Frugality and Time: A Short Series

Posted by: guest on Tuesday, February 3rd, 2009

Frugality gets a bad rap when it comes to how much time it takes. If I had a dime for every time I heard the refrain "I don't have time to be frugal," I'd be enjoying a fabulous retirement right this very second.  It does take time- time to plan and cook homemade meals, time to find bargains, time to figure out creative and inexpensive entertainment...but does that mean that frugality is only for people who have endless amounts of free time?  Of course not.

Like every single one of you, I have a very busy life.  I work, I take care of the household, and I'm a charming and always beautiful at all times wife.  I've been an exclusively stay at home wife.  There was also a season in my life where I commuted to work and school, meaning I was out of the house for 60+ hours a week.  Ironically, that was the time in our marriage when we needed to use our frugal skills the most, as our income was extremely small.

To prove that you don't have to be a lady (or gentleman) of leisure to enjoy the fruits of frugality, I'm running a new four week series here on Frugal Hacks called Frugality and Time.  Check back on Tuesdays to see the following topics covered:

1. Cooking like you have all day (Frugal Home Cooked Meals)

2. Partying like you have all night (Frugal Entertainment)

3. Born to shop...frugally (groceries and other necessities...frugally!)

4. The Key to Running a Calm, Efficient, Frugal Household (hint: planning!)

See you Tuesday!

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Topics: misc.

3 Responses to “Frugality and Time: A Short Series”

Tracey Says:
February 4th, 2009 at 8:04 am

A few times I have thought being less frugal would ease the burdens of a busy schedule. Each time I realized that spending more doesn’t save time. Just like money, we have a limited supply of time and we inevitably find a way to spend it all. Looking forward to your series.

ewokgirl Says:
February 5th, 2009 at 3:24 pm

I look forward to this! I realize that the time aspect can seem daunting to someone new to frugality, but what people often don’t realize is that once you learn how to do things and set routines, it’s really quite simple and even quick (depending on what it is).

For example, when I was teaching full time, I thought I never had the time to cook most nights. I’ve been a SAHW for nearly 10 years now, but because I now know how to cook, have several simple meals in my repertoire, and most importantly, know how to plan, I’m able to cook all through the tutoring season each spring. It’s easy and really takes very little time or energy to pull off. It just takes planning and a little know-how.

bfrugal Says:
February 8th, 2009 at 9:59 pm

Interesting approach. We’ve definitely conditioned ourselves into thinking that it our time is more valuable than it really is. Failing to save is really failing to plan as you seem to aptly put it.

I’m trying to take a somewhat pain-free approach and just point out the absolute no-brainer ways to save.

 

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