I Am a Certified Financial Coach!

 I have recently become a Certified Financial Coach! I made my first video and uploaded it to YouTube. 

I am taking the blogs off of this site and making them into videos. Without this blog and my readers here, I am not sure where I would start! This has given me a great place to launch from so thank you for reading! I hope you will check out my videos. 

I also have a website here: https://lyohnk.wixsite.com/freedomfc 

Thanks for reading! 

Happy Savings!

Change Your Think into a Thunk! Cheap Protein Sources

I have recently read in the news that some beef and pork plants have temporarily shut down because of Covid-19 cases in their workers. This is supposed to be temporary but what that may mean to us is a temporary lack of the abundance we are used to and a potential for a bit of inflation. For some, who aren't able to handle any hike in price or you are simply needing to cut back because you have no income you may be looking for some cheap protein sources. Fortunately, there are a number of them! You don't have to spend $5.00 a pound for hamburger or more for roasts and steaks! Here are some cheaper protein sources: 

Eggs are a great protein source and are quite inexpensive and they are so versatile! You can have them scrambled, poached, boiled or made into an omelet. You can make an egg-salad sandwich. You can make deviled eggs. You can put them in baked goods. If you carry your lunch, which is much more inexpensive than eating out, you can put a boiled egg or two in your lunch with whatever sides you want. At $1.20 per dozen, eggs are only .80 a pound. 

Another great source of protein is beans and rice. You can make beans and rice in a number of different ways. You can make them for dinner and they are also easy to put in a container for a packed lunch, as long as you have a refrigerator and microwave to keep them in. Rice is very inexpensive and quantity buying can make a  difference, but expect about .75 a pound and beans around .80 a pound. 

Dried beans are an amazingly cheap source of protein. You can make Boston baked beans, split pea soup, lentils and a number of other bean dishes and soups. One trick I like to do is save bacon grease from when I make bacon. I freeze it and then put the bacon grease in the beans. This has the tendency to make one feel extra thrifty and makes the dish more tasty. A pound of dried pinto beans is about $1.04 a pound.

Canned fish is a good source of protein and keeps very well. You can buy tuna, canned salmon, sardines and a number of other canned meats like oysters, octopus etc.  A can of tuna like the one below is about .80. 

Refried beans can be used as a substitute for hamburger in burritos or eaten with tortilla chips. A one pound can is about $1.00.

One meat that is very low priced is chicken gizzards. I really like them but not everyone does. I love them fried. They run about $1.39 a pound.

Chicken Leg quarters are also inexpensive at about $1.07 a pound. They are very versatile and there are so many way to cook them. Add some rice and a side of canned green beans and you can create a very inexpensive, filling and tasty dish for very little. 

During this time, it's time to put our creative hats on. When we change our think into a thunk, meaning we change our thinking to fit the challenge, we can learn new skills and make a difference for ourselves, our family and the world at large. Happy Savings and be safe!

Change Your Think into a Thunk: Stop Giving Your Money to the Rich-Part 2

Yesterday kind of got me on a roll so I decided to make another installment on this topic. Yesterday I demonstrated how most people willingly give their money to the rich every day through interest payments by choosing to buy an everyday coffee or other somewhat frivolous item rather than paying down their debt. In doing so, they are voluntarily giving their money to the rich in interest payments every month rather than choosing to pay down debt. Not only does this make that coffee cost that much more but the money goes to the rich.

But there is another whole aspect to this which is the use of credit cards. I am not talking about credit card debt this time. I am talking about the tiny percentage that goes to the rich every single time you use your credit card. That’s right! Even if you have a 0% interest card and pay it off at the end of every month, the simple fact that Americans use credit cards takes thousands and thousands of dollars out of our communities and puts that money into the hands of the rich every single day.

