The Frugal Reflex

I find a good trick is that if it costs more than $100 (like a new electronic toy), wait a day before buying it. A lot of the time, the urge to buy the toy will subside.

My best trick is to only go shopping once a week… If I have a time crunch to buy all the necessities (food, gas etc.), then I’m less likely to be in a mall or electronic store standing in line buying an impulse purchase

This does only work best once you’ve already figured out the cheapest way to satisfy your necessities…

Hey Man, I’d argue that Frugality (like excellence) is actually a habit coupled with an inner happiness.

Short-term it’s about control, but control is hard and habits are easy, so long-term it’s about habits. The Frugal Reflex is therefore the sum of Frugal habits that have been developed.

This is actually why I have a rough time with the concept of “budgeting and sticking to it”. The more “things” that you budget and control, the more balls that you must correctly juggle, which requires exponentially more effort and control.

I think that naturally frugal people actually do it the other way. They organize their expenses so that money for food, rent, savings and bills are all just funneled into the right boxes. Now all they have to worry about spending is the left-over cash.

When people start jumping through the gauntlet of questions: “Do I really need it right now? Can’t I buy the same thing cheaper elsewhere? What are my needs? Can I find a cheaper substitute? What is the best way to get what I need?”. I actually believe that they are being “inverse spending addicts”. Running through the gauntlet of questions will definitely make you frugal, but second-guessing yourself like that is isn’t healthy.

I mean, don’t you already know your needs? Don’t you know if you need stuff now? Why are you looking at stuff you may not need, unless you’re planning on buying it with “fun money”? Why are you even making “needs” decision while standing in the store? Didn’t you bring a list, don’t you have a “bucket” for this stuff?

Your approach to frugality actually sounds like you’re trying to be an “anti-spending” addict rather than trying to be a “pro-saving” saviour. You’re trying to “spend less so that you can save more” rather than trying to “save more and simply live with less”.

Your ultimate goal is savings, but you’ve just put savings last: “spend less, save more”. The whole point is “pay yourself first”. So save first and live with what’s left over. Then you don’t need to ask yourself 20 questions with every purchase, you just need to ask yourself if you’re “happy spending this money for that item”.

Kris has a neat idea to suppress the “spending addiction”. But it’s just a “stop-gap”, not a solution. At some point you have to no longer “want to go shopping”. Waiting a day can help curb buyer’s remorse, but why are you buying stuff that makes you remorseful? Didn’t you really want this thing before you went out and bought it?

Like I said happiness and habits. It means making of habit of paying yourself first and then driving your purchases based on your desires. Then the frugality will follow.

Karen McCall, founder of http://www.financialrecovery.com, has this saying: “You can never get enough of what you don’t really need.”

A frugal lifestyles means figuring out what you *really, really* need…and going for it (usually, it’s not another pair of shoes!)

Barbara Stanny, author, “Overcoming Underearning”
barbara.stanny@authorviews.com

MDJ, Kris, these are pretty good trick to control yourself. I’ll keep good note of it.

Gates, you should have been a psychologist, not an engineer In French, there is an old sayings that goes like this:
You can not have the butter and the money from the butter. However, I would like to keep the butter but also make the money I would get by selling the butter. In other words; I want it all

The problem is that I don’t see why I would not get everything. So I have to stop spending then I can save more. On the other side, I am trying to develop this state of mind where I need less. I might be able to reach a balance

I might be able to reach a balance

Mike

I have a new “tool” for my frugal reflex! After having a yard sale last weekend and watching thousands of dollars worth of items go for next to nothing, my new mantra is “how much can I recoup in a yard sale.” The answer is almost always NOTHING! It makes me stop and think about how much that new blouse/toy/gadget is REALLY worth!

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