2953: 5 Ways Frugality Can Lead To A Happy Life by Lisa Harrison of Mad Money Monster on Saving Money

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[00:01:00] [SPEAKER_02]: Das ist Optimal Finance Daily. 5 Ways Frugality Can Lead to a Happy Life. By Lisa Harrison of MadMoneyMonster.com.

[00:01:10] [SPEAKER_02]: The F-Word is something that's tossed about like crazy in the personal finance space. Some people love living a frugal lifestyle and claim it's a surefire path to saving gobs of money, while others prefer to live it up and just earn more.

[00:01:24] [SPEAKER_02]: Most of us, however, fall somewhere in the middle. I make it no secret around here that I stand firmly in Camp Frugality. Although I'm certainly not opposed to earning more income, I also know for a fact that cutting back expenses and living simply is the quickest route to bolstering a savings rate.

[00:01:43] [SPEAKER_02]: Oh, and good news. Frugality isn't an all-or-nothing kind of thing. In fact, my husband and I ditched the extreme flavor for a more balanced approach. We now subscribe to selective frugality and enjoy the benefits.

[00:01:57] [SPEAKER_02]: And with that, let's dive into 5 ways frugality can actually lead to a happy life.

[00:02:03] [SPEAKER_02]: Number 1. Frugality is environmentally friendly. Living a frugal lifestyle is inherently good for the environment. The foundation of frugality is rooted in saving money, and most times, saving money means fixing, reusing, and upcycling items that would normally be replaced.

[00:02:21] [SPEAKER_02]: The more you can keep what you already have or repurpose things that still have some life left in them, the more you save the environment by keeping stuff out of landfills.

[00:02:31] [SPEAKER_02]: Case in point, I have a tendency to wear my shoes until they're quite literally falling off my feet. And even then, as long as the uppers are in good shape, I will use superglue to keep them together and keep me moving.

[00:02:43] [SPEAKER_02]: If they're too bad for glue, I'll pop into my local shoe cobbler, yes, that's still a thing, and have them resold or repaired by a pro.

[00:02:52] [SPEAKER_02]: Not only am I saving money by repairing my shoes, I'm also saving the environment. That makes me happy.

[00:02:58] [SPEAKER_02]: Number 2. Time savings.

[00:03:01] [SPEAKER_02]: As you might expect, when you're not trapeziing all over creation to buy items you don't really need or eating dinners out when it's just as satisfying and healthier to cook at home, you're going to save time.

[00:03:12] [SPEAKER_02]: And what's that old adage? Time is money. It is so true.

[00:03:17] [SPEAKER_02]: Being in the midst of my adult life, I'm constantly trying to juggle a career that provides a consistent salary and benefits for my family.

[00:03:26] [SPEAKER_02]: Parenting, including soccer games, snuggles, and nighttime stories.

[00:03:29] [SPEAKER_02]: A healthy marriage, our family home, two rentals, and on and on and on.

[00:03:35] [SPEAKER_02]: All that said, at this point in my life, anything that saves me time is worth its weight in gold.

[00:03:41] [SPEAKER_02]: Having more time means I can spend it with the people I love and continue to build strong bonds and memories that will last the rest of my life.

[00:03:48] [SPEAKER_02]: I mean, if I can save money by gluing my boots together instead of shopping for a new pair,

[00:03:53] [SPEAKER_02]: I can use that savings to bump up our investment account and use the time I would have spent shopping to cuddle with my daughter and read a book.

[00:04:00] [SPEAKER_02]: It truly is a win-win on all fronts.

[00:04:03] [SPEAKER_02]: For me, and probably for you too, more time equals happy.

[00:04:08] [SPEAKER_02]: Number three, more money.

[00:04:10] [SPEAKER_02]: This pretty much goes without saying, but I'm going to say it anyway.

[00:04:14] [SPEAKER_02]: When you're fixing, reusing, and upcycling items,

[00:04:17] [SPEAKER_02]: you're inevitably going to save money that you would otherwise be spending to replace said items.

[00:04:23] [SPEAKER_02]: When you save money, you have more money to spend on things you truly value,

[00:04:27] [SPEAKER_02]: and you have, wait for it, peace of mind.

[00:04:30] [SPEAKER_02]: Having more money on hand isn't going to make anyone less happy, right?

[00:04:34] [SPEAKER_02]: Therefore, more money means more happy.

[00:04:37] [SPEAKER_02]: Number four, peace of mind.

[00:04:39] [SPEAKER_02]: There are no two ways about it.

[00:04:41] [SPEAKER_02]: Frugality leads to a simple life and more money in the bank.