Here’s how it works. Businesses know that customers want to use credit cards for convenience. This means that businesses pay the credit card companies processing fees and costs. Depending on the credit card company, the cost for processing will be about 1.95%-2.50%. According to instoredoes.com “Although all credit card processors are subject to the same interchange and assessment rates for their issuing bank, the merchant services provider you select can change your costs by thousands each year. On average, however, credit card transaction fees on a $100 charge would amount to between$2.50 and $3.” This is from a 2013 article. http://instoredoes.com/making-cents-of-credit-card-processing-fees/ Credit card processing fees can be very complicated so it’s hard to know actual costs. However, because of the high demand for credit card use among consumers, businesses know that their sales will go up if they take credit cards even though they have to pay these fees to do so but what it means is that thousands and thousands of dollars leave every single community in the Unites States every single day by the choices everyone makes. Even though these fees seem invisible to the consumer, prices rise on everything because of them and so consumers end up paying the costs even though they are not seen. 

Many people complain about the shrinking middle class and so much money going into the pockets of the rich. Especially those who complain about and are concerned about the shrinking middle class should consider controlling what we can control.

Now I am going to be honest. I do use credit cards and I use them to my advantage. Credit card companies pay me to use their credit cards. Why? Because we either pay 0% or pay the cards off at the end of every month. Still, credit card companies want us to use their cards even though they give us rewards like airline miles and cash back. Why would they do this? Because of transaction fees they get from the businesses. However, sometimes I pay in cash because I know that this money goes out of our communities and I just hate that. If we all started paying more often in cash, we would keep a lot more money in our communities.

Have you ever read articles about how only criminals need cash? Boy would credit card companies love for us all to think that! If we all used cash everywhere, it would cause a revolution. A real revolution! We would have thousands more dollars to invest in our communities every single month.

So, my opinion is this: If you want to support your communities pay off consumer debt, car loans and student loans before you support your community by buying from them. After that, you will have much more money to support your communities with. And, when you buy, don’t use credit cards as often or maybe not at all. (There are no hard and fast rules to this-we each need to tailor make how we apply these principles and there is no judgment here!)

But we have so much more power than we think. We are not powerless. We can make a difference.

Stop giving your money to the rich!

Happy Savings!

Change Your Think into a Thunk: Stop Giving Your Money to the Rich!

 We hear a lot these days about the rich and how horrible they are and how they get all the breaks. But today, I want to let you in on a little secret. Most Americans voluntarily give their money to the rich every day. “What???” You might say? “No way! People do not voluntarily give their money to the rich! People struggle! People suffer financially! They don’t choose to do this!” To this I say “Yeah way. Every. Single. Day. People line up and voluntarily give their money to the richest among us.”

“How can this be?” you might ask. First, let me tell you a little about myself. My husband and I got married very young, had a baby right away, had no college educations (still don’t-although I am working to change that) and were dirt poor. We did not rely on our parents to help us out and it was tough. Over thirty years later, after many bumps in the road (lost jobs, cancer etc.), we own a thriving business and are doing well. If we had listened to the people who claimed we were victims of circumstance, with no hope, we never could have gotten to where we are now. Through hard work, smarts, force of will and the blessings of God, we have what we have now.

It is true that you can’t control everything and sometimes things are beyond your control. But there are things you can control and that is what I want to talk about now. What you can control is this: Stop feeling like a victim and stop giving your money to the rich.

Step one: Stop throwing your money away on things that are not necessary. Let’s pretend that you don’t spend $5.00 (Starbucks) a day on coffee but just $1.00 a day. You might even think you are being frugal! That $1.00 cup of coffee you get from the convenience store every morning is unnecessary. ($30.00 a month! Brew your own at home!) That $5.00 lunch you get 6 times a month is unnecessary. ($30.00 a month! Pack it from home) Whatever and wherever you spend money on unnecessary things, figure it out and change your routine. Then comes step two.

Step two: So, let’s say you didn’t buy that coffee or that lunch this month. You just saved $60.00 a month! Now, let’s say you have a credit card balance. 

