move on to number 13. Declutter and sell unused items. Clear out the clutter in your home. You might have stuff that's been sitting there for years and you've never used it, or haven't used it for a long time and maybe there's value in that. This is not only going to free up space is also make you some extra cash and we all could use some extra cash. my wife says this to me all the time.

She says, Ralph got all this stuff in the basement. You never use it. And she's absolutely right. She says, why don't you put this stuff on Facebook marketplace or put it on Craigslist or try to sell it online or let's just give it away because it's just taking up space and collecting dust. So I got to give my wife credit there.

That was a great idea. And I'm going to give it all to you as well, declutter and sell unused items and

number 14. Practice energy efficiency. I remember this more when I was a kid, I was born in 72. So I grew up in that [00:09:00] whole, energy crisis, time around 79 and 80, practice, energy efficiency, turn off lights when they're not in use. unplug electronics and use energy efficient appliances to reduce your utility bills. in my office I've replaced all of the light fixtures with these led lights and they save a ton. These are little things, but they save you a ton of money.

Let's move on to number 15, buy in bulk and stock up on sale items. Now you gotta be careful with this. If you're a Costco or Sam's worth you go to Sam's, you buy these crates or these huge pallets of stuff, make sure you're actually going to use it. But the truth is. Purchasing items in bulk or when they're on sale can save you money in the long run.

Just make sure you're going to use it now. It's real easy to go into. Listen, I do this all the time. I'll go into like BJ's wholesale club and I'll see, I love croissants. I love butter croissants. Right? And I see this pack of butter croissants. Well, you know, if it was three or four to make sense, but you know, I'm not going to eat 20 butter croissants.

So that might not be a good item to buy in bulk, but you don't want the things we do buy in bulk. Are those little pods for the dishwasher. we might buy three or [00:10:00] four packs of those at the same time. And that saves us a ton of money rather than going to the grocery store and buying a little bag of those.

So let's move on to number 16 through 20.

Number 16, embrace minimalism. Focus on living with less and being content with what you have now.

That's the key here, folks. It's a mindset shift. Learn to have a value in financial freedom and embrace minimalism. Do you really need that? Is this something you have to have? are there any have to's I used to have a pastor at one the churches I went to and he said in life Ralph, there are no half tos. Now I would argue with them being a tax guy, you have to pay taxes.

He says, no, actually you don't because if you don't make any money and all the file. I said touche, you got me on that one.

Let's move on to number 17. Negotiate bills and expenses. A lot of people don't realize that you can call the cell phone company. You can call a lot of online companies and say, listen, I'm thinking about dropping your service. these companies have these retention people for a reason. I've done this with Sirius XM. [00:11:00] I'll let it run out and then you'll start getting the emails.

Hey Ralph, you know, your Sirius XM has done. ok great. I call him, I say, listen. I don't really use your service. Well, did you know Mr. Ralph? you could get a year for only $12. Really? I could do that. Sign me up. So don't be afraid to negotiate your bills, such as cable, internet, or insurance.

You may be able to secure better rates or discounts,

number 18, use cash back and rewards programs. Now these can get a little bit cumbersome. I remember sitting in the grocery store one time at checkout, and I couldn't remember which grocery drives in. And a lady says, well, do you have our app, your customer loyalty card?

I'm like, yeah, I think I have it. Well, I think I was at the Acme and I pulled up the food line when she's like, no, that's the food line when you need the Acme one. So. Make sure you know what you're doing, but take advantage of these. These are offered by your credit cards or online shopping platforms.

Just all listen. I'm gonna, I'm gonna add this into it. Be careful with this, though, you can get yourself in trouble and you can go the opposite of being frugal. Make sure you pay off your credit card balance each month to avoid. Interest charges. So if you're going to use them for [00:12:00] points, Make sure you pay it off.

So if your credit cards, oh, Ralph, I'm gonna use my credit card because I get all these points. But then all of a sudden you find you're not paying it off at the end of the month. Don't get yourself in that trap.

Let's move on to number 19. Practice delayed gratification.

Everybody wants instant gratification. I see it. I want it. I got to have it now. I'm going to get, I'm a victim of this. I might be sitting and watching TV at night and I'll see it. Oh, I got to have that. Let me get on Amazon and buy. First of all, did I shop around? No. Is that something I really need?

