Frugal Living: What Habits Help You Save Money?

[EQAddict]

My dad told the same thing shadow posted. He said it many years ago. I remember the exact situation: i was struggling with the decision to buy a decent compact camera to take pictures of my kids. Long story short he said those words to me. And i havent regretted the purchase ever. The literally tens of thousands of pictures it has taken (as well as movie clips) are priceless. I still use the camera and havent ever found the need to replace it. Its a mirrorless sony nex-7. Outdated by todays standards but excellent performance nonetheless. Good quality aces the test of time.

But moderation syempre.

[minicarph]

Enjoy your life... Pero dapat may savings pa din...
Me I only spend small percentage of my income... The rest savings...


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Don't save too much *glenn, kukunin sayo ng Diyos yan. savings make people relax and lethargic maybe even couch potato. In other words, they do not push for their true potential - complacent

In the news, I always hear about the large deposits of Filipinos nowadays, That's a good thing coz I now know people are staying at home and feeling safe with their money. So many people to manipulate

[minicarph]

And you can only do that if you live below your means.

A lot of people buy the latest this and that because technically they can afford it, but it comes at the expense of savings and investments which in turn hurts their long term financial health.

It's okay to spend 100k per month if your income is 1M, as compared to spending only 50k per month but your income is only 60k. It's all about budgeting and having a mindset focused not only on the short term.


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With this thinking, I believe the 100k will be spent mostly on food. Because subconsciously savers are still guilty on spending 100k, so they spend on food which they justify in their heads na need Ito not want,

That's why so many savers are fat

[minicarph]

My dad told the same thing shadow posted. He said it many years ago. I remember the exact situation: i was struggling with the decision to buy a decent compact camera to take pictures of my kids. Long story short he said those words to me. And i havent regretted the purchase ever. The literally tens of thousands of pictures it has taken (as well as movie clips) are priceless. I still use the camera and havent ever found the need to replace it. Its a mirrorless sony nex-7. Outdated by todays standards but excellent performance nonetheless. Good quality aces the test of time.

But moderation syempre.

Bill ka na neto. Nikon 360 action camera



Nikon | I AM KeyMission 360 - YouTube

[badkuk]

Before bumili ng shoes (mahilig ako) kelangan balikan ko once or twice. Pag mejo nabawasan ang itch ko means naka iwas ako sa impulse buy

i do this too. When i want something, i obsess over it, look for reviews, prices, etc. By the end of it naumay na ako and i'm not interested anymore ^_^

i keep my formal/leather shoes at the office, and wear "laspag" shoes(branded but on sale, typically under 2.5k; the really cheap ones are uncomfortable and don't last long) during commute. True nakakasira ng porma, but ZFG.

Whenever possible, i buy items in bulk for better pricing, and look for cheaper sources even if it's farther, or i have to haul it myself. Kahit 10-20 peso saving e pamasahe din yan.


Re credit cards: unless you do have a strong tendency to splurge, they do have their advantages:

- Security Bank credit cards do offer 2-5% rebates depending on what you pay for;
- BDO credit cards give you a 100-peso gift certificate for every 3k spent;
- PSBank offers a credit card with no annual fees forever.

BPI probably has the least useful promo -- free Jollibee/Chowking ^_^


If you enroll your recurring/household bills into your credit card, you can easily accumulate mad points/rebates/mabuhay miles over time.

[jut703]

YOLO! [emoji23]

If it will not make you piss poor if you bought something or it will not make you rich if you didn't ... Go and buy it.


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Bro I generally agree with this statement, but I have some reservations.

For example, I want a new dSLR. Di ko naman ikakahirap, so I buy one. Then, I realize I want nice lenses. Again, I can afford the lenses so I buy them.

Then, a month after, I realize I want to try biking. Again, di ko ikahihirap yung pagbili ng mountain bike, so I get it.

Then I want an iPhone, then a Macbook Pro, and so on. In other words, an endless cycle of giving into these "wants", with the reason that I can afford them anyway and buying them won't make me any poorer.

But at the end of, say, 1 year, the total cost of these toys would have been enough to cover the downpayment of a condo.

It's true that the act of buying any single one of these wants did not make me substantially poorer. But the mindset of buy-what-i-want-because-yolo meant that I pay the opportunity cost of being able to make bigger investments and purchases.

Yes, you only live once. But on average, that one life will last you 3/4 of a century. If you want to be comfortable for your entire lifespan, you can't just live for now, you have to prepare for the medium and long-term as well.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not advocating that we should all live like paupers in the present so that some time in the future we can splurge all our savings and investments. Rather, I prefer to try and avoid the root of excessive spending - materialism.