According to Money “On average, an American between the ages of 18 and 65 has $4,717 of credit card debt. According to CreditCards.com, the average credit card’s interest rate is 15%. At the minimum payment of $189, it’ll take 10 years and a month to pay off that $4,717. The total payments would amount to $22,869. That’s a $18,155 cost for a very small loan.” http://time.com/money/4213757/average-american-credit-card-debt/This is talking about the average American. That is a singular person, not a family. According to CNN, the average American family owes $8377 in credit card debt alone. So, if you as a single person, had a credit card debt of $4717 at 15% interest rate and paid the minimum every month, you would pay an extra $18,155 for the privilege of having that debt. This is how millions of Americans give money to the rich every single day. By choice! “But it’s not a choice!” you say! And I say “It is a choice when you continue to buy that $1.00 coffee every day instead of brewing your own. Instead, you could be paying off that debt ahead of schedule and it is very important that you do not charge anything else!”

Americans give money to the rich every day with interest on house payments, car payments, student loan payments, credit card debt etc. etc. Admittedly *some* of that is necessary. But Americans give money away like floats throw candy away at parades and then complain about the rich having all the money.

The way to get ahead is to change your think into a thunk. Instead of *thinking* the way most Americans do, say “I thunk that”. Past tense.

Americans are rich beyond measure. We are rich beyond many societies of the past and present. Our problem is less one of not having enough than managing it well. Yes, there are some who truly struggle. I know. I did too. But giving your money to the rich is not a way to win this game. Once you tighten your belt and learn to stop giving your money away and get your debt paid down, you will see how fast it can grow. Then….

Step three: Once you stop giving your money away to the rich, you can invest your expendable income and your money can grow!

I hope with the new tax bill breaks coming up that people will not give their extra money to the rich and instead invest it into themselves. I hope instead of taking that extra vacation, buying those extra clothes, buying that TV etc. that Americans will instead to choose to get rid of debt and make wise choices for themselves.

Change your think into a thunk and stop giving to the rich!

Happy Savings!

Change your Think into a Thunk: The Big Middle Class Squeeze

I recently found out that our health insurance premiums are going up by $400.00 per month this year to keep the same coverage. Many people I have talked to are having their coverage go up by $200.00, $300.00, $400.00....even $1000.00 a month! 

I thought it might be helpful to talk a little bit about the economic state of the middle class today BEFORE this huge rate hike in insurance premiums for middle class Americans. A lot of people don't know much about economics. (I developed a personal interest about 10 years ago and have read a lot on the economy plus taken a class for good measure). The middle class has been slowly gutted. Liberals like to blame this on corporations and Conservatives like to blame it on big government. It's my personal opinion they are in bed with each other. Many people move from Wall Street positions into government positions and vice versa. It's my opinion that the government and corporations use the idea of community and compassion to continue to gut us out. Americans saw their wealth plummet by **40%** from 2007 to 2010. 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/fed-americans-wealth-dropped-40-percent/2012/06/11/gJQAlIsCVV_story.html 

Much of this was in housing equity so it didn't all affect the monthly bottom line. These losses had to get mopped up somewhere. Companies scrambled to make up losses by putting more and more work on less and less people. There is a consistent squeeze on the middle class like frogs in a pot. 50% of Americans don't have $500 to cover a car repair. 

http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-americans-with-no-emergency-savings-0108-biz-20160107-story.html

 Americans who save have a median retirement savings of less than $60,000. 

http://www.fool.com/retirement/general/2015/01/10/the-typical-american-has-this-much-in-retirement-s.aspx 

The average student loan debt for 2016 is $37,172. 

https://studentloanhero.com/student-loan-debt-statistics/ 

So, you take the fact that people have lost equity in their homes, many don't have $500 at their disposal, the median retirement savings is $60,000 and the average student loan debt for 2016 is $37,172, jacking up health care costs for all those middle class people on top of everything else is disastrous. The picture is not rosy. We need to stop relying on the government to save us and start getting smart with our own money. We need to change our think into a thunk. 

