“How to live frugally without depriving yourself?”- Do you think deprivation is a part of frugal living? Well, most of the people have this kind of myths. But in reality, if you adapt frugal living then you can explore more things in life and live well without spending more.
The main problem is that people have confusion between the words ‘cheap’ and ‘frugal’. But if you really understand the deep concept of frugality you will understand how to live frugally without depriving yourself. Frugal living is not about compromises and boring life. It’s all about training your mind to have the right money mindset.
For me, frugal living is like a path of financial success. Thrifty living teaches to create money magic in life. As I am walking on the path of frugality with my experience I can say that frugal living is not that much difficult or boring. In fact, this is an excellent art of living.
Create financial magic by knowing how to live frugally without depriving yourself
Even if you are a student and not yet earning money then also you can be wealthy in the future by adapting frugal living. Being frugal depends on how well you utilise your resources especially your money. For me, financial magic means financial freedom. And I personally feel that by being resourceful one can create that financial magic.
I adapted frugal living in my school days. But now in the 20s, I am becoming more sensible and frugal. After leaving my 9-5 job. I am learning to chase my dream career without investing more money in my career. So, in my current blog, I will be sharing my experiences and knowledge about frugal living. Here you will get clarity about how to live frugally without depriving yourself.
Is it really possible to live frugally without depriving yourself?
As per my observation, most of the people think that they can’t live happily if they adapt frugal living. But in reality, you can live a very good and satisfying life even if you practice frugality in your life. If you have goals in life then one or the other ways all goals are connected to money. So if you want that life which you desire, then frugal living will help you to accomplish your goals.
7 Interesting ways to be thrifty without depriving yourself
Frugal living will be fun if one knows the simple techniques to be thrifty. There are many practical and simple ways which you can implement to adapt frugal living. Let me elaborate on a few points which will help you to be thrifty in your day-to-day life without depriving yourself.
| 1. Know how can you enjoy weekends by being frugal |
| 2. Go for a window-shopping |
| 3. Use the internet without spending more money |
| 4. Buy products during festival seasons to save money |
| 5. Implement ideas to be frugal with food and cooking |
| 6. Use vehicles without spending more money |
| 7. Travel and explore different places without wasting your money |
Know how can you enjoy weekends by being frugal
Everyone likes to hang out and enjoy on weekends including me. Especially teenagers and people in 20s make more weekend plans. It’s good to enjoy life and explore different things on weekends. But everything should be in limit. If you spend all your money on weekend fun, then it’s not the right way of spending your money.
Every time you don’t need to spend a lot of money to have fun on weekends. There are many other ways to relax and chill on weekends without spending more money.
How do I enjoy my weekends without spending more money?
Well, every weekend I don’t make hang out plans. But sometimes I do hang out with my friends or family. I love nature, I like to spend some me-time with nature. So I visit the park or garden in my city. The entrance fee of the garden is 5 INR. This is really very low price! And I roam in the garden. When I spend time in greenery it makes very relax and peaceful.
In this way, you can also relax on your weekend by spending time with nature. For this, you don’t need to invest more money. I say- if you are living in coastal areas then just visit beaches and stay in the mesmerizing beauty of nature instead of spending money on entertainment. So learn to relax on weekends without spending money.
I’m not telling you to completely avoid weekend entertainments. But here you should learn to balance saving and spending. This is how being frugal is all about. Frugal living teaches you to be smart with your money.
I choose to spend time in nature instead of spending money on entertainment. Spending time in nature boosts my happiness and peace:)
Go for a window-shopping
Do you have any idea about window shopping? Well, window shopping means looking at goods displayed in shop windows, without intending to buy. On weekends window shopping can also be a good option. You can your friends can visit the market just to relax and without any intention of spending money on shopping.
To be honest most of the times even I opt window shopping! I don’t carry hard cash more while going out. And I just enjoy window shopping without spending money! This may really look a foolish idea. But don’t forget to try this. Upcoming weekend try this crazy thing, don’t carry more cash and just go out with your friends for window shopping. This is how one should have fun by walking on the path of frugality.
Use the internet without spending more money
Nowadays all most everyone uses the internet. But in some colleges and even in hostels students get free internet facilities. So you can use such free internet which is safe. So is all about free internet. But everyone can’t get access to free internet. So if you don’t have any free internet facilities then also you can save money by implementing other practical ways.
