Seven Reasons Being Frugal is Awesome

Reasons Being Frugal is Awesome - picture of back of woman with hands raised overlooking rome

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Being frugal rocks so hard it will give your finances whiplash. I’m not talking about the car accident kind. I’m talking about the good kind of whiplash. You know, the kind you get after a Slayer concert.

If you’re thinking about taking the frugality leap, we’ve got a free gift waiting for you at the end of this piece. But before that, here are seven reasons why being frugal will rock your world.

1) Having Money for Emergencies

Let’s face it, things happen. You may have unexpected car repairs or need a new water heater. Maybe you’ll head to the emergency room and instantly hit your deductible for the year. Whatever the case may be, living frugally means you have money saved for it. Instead of putting the new expense on credit, you get peace of mind by knowing you can write a check for it. Knowing you can take care of any problem that may arise is a great feeling.

2) Being Able to Retire

Hopefully, if you live frugally over an extended period of time, you can retire someday. While your friends work well into their 70’s, you can be at home working on your hobbies…or traveling…or sitting on your ass. Who cares? If you learn to save your money, you will be able to retire before many of your peers. Then, you can decide how you want to live your life.

3) Live For Now, Save for Later

Being frugal helped us get here!
Being frugal helps us save on things that don’t matter so we can spend on things that do!

Our idea of living frugally doesn’t mean sentencing yourself to a lifetime of staring at the walls and eating instant ramen for dinner. Hells no! By living frugally and spending less on crap you don’t want, you’ve got more money to spend on the things you actually love. Instead of wasting your money on gadgets, gizmos, handbags, and nights at the club, use that money to travel the world, buy concert tickets, or enjoy a waterpark with your family. Even better, you’ll still have money to save for your future. Like our motto says, “Stop spending. Start living.™”

4) Buy Less, Waste Less

Speaking of stuff – seriously peeps – we make and consume waaaaaaaay too much junk. Walk into any store and you’ll see aisle after aisle of it – toys, gadgets, back scratchers, picture frames, trampolines… you name it. When you buy all of that crap, you’re encouraging other humans to make more crap. Being frugal means only buying what you really need and want. It may mean buying used items or just buying less. Either way, you are adding fewer items to the junk heap.

5) Weed Out Your Fake Friends

Sure, you can probably find anyone to go to a football game with you or to try out a new nightclub. You can probably talk a casual acquaintance into being your shopping buddy. But, who would want to eat a homemade dinner at your house and play cards? The answer: your real friends. If you live a frugal lifestyle, you may find that you lose a few friends. I did… and that was OK. Once you take materialism out of the equation, you might find you have a lot less to talk about with certain people.

6) Being Frugal Means Fewer Marital Problems

Everyone knows that money problems contribute to an incredible amount of marital problems and divorces. The thing is, when you’re smart with your money as a team, you will find a lot less to argue about. If you learn to live within your means, chances are your money disagreements will become few and far between. When bills are paid on time and money is in the bank, stress and hostility decrease. When you get on the same financial page as your spouse, you may even find that it doesn’t bother you as much when they leave their pajamas on the floor every day for ELEVEN YEARS STRAIGHT. I sure did.  (Sorry Honey! Kisses!)

7) Better Sleep

I have to say that I sleep GREAT these days. Part of it is my Serta iComfort mattress, but I digress. I just don’t have a lot to worry about, and I definitely don’t worry about money! I sleep great because I know exactly which bills are due and when. Furthermore, I have the money to pay for them…and I have an emergency fund for anything else that comes up! Now THAT, my friends, is relaxation.

Your Free Frugal Gift

My friends may see me as a fun-hating cheapskate, but they just don’t realize the benefits of being frugal! While everyone else is scurrying on the hamster wheel of life, frugal warriors everywhere are taking control of theirs. Cheap brothers and sisters across the land are paying off debt and consuming less crap! Instead of worrying over their finances, they are taking action to change them. Are you?

If not, we want to help. That’s why we’re giving you the first chapter of our book, Zero Down Your Debt, for free. You’ll learn the fundamentals of good money management, budgeting, and you may even pay off some debt along the way. Get your free chapter here, or fill in the form below to join us now and “Stop spending. Start living.™”

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27 Comments

  1. Our next Monday’s post is almost identical to this one. Being able to throw money at problems is awesome.

    1. Yeah, it is totally awesome. Having money saved certainly doesn’t solve all of life’s problems. However, it does seem to solve most of them!!!!