Change Your Think into a Thunk: Frugality is a Mindset

Frugality is a mindset and something that should be practiced everyday in order to live a truly frugal lifestyle. Sometimes people practice frugality like they practice dieting. A crash diet is when you eat what you want and then suddenly realize you weigh too much and then you starve yourself in order to fit into that size 10 dress for so and so's wedding. This is not a good way to diet and it isn't a good way to practice frugality.

If you were to eat right every day and not overindulge, there would be no need for a crash diet because eating right would just be your lifestyle. So too with frugality.

I write a lot about "changing your think into a thunk" because in my thinking, the goal is to change to where frugality is part of who you are. Frugality isn't just something to do as a hobby or to save a few dollars after a big splurge at the mall. It is a lifestyle to be lived. 

Just as there are many benefits to eating right every day (and we all fall off the wagon once in a while....and must forgive ourselves). there are benefits to being frugal every single day. I don't think berating yourself is a good approach if you overindulge. The key to my way of thinking is to remind yourself of what you are gaining and not what you are losing.

What are you gaining? Less stress. More peace. Freedom from worry. Learning a new skill. More fun in the long run. A better savings account. Retirement! There are so many things you can gain. Every day small sacrifices can cause big gains in the future. So....change your think into a thunk and.....

Happy Savings! 

Changing Your Think into a Thunk: Deciding to Work or Stay Home

There are many factors involved in whether to stay home with your children or work outside the home. First, there are your own personal values to consider. Is being at home with your children uppermost in your list of values? If so, it is good to consider how much it really costs you to work. It costs a surprising amount of money to work a job. Assuming you have a spouse who will bring home one income, let's consider some of the costs of working outside the home for a second income.

1. First, is the cost of child care. Child care costs are very expensive.  

The average cost of center-based daycare in the United States is $11,666 per year($972 a month), but prices range from $3,582 to $18,773 a year ($300 to $1,564 monthly), according to the National Association of Child Care Resource & Referral Agencies (NACCRRA).

 2. When you stay at home, your food costs are much lower. You won't need nearly as much convenience foods and stretching the budget is much easier. 

3. You won't have as much expense for automobile costs as you will be driving less and, if your circumstances allowed, could possibly even get buy with one less car.

4. You won't need to spend as much on clothing. Plus you will have time to shop at thrift stores vs just running in and out of stores buying what you need as fast as you can. 

5. You will pay less in taxes. This is a real cost when you consider hourly pay.

6. You will have more time for thinking of how to be more frugal in every area of your life.

7. You may find yourself feeling content with less since the friends you have will have more of the same frugal mindset than dual income couples.

8. You may be able to come up with a way to create income from home. 

Here is a stay at home calculator. (I haven't personally used this but there are many such calculators online and you can find one to fit your needs!) http://www.parents.com/pregnancy/considering-baby/financing-family/calculator/ Using this, you should be able to calculate whether you can afford to quit your job or not.

For me personally, I felt I couldn't afford to not stay home with my children. It was something I deeply wanted to do. Having done so, I learned to be very frugal. It was such that, after my children were older, (and since I wasn't paid a huge hourly wage!) that working more than 20 hours per week actually cut into what I was able to make, because after 20 hours, I wasn't able to be as frugal as before because my time was spent at the job rather than doing frugal things. 

This is a very personal decision for every couple, but I think you would be surprised at how much it actually costs you to work and that you just might be able to quit and make it much more easily than you thought!

Happy Savings!