My cousin stays in a hostel. She told that she stays with her other 2 friends and they all use single internet. This is also a practical way to save money. You and your friends or you and your siblings can choose one single internet plan and share the internet.
Buy products during festival seasons to save money
During festival seasons we can find more discounts on offers. Almost every useful good products are available at a low price during festival seasons. For example- In India during the Diwali festival, we can find offers on clothes, gadgets, cosmetics and much more. So this is the best time to buy products which you really need. This is all about frugal living practical tips. You get branded products at discounts.
Even I have bought my laptop at a discounted price. I purchased my laptop during the Diwali festival. So if you want to buy any necessary products like induction cooktop or washing machine then buy during festival season to save money. And usually, you can even get coupon codes also for online shopping. So whenever you want to buy anything online then look for coupon codes.
Implement ideas to be frugal with food and cooking
Well, who does not like yummy food, right? Especially teenagers and people in 20s spend more money on junk food. Do you know you can save around $1000 per year if you avoid eating outside food. It’s very costly to eat outside food than eating at home. So one should inculcate the habit of munching food at home. Have yummy food at home without spending more money.
Even at home, you can cook yummy food in less money. There are many ways to save money. If you are staying with your friends in a different city for education or for a job, then together you can save a lot of money on food. my friends also living in a different city and they save money on groceries and overall cooking cost.
Instead of eating outside food you can cook your own food. And always buy groceries in bulk. When you buy groceries in bulk quantity it will cost you less. Then divide the cost among your friends who are staying with you. For cooking, you can use induction cooktop. This is available at a low price. Even beginners can easily cook food by using induction cooktop.
Use vehicles without spending more money
Everyone wants to have their own vehicles. Youngsters demand new bike or car to their parents. But as a youngster do you really need this? Well, I personally feel that buying a vehicle is not need at this time. If you buy a vehicle then you spend more money frequently on fuel or service and repair of vehicles. And also you should have pay for vehicle insurance. All this is not needed.
You can opt for carpooling and save money. And use public transportation more. Even I use public transportation instead of investing money on own vehicle. As a youngster, you don’t need to buy costly bike or car due to peer pressure. Learn to be resourceful and adapt to simple living.
Whenever I go for a picnic with my friends. We book a cab or we use public transportation more. Nowadays you can easily book a cab or taxi online. So you don’t need your own vehicle to go for a picnic with your friends. So this is how you can live frugally without depriving yourself.
Travel and explore different places without wasting your money
Whenever I travel with my parents I get information about that place from my cousin. My cousin loves travelling and he has explored many places. He knows how to save money on travelling. So this is a very simple but powerful step to a lot of money. In this way, you must also apply the concept of frugality while planning for travelling.
Recently I visited one place for the first time. That was my family trip. And along with us my cousin also there. With his help, I saved money on travelling. I’m assuming you can also find someone in your friends or family who has more knowledge about various places. So ask help from such person to plan your trip. And you can also save money by pre-booking of rooms.
Be thrifty today to fulfil all your dreams
Whatever goals or dreams you may have in your life, you need money to fulfil your dreams. This is the reality of life. For example- if you want to opt for any particular academic course to set your career then you need money for this. So the early you understand the importance of money and adapt frugal living, you will be capable to fulfil your dreams.
Many people have YOLO (You Live Only Once) and FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) mentality. Due to this mentality, they spend more money on unnecessary things. But you must remember that this type of mindset is not good for your pocket or even for your overall growth. You can’t save more money if you don’t train your mind well to be frugal. So start to read good money related books or talk with your friends and family about money matter and realise the importance of money. All this will help you to create the right money mindset and by this, you can easily adapt frugal living without depriving yourself.
Even I created the right kind of money mindset by reading good money-related books. I started to adapt frugal living in my pre-teens because I realised the importance of money. And now good financial books are helping me to be more frugal in my life. Rich Dad Poor Dad is my favourite book. Let me know in the comment section if you have read any money-related book.
Being frugal does not mean that you will not have fun in life. Frugal living itself is an interesting art which will help you to be more creative in life. You can save money without compromising the quality of life. Never think that you can’t have fun by being frugal. So follow all the practical ideas in your life if you are thinking about how to live frugally without depriving yourself.