  2. I loved this!!

    I agree whole-heartedly regarding friends and significant others. This makes me feel much better about being a cheapskate – er I mean, financially responsible and frugal. 🙂

  3. I think having money for emergencies is what let’s you sleep better! Just being prepared and safe is a great feeling!

    1. Hell yeah! It is truly a great feeling. Life is stressful enough without having to worry about money!!!

  4. I love this post! Being frugal is, in a word, LIBERATING.

    1. Thanks for posting, Sophie!

      You are exactly right.

  5. Chrs @ MoneyandI says:

    Hi Holly,

    Oh I envy you, I’m at the first part of the road you’ve taken, which means I sleep rather well but I’m miles away from the relaxation you guys have 😉

    All the best in new year! 🙂

  6. Judy Murray says:

    Spot on! Great insights!

  7. These are great ideas to learning to do with less. I think the word Frugal is sometimes viewed in a negative way. That’s too bad as you do it justice here!

  8. I like being thrifty because it coincides with my faith. I feel more secure by being a good steward. It is empowering to have paid off our home, have four cars paid off and one child almost through college debt free and the other one on track to do so as well.

    I have to say though, most of my friends have no idea I’m frugal. I try to hide it to fit into our community. Many of my friends think it is shameful to shop at resale stores, I love the hunt.

  9. I think the term “frugal” has a negative connotation. The items that you have listed here are just good financial practices.

  10. I especially love the point about being able to sleep at night. Having an emergency fund makes life way more peaceful, knowing that if something bad happens, I’m prepared. I don’t know how my generation can live paycheck to paycheck.

    I found your site off of Mr. money Mustache and love it.

    1. Yep, Jen. I’m all about sleeping at night!

      Thanks so much!!!!

  11. Elnora Agustin says:

    Hi Holly! Frugality is way out in my vocabulary in my 38 years of existence. I am 40 years old, as they say; “Life begins at forty”. But how can i enjoy life if i don’t even have a cent to enjoy it. To be true, i only met ‘frugality’ 2 years ago, when a co-worker introduced it to me. I am an extravagant person, a ” come what may”… Spend here, spend there, buy this and buy that….sooo much i’ve waisted in my whole life, never think of tomorrow. What a shame to my self. I started to be frugal 2 years ago,very easy to say but never easy to do, it is very hard in my part. So much changes, so many things to give up. I did try to do my best so i can pay off my credits. Your website and other websites about frugality and thrifty living is my strenght to face the changes of my life. And it helped me a lot. I am so proud to myself that in my 2 years of being frugal, i can say that i know now how to control my expenses. I thank you for all the insights and learnings that you instilled in my mind to help me reached my financial freedom. Thank you!!!!

  12. I have to totally agree with your post. I liked your article your article because it is clear and straight to point and provides some great examples of why living frugal is a good idea.
    It is easy to forget why living a frugal life can bring so many benefits including reducing a person’s impact on the environment. It is so easy to be fooled by advertising and cave in to making purchases we don’t need, which also leaves and creates excess waste. When buying second hand goods, sometimes it is like searching for treasure. You just never know what cute little item you’ll come across or bargains you’ll find.
    Being frugal with your money for emergencies is a sensible strategy for anyone rich or poor. It definitely does bring peace of mind having even a small amount set aside for an emergency. One good method for making sure you can have money set aside is to pay yourself first. Every pay, set aside a set amount into savings before bills are paid. This amount could be $10, $50 or more. Every little bit adds up over time and can be applied to savings goals or emergency savings accounts.

  13. “Our idea of living frugally doesn’t mean sentencing yourself to a lifetime of staring at the walls and eating instant ramen for dinner.” Very true. Many people have this idea that they have to give up so much in order to save money. My wife and I have a high savings rate but still travel and spend money on ourselves. It’s a mindset many people have that and as a result they go through life accumulating a bunch of stuff that doesn’t really make them happy, and their savings suffers as a result.

  14. I can’t imagine living any other way. Like you guys, we cut ruthlessly in areas that don’t matter that much to us, but are more than willing to spend on the stuff that does. Great post!

  15. Love this! I actually just wrote about this topic today – about how I’m frugal, but I still have a life. Thanks for the free chapter!

  16. loving this list, in this moment I’m refilling my emergency fund and I’m going to have a sort of shopping ban after Christmas because my goal is save more still having a decent social life:D

  17. Money in the bank definitely eases my mind … I’d recommend it to anyone!

  18. This is what I’m striving for! I totally believe it’s possible to live frugally, and still live well. Since I have curbed my spending, my stress has almost completely disappeared. I finally realized that money was my main anxiety factor!

  19. We loved this article! Living a frugal lifestyle is awesome and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise!

  20. “Cheap brothers and sisters across the land are paying off debt and consuming less crap!” Love this line! I’ve paid off my debt and it does feel awesome.

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