Admittedly it's very difficult to try and be happy with little. I myself find myself having moments where I just want to buy this and that. But you can keep it in moderation - perhaps set a maximum budget for your toys instead of a carefree spending attitude.

Of course, if you're just forcing yourself to be thrifty, but deep inside you want to splurge, sooner or later you'll wallow in self pity and unleash a spending spree. Which is why I go back again to focusing on moderating your materialism instead - be happy with little, focus on more important aspects of life (relationships, experiences, a sense of purpose).




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[jut703]

With this thinking, I believe the 100k will be spent mostly on food. Because subconsciously savers are still guilty on spending 100k, so they spend on food which they justify in their heads na need Ito not want,

That's why so many savers are fat

Eh ba't hindi ako mataba? [emoji12]


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[shadow]

My dad told the same thing shadow posted. He said it many years ago. I remember the exact situation: i was struggling with the decision to buy a decent compact camera to take pictures of my kids. Long story short he said those words to me. And i havent regretted the purchase ever. The literally tens of thousands of pictures it has taken (as well as movie clips) are priceless. I still use the camera and havent ever found the need to replace it. Its a mirrorless sony nex-7. Outdated by todays standards but excellent performance nonetheless. Good quality aces the test of time.

But moderation syempre.

Funny how,I also got it from my parents. [emoji16]

Ganun din. I was having a second thought of buying something.


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[EQAddict]

Bro I generally agree with this statement, but I have some reservations.

For example, I want a new dSLR. Di ko naman ikakahirap, so I buy one. Then, I realize I want nice lenses. Again, I can afford the lenses so I buy them.

Then, a month after, I realize I want to try biking. Again, di ko ikahihirap yung pagbili ng mountain bike, so I get it.

Then I want an iPhone, then a Macbook Pro, and so on. In other words, an endless cycle of giving into these "wants", with the reason that I can afford them anyway and buying them won't make me any poorer.

But at the end of, say, 1 year, the total cost of these toys would have been enough to cover the downpayment of a condo.

It's true that the act of buying any single one of these wants did not make me substantially poorer. But the mindset of buy-what-i-want-because-yolo meant that I pay the opportunity cost of being able to make bigger investments and purchases.

Yes, you only live once. But on average, that one life will last you 3/4 of a century. If you want to be comfortable for your entire lifespan, you can't just live for now, you have to prepare for the medium and long-term as well.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not advocating that we should all live like paupers in the present so that some time in the future we can splurge all our savings and investments. Rather, I prefer to try and avoid the root of excessive spending - materialism.

Admittedly it's very difficult to try and be happy with little. I myself find myself having moments where I just want to buy this and that. But you can keep it in moderation - perhaps set a maximum budget for your toys instead of a carefree spending attitude.

Of course, if you're just forcing yourself to be thrifty, but deep inside you want to splurge, sooner or later you'll wallow in self pity and unleash a spending spree. Which is why I go back again to focusing on moderating your materialism instead - be happy with little, focus on more important aspects of life (relationships, experiences, a sense of purpose).




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Its true that Your ideas and shadow's arent mutually exclusive. The key ingredient in the mix is 'priorities.' Have a decent compass and a good sense of priorities. Tick those off one by one. And along the way, if the bug bites you, just make sure you dont compromise those priorities. That should be a strict rule.

Everything is finite and all expenditures eventually add up. Its a basic tenet that everyone must embrace. In my case im at the stage where ive already saved for the future, for the kids, etc. Nothing too stupendous but not something to sneeze at either. But i cant always be in investment mode. If i were i'd be miserable. I am also realistic about my wants. And i Also realize that the window wherein i can enjoy these is shrinking (im 40 afterall). I balance both.

[badkuk]

Bro I generally agree with this statement, but I have some reservations.

For example, I want a new dSLR. Di ko naman ikakahirap, so I buy one. Then, I realize I want nice lenses. Again, I can afford the lenses so I buy them.

Then, a month after, I realize I want to try biking. Again, di ko ikahihirap yung pagbili ng mountain bike, so I get it.

Then I want an iPhone, then a Macbook Pro, and so on. In other words, an endless cycle of giving into these "wants", with the reason that I can afford them anyway and buying them won't make me any poorer.

But at the end of, say, 1 year, the total cost of these toys would have been enough to cover the downpayment of a condo.

Andami kasing distractions these days. Lots of new hobbies, gadgets, plus the media. One time i got hooked on MtG cards...man, when i think of the money i spent then, ngayon nakatambak na lang.

i don't always manage to fight off these impulses, but i do try to justify the purchase, e.g. is it a need or a want? Will i need it every day? Will this cost me more money later?

i also look at my "gadget graveyard" and ask myself, is this another impulse buy? ^_^

If i do give in, i try to get the best value for money brand/model. As with any purchase, you have to justify the cost.