Change Your Think Into a Thunk: Getting Rid of Credit Card Debt

According to an article on nerd wallet, the average American household has $15,762.00 in credit card debt.  https://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/credit-card-data/average-credit-card-debt-household/

According to this article, the average APR on a credit card with a balance on it is 13.93% in Q3, 2015.
http://www.creditcards.com/credit-card-news/credit-card-industry-facts-personal-debt-statistics-1276.php

That's a lot of debt and a lot of interest! There once was a day in time when debt was frowned upon and people paid for things as they went. There was a belief in thrift and frugality in America. Somehow, the American mindset was changed and debt has become normal. 

Getting rid of debt and changing your think into a thunk is not easy in this culture we live in. If people are asked out to dinner and a movie with friends and they don't have the money, they just use the credit card. If they then decide to cut back and be thrifty, it becomes somewhat of an embarrassment to say no and, it also feels somewhat isolating. I think these are some of the reasons that people live the way they do. People don't intend to rack up debt, it's just when you are at the mall with your friends, and they are all buying stuff, you don't want to feel left out. 

However, when you get that credit card bill, the pain is private. Changing your think into a thunk means suggesting free things to do with your friends or, even staying home when they go out to dinner or the mall. That can be hard and it takes a commitment. 

Many people in this time are upset about big banks and how much money they make. But, isn't America complicit in this and isn't America guilty when people regularly volunteer to pay big banks and credit card companies interest every day simply by the choices they make? Not only that, but every time you swipe your credit card, (never mind the interest) a percentage goes to the credit card company, rather than your local establishment. This is paid for by the local communities to the banks for the simple convenience of swiping the card. Not only is America in debt, America somewhat puts itself into slavery by the choices that are made. It's time to stop.

So, first, how to get the money to start paying down your personal debt? Here are some ideas:

1. Stop going out to eat. Brown bag it for lunch for work.

2. Instead of going to see a movie, watch one at home and make your own popcorn.

3. Check your insurance rates to see if you can find better rates elsewhere.

4. Check your phone/cable rates and see if you can get better rates elsewhere.

5. If you have a mortgage, check and see if you are paying Private Mortgage Insurance, otherwise known as PMI. You are required to pay this if you don't have at least 20% down on your loan. After you have 20% down, you can drop this, but it is not likely anyone will tell you this. You could save around $100.00 a month.

6. Stop buying convenience foods and learn to cook at home. Crock-pots are a great time-saver if you work and want a hot meal ready at the end of the day when you get home and they are inexpensive to buy. 

7. Start drinking water instead of soda or coffee. Good for your health too!

8. If you buy coffee out, make it at home.

9. Stop paying for cable and get Netflix instead. You will also save time because there are no commercials and you won't see ads trying to convince you to buy more things!

10. Use your local library.

11.Shop at thrift stores for clothing. There are many like new and even new items at thrift stores.

12. Sell things you are no longer using on eBay or Craigslist.

13. Look into credit cards that have better interest rates.

14. Install a programmable thermostat and save on heating and cooling bills. 

15. Shop ads for groceries. 

There are different ideas on how to pay down that debt once you start generating money. Dave Ramsey believes in paying off the smallest card first according to his debt snowball plan: https://www.daveramsey.com/blog/get-out-of-debt-with-the-debt-snowball-plan/ Others believe you should start with the highest interest rate card first. I think you should do what you are most comfortable with. The important thing is not how it's done, but that you start.

It feels SO good to pay down that debt and know that you are helping yourself in the process. Change your think into a thunk and.....

Happy Savings!!

Change Your Think to a Thunk: Frugality Means Freedom!

Many people, when they think about frugality think of an austere, miserable existence. They perhaps envision huddling beneath a blanket in a cold room, eating an unheated can of beans. To me, this is not what frugality means at all. To me, frugality means........FREEDOM!

There are many ways in which frugality can mean freedom, but the way I think of it most is in time. Basically, when you work a job, you are selling your time for a fixed rate. Many people don't think of their jobs in this way, but in actuality, that is exactly what people do. Some people sell their hours for $10.00 an hour....some sell their hours for $26.00 and some sell them for $76.00. But no matter what you do for a living, you are selling your time for a fixed rate. 

