People who used to be poor, what habits or rules from then do you still follow?
Posted Dec 20, 2017, 11:04 AM UTC
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Not poor but needed to live on a budget. Best thing I did was create a menu for the week. This made it easier to buy only what I needed at the grocery store and saved on waste
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Superior username.
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Cut down on things like "daily starbucks cup of coffee" or eating out everyday
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Fiscal fasts. I would try to go a certain period of time spending no money at all.
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I’ve never heard of fiscal fasting. Could you share your experience with it? Pitfalls, triggers, benefits?
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I would pay my bills and with whatever (if anything) was left I would try to see how long I could go without spending anything. It's just an exercise to decide what's necessary. Kind of like the psychological games you trick your mind with when dieting. Pitfalls included something unexpected, like the dog chewed my shoes and I needed a new pair. The benefits were my peace of mind knowing if I was flat broke I'd be ok til payday and could walk right by Starbucks and not feel deprived. It was like a game.
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It was like a game.
The game of life, my man.
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Now I can squeeze a penny til ol Abe is screamin.
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All those budget supermarket items out there, tried pretty much all of them. And the ones that are just as good as the expensive version, I'm not going to waste money, I still buy the budget one. If you have a large household, buy one get one free can be good (If products you'd buy anyway, bogof for needless stuff is a money drain, don't fall for it) but if you are single, or small household, if you have a friend or relative who's alone, you can split the bogof with them, saves you both money, and no food waste because you couldn't finish something in time. Think about what you can get out of a meal. A roast, the carcass can become a soup or stew the next day, surplus meat a sandwich or whatever. And a freezer is your friend, because you can bulk buy, batch cook, and save on the overall cost, while having a supply of meals ready to defrost.
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Agreed. Food costs can quickly be brought under control with planning. Find a home-based hobby rather than going out. There’s few greater feelings to beat not having to sweat the money each month; it’s quite addictive.
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Pay your bills first, save (in) what you can, plan ahead, health is a non issue (we always pay what we need in health, no questions asked), trowing food is an insult.
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Never replace anything that still works. Upgrade my phone? Never done it. How about a flat screen in the bedroom? Nah, I'm good with this old 13" tube tv.
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budget, save, bring lunch, coupons, sales are good. buying a 1 or 2 year old car will save you money. looking is free. need versus want. costco.
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Buy clothing out of season when it's on clearance.
If you quickly find something you were going to buy online, go look through a few pages of related items. You may find the same thing cheaper or as part of a value pack.
Auto parts are usually MUCH cheaper online.
Always touch your keys before closing an exterior door.
Know how late you can get a check cashed or purchase a money order at various places.
When done shopping at a store, take a few minutes to go through your cart and pull out the things you really don't need to get this time.
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I always wait until things are on sale to buy them.
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My mother grew up poor and is now decidedly upper middle class. She's very reasonable and pretty economical, but what really stands out is her obsession with tupperware containers. She will save any container that seems even the slightest bit reusable, like doggy boxes from restaurants or empty peanut butter jars. I always thought it was just her, but I've learned that her sister (my aunt) does the exact same thing. This family has heaps and heaps of semi-reusable yogurt containers and jam jars.
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I have a ton of these soup containers and Italian food plates-bowl thingies.
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Learn to downsize and learn to love it.
If you go from wealth to poverty, there's a few things that will change. Most of those will be to learn to enjoy less.
Made tons of money and ate like a king before? Now you have to learn how to budget a week of food and buy mostly root vegetables and discount meats. Prosciutto isn't an essential. Local, bio, eco, free range or whatnot are noble concepts but out of your price range now. Survive first, wait until you're better to save the world.
If you travelled a lot you might want to discover what's in your area instead. If you did things on whim, now you will plan months ahead and you have to accept that you can't go when you feel like it. You won't die because you can't go to Vietnam this year. You will die if you don't eat this year.
Suddenly being poor will feel like a privation of freedom. But it doesn't have to be that way. Just learn to do more with less. Accept that things have changed and find new happiness in the little things.
Brush off those who say you're lazy or you're unresponsible. They're not helping and they don't know what they're talking about.
Your ego will be your enemy. You need food, cloths and shelter. There is no shame in asking for help. You cannot think that some things are too low for you. It just won't help you survive.
Your old life won't understand. They won't think twice about buying luxury while you struggle to have enough for groceries. What is a must for them is now an extravagance for you. Get new friends. Don't drain your bank account to keep up with your old friends.
At times, it feels a lot like in the movie "Blue". You might resent your situation , feel that you lost everything or that you are worth nothing. It's an incredible amount of stress. Factor that in and get help where you can. Booze and drugs won't fix your situation. They'll make you love your own misery if you're careless with them.
So to answer your question, being poor will make you tougher and make you learn that you can be as happy with a book than a trip to Greece. You learn how to drop preconceived ideas of status and wealth or being a "proper" consumer. Finally, it will make you learn that you are incredibly adaptable. Use that and keep trekking forward.
This is bloody well thought out and well written. And it reads like it’s written by someone who’s lived it and has internalized the concepts in it.
Thank you mate
Just have one question, would I have enough for a gaming setup/ps/Xbox if I lived spartanic as hell? Know it sounds dumb but atleast I could have some fun while being poor if I have some friends and a game or two