Probably not. So before making a purchase, give yourself a cooling off period to evaluate if it's necessary or if you can do without it, delay their gratification, you'll find there's value in meeting your financial goals. And not cluttering yourself with a bunch of junk.

And number 20. Embracing the sharing economy. Instead of owning everything, consider sharing resources with others, like platforms like car sharing. Tool sharing, or even renting out a room or vacation rental websites. if you've got tools at the, your neighbor, Joe can [00:13:00] use as long as Joe's good about returning them.

And that's a pet peeve of mine. If you're going to borrow something on mine, make sure you give it back. But you can set up, that agreement with each other, like maybe one of you buys an aerator for the lawn. And maybe one of you buys a D Thatcher. That's just an example of that, but you can do that.

You can share, or you can go rent it.

So let's move on to the final three.

Number 21. Lucky 21 practice contentment and gratitude is kind of goes along with what we said about before. Cultivate a mindset of gratitude for what you have. It's so easy to want something else. if you go on to Facebook and you're scrolling through and, oh, look, I look at my friend, Joe, he just got this, or my friend, Sally just got that.

And you think, oh, I gotta have that. But have you ever thought. For a second. Look at all. I do have. That's a Christian thing too. be grateful for what you do have and find contentment. Even if it's in simplicity. There is such huge value in that.

Number 22 . Invest in knowledge and [00:14:00] self-education. I can't stress this enough. Continually invest in your personal and financial goals by reading books, read my book. mastering your finances.

I mentioned we can get it. Ask Ralph podcast.com/store it's 47 pages. Folks. It will change your financial picture. I'm not trying to sell books. I'm trying to sell solutions. I'm trying to sell you a plan to improve your finances. Read books, attend seminars, take all my courses. A lot of which are free.

Go on to YouTube. You can watch all kinds of videos for free. The more knowledge you acquire the better equipped you'll be to make wise financial decisions. That's just true. If you equip yourself with knowledge. If you give yourself training and education, you're going to be better equipped.

And last but not least number 23. Surround yourself with like-minded individuals. Seek out a community of people who share your frugal values and can offer encouragement and support on your financial journey.

I wish more churches would do this. I think this would be a great program for churches to do, have a frugal Bible study or a frugal club [00:15:00] where people can get together and talk about ways that they save money and build themselves up financially.

Well folks, I know we've covered a lot, but before we wrap up, I want to remind our listeners to visit our podcast page.

Like, oh, I got said all 23 of these items. Are on there. That's askralphpodcast.com. you can download those. You can take a review of our show. You can share your thoughts. You can send us a message. if you really like what we say here, share this with somebody, go down to the bottom right corner, click on the microphone icon. and tell me about something you want to talk about, and while you're there, make sure you join our email list.

We're running a weekly drawing. We're going to draw it tomorrow. For a $25 Amazon gift card during for everybody who signs up for our email list. So sign up yourself and tell your friends, tell your family, gotta listen to this guy, Ralph, he's got some great ideas while you're there. You can also schedule consultation with me.

If you want to me to talk about your specific circumstances again, askralphpodcast.com/store. We're also starting a question of the month. We've talked about this the last few days. You can leave us a voicemail with your answers, and here's the question. And it fits [00:16:00] perfectly what we talked about today. What do you find is the most difficult part of creating and living on a budget? That's a tough one.

I got, like I said to my son, I said, do you have a budget? Well, no, dad. I was like, well, you need to get one. So answer that question. we need your answers by March 1st and we'll discuss the answers on the show. in March so, don't forget to leave your answers now that we've discussed these 23 frugal habits is time for you to take action. I can talk till I'm blue in the face, but if you don't take action and do something with it. You're not going to get anywhere.

So I encourage you to choose three or four of these that resonate with you. And start implementing them in your life today. Remember small changes can lead to big results over time. It just takes a couple of these things and you'll see huge returns and then it will build on itself. maybe then you pick out three or four more and then three or four more. And not all of them will apply to everybody. But it's a start.

So put these things into action. And as I always say, stay financially savvy until next time, God bless you. And may all of your financial dreams come [00:17:00] true.