When you think of your life as hours selling time in order to pay for things you want or need, and turn these thoughts around, you can see that any time you save money on something, those are hours of your life you do not need to sell in order to get what you want. 

Once you get your head wrapped around this idea, you may find yourself wanting less. Wanting less is one way to having more freedom to do what you want. Another way is finding ways to save money. If you make $10.00 an hour in your day job and you save $30.00 clipping coupons and the time it took clipping coupons was 1/2 hour, you save $25.00 or 2.5 hours of your time that you would have had to otherwise spend on your job making money for the same things.

I read a book recently that said "We can't retire, we went out to eat instead". The same concept applies with frugality and freedom. The more money you save, the less you have to work and the less you feel stressed about the money you don't have. This means freedom to perhaps work a part-time job instead of a full-time one. It could mean staying home with your kids. It could mean the freedom to start your own business. It could mean the freedom to retire early. 

Frugality truly is freedom. It means options. It means empowerment and taking your life into your own hands rather than feeling like you have to do things a certain way. It all adds up and when it adds up, it means you have the power to do what you want more than you thought. Change your Think into a Thunk and Change your Life!!

Change Your Think to a Thunk: Average American Pays 9% of Income for Interest!! Don't Let This Be You!

I just read an article by Clark Howard that says that Americans pay 9% of their income to interest every year!! This seems just incredible to me. This means that 9% of most people's income is going right out the door and into the pockets of bankers. http://www.clarkhoward.com/dont-let-credit-card-interest-cripple-finances?ecmp=clarkhoward_social_facebook_sfp

I am not sure how this interest is broken down. I don't know how much of it is credit card interest and how much is house payment interest and how much is car payment interest etc. but 9% is a huge amount to be paying for the privilege to use money.

How would it be if Americans could simply put that 9% into a retirement account so they could afford to retire someday? There are many, many Americans who aren't even able to think about retirement and believe they will never retire.

If you make $35,000 a year and you are the average American, $3,150 of your income goes straight out the window. What could you do with $3,150 more per year?

Can we change this? Many people are choosing to give 9% of their money away per year to interest. Now, I understand bringing that down to 0% might not be possible, but certainly it could be brought down some. Contrary to some political pundits, we do have a much larger amount of control over our own financial destiny than some would have us believe. The big bankers do take our money but we have to consider that we might be somewhat complicit in this. Sometimes we have emergencies and sometimes we have needs that must be met but sometimes, we just want what we want when we want it and this is what gets us in trouble.

In the book The Millionaire Next Door, it talks about how people who are self-made millionaires do two things.....they work on the offensive and the defensive. This means they both make as much money as they can and they save as much money as they can. Most people who live in affluent neighborhoods are good at the offensive but not so good at the defensive, meaning they spend what they make and sometimes more than they make. Not too many will make it to being a millionaire but we can all work on both the offensive (making as much as we can) and the defensive (spending as little as we can).

http://www.amazon.com/The-Millionaire-Next-Door-Surprising/dp/1589795474

Most people who make it into the self made millionaire categories do not live in affluent neighborhoods. They live like a regular Joe and save their money.

What does this have to do with the average American paying 9% interest? It means that people often live beyond their means.

Many financial advisers advise that people pay off their credit cards and get out of debt. Dave Ramsey calls this the debt snowball. You decide that big bankers taking 9% of your money in interest is offensive. You decide that rather than help them live the good life, you want to help yourself live the good life. Instead of spending, you save and put that onto either your smallest credit card bill (some say this has a better immediate gratification) and pay that off or you put it on your highest interest credit card and pay that off. After that, you work to pay the next one off etc. Doing this, you work your way slowly out of debt. When you pay off the first credit card, you take that money that you would be paying onto that card and put it on your next one. Hence, the snowball.

