Spend Less, Live More

The interesting thing about struggling to save money is that at some point in the process it feels like your life gets better. It doesn't feel like a sacrifice, it feels like you have discovered a greater quality of life.

How is this? How does life get better when we have less?

When we are working all the time, long hours to pay for a house we can barely afford, we don't have as much time with our family. We go out to dinner or go to a show, we are fed and entertained for the moment, but then it's over and we need to go on to the next thing - there's a disconnect in that. It's not about the person we are with, but about the logistics getting there, parking, ordering, paying, getting home... with some conversation sprinkled in.

The first thing you discover when you are cutting back, is that suddenly you seem to have more time. For some reason, cooking your own food takes less time than going out to eat. And then you have leftovers, so you spend less time cooking the next day. This extra time gives you more quality, less-frantic, time to talk and explore and discover things about the ones closest to you. Conversations are allowed to go deeper than the quick "How was your day...?", you find yourself talking about more important things - going beyond the mundane, to the places of your dreams and goals.

The amazing thing about trying to save money with food, is that inevitably you eat healthier.

A bag of chips, at $4 can be eaten in seconds. Eating lots of meat is more expensive than a more balanced diet. Just simply cutting out all the junk food, and snacking on veggies, fruit, or home-made goodies will save a lot. Cutting back on meat, eating it a few times a week, rather than every night, will save you a lot. Try making this one simple change, and see what it does to your grocery bill.

If you want to save even more, cook with fresh foods rather than buying canned. I did this not long ago, using fresh tomatoes and dried beans for chili - at the time, I was trying to avoid the BPA in canned goods. What I found was that it was 1) cheaper, but 2) really easy. It was no harder to cook with fresh tomatoes, or to soak the beans in water. The idea that cans are more convenient is wrong. It cost more, and doesn't taste as good.

And for those of you who really want to save money on food, and eat healthier in the process, plant a garden this spring. Fresh veggies and herbs from the garden save money, and taste better than anything you can buy in a store. It also reconnects you with the earth, it feels good to go out to the garden, smell the earth, tend to the plants, share with your neighbors... life feels wholesome again. Life feels like life.

When we have lots of money, we run out and buy everything we need to do things around the house. When we don't have money, we fear that everything will start falling apart from neglect.

Neither of those needs to be true. There's another option.

Work together with your friends, family, and neighbors. Borrow each other's tools. Help each other with projects. It saves money, it's more productive, it's more fun. Those projects that you've been putting off, are finally getting done. Life is good, and your schedule is opening up for more good times.

The first thing you give up when trying to save money, is probably going out. No more going to movies, or out on the town.

This may be depressing, but watching a movie at home with a few friends is way more fun than paying the $20 to see a movie in a cold theater with popcorn.

And if you go beyond the need to just substitute for a cheaper activity, when you realize how many absolutely FREE things there are to do, then life takes on a whole new perspective.

Go out. Hike in the woods. Swim at the beach. Picnic at the park. Volunteer to help in the community. Join groups that share your interests: book groups, writing groups, artists or musicians, or walking groups. Everywhere, there are groups of people meeting to do things with others that share their interest.

Meet new people. Try new things. Live life more fully.

All while saving money.

Why didn't we do this before?

The wonderful thing is, when you start making more money, your are enjoying your new lifestyle so much, that you don't go back to your old ways of spending - you prefer to save it...

Because life is just better that way.