[00:04:44] [SPEAKER_02]: More money in the bank means you have peace of mind knowing that if your car's muffler falls off

[00:04:49] [SPEAKER_02]: as you're driving down the highway, you have the means to easily cover the emergency and make the repair.

[00:04:54] [SPEAKER_02]: Having peace of mind from additional savings also allows you to sleep easier at night

[00:04:59] [SPEAKER_02]: knowing that an unexpected job loss wouldn't force you into homelessness or eating ramen every single night.

[00:05:04] [SPEAKER_02]: After we embraced frugality and watched our bottom line grow fatter,

[00:05:08] [SPEAKER_02]: we were able to breathe easier knowing we're more prepared for whatever life throws our way.

[00:05:14] [SPEAKER_02]: Obviously, you can't prepare for everything like catastrophic health issues,

[00:05:17] [SPEAKER_02]: but having more money in the bank is always better than having less.

[00:05:21] [SPEAKER_02]: Peace of mind is synonymous with happiness, at least in my book.

[00:05:26] [SPEAKER_02]: Number five, you have options.

[00:05:29] [SPEAKER_02]: When you're frugal, you have more money and more time.

[00:05:33] [SPEAKER_02]: When you have those two things, you have the luxury of enjoying options.

[00:05:37] [SPEAKER_02]: Even though my husband and I are chasing financial independence, what we're really chasing is options.

[00:05:43] [SPEAKER_02]: We want the option to continue to work if we choose to.

[00:05:46] [SPEAKER_02]: We also want to feel free to try a new career path or sit on the beach all day long with a pina colada in hand.

[00:05:52] [SPEAKER_02]: Yes, I'll have whipped cream with that.

[00:05:54] [SPEAKER_02]: We found the benefits of frugality far outweigh the cost.

[00:05:58] [SPEAKER_02]: And with just a few tweaks to your current lifestyle,

[00:06:00] [SPEAKER_02]: you can start living simply and hopefully enjoy a happier life too.

[00:06:05] [SPEAKER_02]: Having options to do whatever I want with my life and change course if it fits makes me one happy gal.

[00:06:15] [SPEAKER_02]: You just listened to the post titled,

[00:06:17] [SPEAKER_02]: Five Ways Frugality Can Lead to a Happy Life by Lisa Harrison of madmoneymonster.com.

[00:06:23] [SPEAKER_02]: And I'll be right back with my commentary.

[00:06:26] [SPEAKER_02]: Thank you to Lisa for letting us share her work.

[00:06:29] [SPEAKER_02]: Her goal is to share relatable stories from real people that can help others get to where they want to be financially.

[00:06:35] [SPEAKER_02]: Come by madmoneymonster.com to show her support.

[00:06:38] [SPEAKER_02]: She has a lot of great content there.

[00:06:41] [SPEAKER_02]: I totally agree with all of these different ways that frugality can lead to a happy life.

[00:06:45] [SPEAKER_02]: And I'd love to add a sixth way.

[00:06:48] [SPEAKER_02]: Frugality can be fun.

[00:06:50] [SPEAKER_02]: And if it's not fun, dare I say that you're doing it wrong.

[00:06:54] [SPEAKER_02]: My experiments with frugality started about five years ago when I was getting out of debt.

[00:06:59] [SPEAKER_02]: I discovered this level of resourcefulness and creativity that I didn't even know I had.

[00:07:04] [SPEAKER_02]: I would make my apartment more fun than a bar by hosting these elaborate dinner parties

[00:07:09] [SPEAKER_02]: where I would make up ridiculous games to play.

[00:07:12] [SPEAKER_02]: Yes, my friends and I saved money,

[00:07:14] [SPEAKER_02]: but we also had so much more fun than we used to have at a crowded bar.

[00:07:18] [SPEAKER_02]: I went to and hosted clothing exchanges.

[00:07:22] [SPEAKER_02]: I split the cost of my internet with my neighbors.

[00:07:25] [SPEAKER_02]: I read countless books from the library and so much more.

[00:07:28] [SPEAKER_02]: I believe I read on the Mr. Money Mustache blog that,

[00:07:32] [SPEAKER_02]: quote, effort is the spice of life, end quote.

[00:07:36] [SPEAKER_02]: Frugality can often take a bit more effort than expensive conveniences.

[00:07:40] [SPEAKER_02]: But if you're enjoying yourself, then it's time well spent.

[00:07:44] [SPEAKER_02]: So that's a wrap for another edition of Optimal Finance Daily.

[00:07:48] [SPEAKER_02]: Have a great rest of your day and I'll see you back here tomorrow

[00:07:51] [SPEAKER_02]: where your optimal life awaits.