Just think if Americans everywhere did this. This would be 9% more (potentially or at least a percentage of that) in our pockets for our retirements, our fun, our charity work, our communities.

Let's stop supporting the big bankers and support ourselves. The first step is acknowledging that most of us can.

Happy Savings!

Changing your Think to a Thunk: Frugality Ethics

Sometimes when people think about saving money, couponing etc, ethics comes into play. I thought I would outline my thoughts on the ethics that I believe are good guidelines when being frugal.
I like to think of myself as an ethical person. I don't believe in trying to save money while taking advantage. Different people will draw these lines in different places. However, I believe that sometimes people can also be TOO ethical when it comes to saving money and end up shortchanging themselves!

• If you have an opportunity to take advantage of a company deal that offers you so much percent off or three free months with no obligation, I don't feel it is unethical to take them at their word when they say "no obligation". This means you can take advantage of one deal and then hop to the next one. Some people feel they are being unethical when they hop to the next deal from the next company, especially if this means they are getting more stuff/months for free. I look at it this way: companies are taking risks and assessing those risks along the way. This means, they are going to account for a few smart people who are going to take them at their word (no obligation) and get the deal and move on. They know and assess that there will be a group that will take the deal and stay and this is why they offer the deal. You are not wrong for taking the deal and leaving after three months (or however long the free time is for).
• Time share deals. I have a couple of these coming up. I have agreed to sit through a time-share presentation for a great vacation deal. I have no qualms about this. I just plan to say no to the time-share. The companies know that they will have to give out so many vacation deals to get one time share sale and this is a risk they sign up for and take. I have a deal with the company that I get the deal from to I sit through the presentation and I have no obligation to buy. I get some great vacations this way and I fulfill my obligation by doing what I said I would do....sitting through the presentation.
• Once I got a free hotel night because the room a hotel gave us was not cleaned. By this I mean there was hair on the sheets, urine on the toilet seat and used soap bars in the tub. I felt if I was the management of this hotel, I would want to know and have the opportunity to make it right. However, there are people who try to scam companies by complaining about things. I feel this is unethical. I try to put myself in the shoes of the management in these situations and ask myself how I would feel. Is it a legitimate complaint? If it is legitimate, I will complain. However, I don't want to complain about smaller things and get employees in trouble. I will only complain if it is a reasonable complaint.
• I worked at a social services agency for a while and I knew some clients that would go around to restaurants, order food and complain about anything for free coupons. In a word: unethical. 
• Dumpster Diving: I have no problem with dumpster diving. I tried it once and came back empty. I was going to try it in a far away city on vacation once but looked up the ordinances and saw it was illegal in that city. I want to try it sometime in a far away city where it is legal for the experience. I can't say I would do this on a regular basis but I have a bit of admiration for those who do. We throw away way too much in this society. So, I think dumpster diving is entirely ethical. 
• Free coupons. There are people who sell free coupons and it is a huge business. However, I think much of it is tantamount to counterfeiting. Companies now are usually putting strips on free coupons that can't be counterfeited to try and keep this from happening. I love free coupons, but I won't use them if I think they are counterfeit. All this does is cause companies to raise prices for all of us. 

So, to sum up, I think people should save money where they can. Sometimes saving money can go against societal convention, but I have no problem with going against societal convention if I believe societal convention is wrong. When you look at the huge debts people have in their lives and the stranglehold it has on them, I believe society is headed the wrong way with material goods. There is a difference between societal convention and ethics. Societal convention tells us what we "should" or "shouldn't" do based on what the majority do or don't do. This has nothing to do with ethics. Ethics is about being a good human being and not hurting others while you try and do the best you can for yourself. So, I want to do the best I can for myself and I view that as a good and healthy way to live. But I also want the best for my fellow human beings. Companies take risks, that is part of life. We can play this"game" and we can win. And we should win. But we should be ethical while we play. 

Change Your Think into a Thunk: Flipping Burgers to Flipping Millions

I just finished a book my daughter recommended called Flipping Burgers to Flipping Millions.

There is a thought process today that people are hurting financially simply because they don't make enough money. Although making more money never hurts in that regard, I would like to suggest that perhaps what we think about money is more important than how much of it we make. The author of this book has demonstrated this in his life. He has worked for McDonalds all his life. He started at an entry level position there and put up with the guffaws about him "only" working for McDonalds. He is now a multi-millionaire.

 Bernard talks about doing meaningful work and how all work can be meaningful. Instead of looking down on burger flipping, he focuses on the positives and shows how it is a service. He shows how all honest work is worth doing.

 In the below charts, Bernard shows how he started small and worked his way up to overseeing a number of stores. He shows how since he started saving for retirement young and didn't touch the money, that he will be set for life and his descendants will also be set.

The book is primarily for young people to be inspired to start saving young. However, it is good to start at any age. What I love about this book is that it thoroughly empowers people to do what they can with what they have and that they can make a difference for themselves by doing small things now. 

Happy Savings!

Change your Think into a Thunk: Types of Thinking in Social Classes

I have talked about changing your think into a thunk before. What I mean by this is learning to think differently about money. For my personal journey, I remember literally having to change from a poor mindset into a wealthier one. Here is a chart that talks about different mindsets in different social classes from the book Bridges Out of Poverty. I hope you can read it easily. 

You may recognize yourself in some of these thinking patterns. It is not necessary to completely change your thinking if you see value to a certain mindset. However, when money is seen, for example as something only to be used or spent and not something to be managed, it can really keep you from growing financially. You may feel you have nothing to manage, but managed pennies turn into managed dollars. I am reading a book right now that I intend to do a blog on later about a man who started out working at McDonalds and still works there who is now a millionaire. Truly, what you do with your money matters sometimes more than how much you make.

So, hopefully you can use this chart to challenge your thinking a bit and find out where you fit. If you think poor, you can work on changing that mindset a bit.

Happy savings!

Change Your Think to a Thunk

Many people want to change their financial situation but either do something one time and wonder why it doesn't make a difference, or simply feel overwhelmed at making changes in their lives. After all, they are tired, overworked and stressed. Living frugally is indeed a lifestyle change and must be in order to make any real difference, but change should be made in small steps.

Change your Think to a Thunk.

Saying to yourself "I think things can be different" is the first step. In making small changes daily, you can turn that think into a thunk....meaning things are different because of choices you have made. I thunk it and so it became true. Okay, so that's a little corny, but the thought sticks. Every time you feel frustrated with your finances, you can say to yourself "I am going to change my think to a thunk". Or you can make up your own little mantra, whatever works for you. Just remind yourself that things don't have to be the way they are. They can indeed be better.

In this blog, I intend to post things that we regularly do around here that save money. Many of them are small things that all add up into a lot of savings.

If you could give yourself a tax-free raise, wouldn't you do it? Many people will work extra for some extra money because they know exactly what they are getting per hour. Translate what you save into per hour wage to help you figure out what you are doing for yourselves.

For example, (and I hesitate to use this example, lest men think this is a housewife blog....I will have many household tips but my husband also does many frugal things and I will be including some of those things in the blog too) if you normally run to the supermarket and pick up a few things.....after work you are rushing madly, grabbing things as you go, knowing that you don't have much at home....this looks good and that looks good, you have to eat after all.....that can cost you a lot of money. If you spend some time, even an hour per week preparing your shopping trips, you can save $20-$30 a week on groceries.

That's $20.00-$30.00 an hour TAX FREE!! Granted, you can only do this once a week, but are you better off working that extra hour at work or using that time to save on grocery shopping? Depending on your wage, you can make this decision for yourself. Or, you can do both. But there are many things this applies to, grocery shopping just being the tip of the iceberg.

So, make small changes every day. Learn what some of those small changes are and change your Think to a Thunk. Tax free. :)