Well, apparently the author bug has really bitten me, because I’ve already released another book for the Amazon Kindle!

The book, “Family Money: Easy Ways to Cut Your Family’s Expenses,” is a light-hearted how-to book on ways to drastically slash your monthly expenses without correspondingly affecting your lifestyle. Through years of writing on Saving Without a Budget I’ve found that the single biggest reason people don’t adopt a frugal lifestyle is because they think they’re going to have to live a life of self-deprivation. It’s not because they’re lazy or stupid; it’s because they falsely believe they’re going to have to drastically alter the way they live day-to-day.

The book offers well over 100 simple ways individuals and families can reduce their monthly expenses without ever really noticing a change in their lives. These money saving tips are broken down into different types, like utilities, clothing, and groceries; i.e. the major expenses in people’s lives.

Considering the price of the book is only $3.97, buying Family Money is certainly a worthwhile investment, especially when you consider following just a few of the tips for less than a day will save you much more than $3.97!

Please leave a comment below and let me know what you think!

I know things have been quiet on Saving Without a Budget lately, and I apologize. That being said, I have a legit reason – I’m now a published author!

Over the past month, I’ve been working to get my ebook How to Make a Budget: Simple Budget Techniques and Ways to Save Money up on the Amazon Kindle platform. As of this morning, it is up and running, which I’m super pumped about! In fact, I’ve already made a few sales – that I know of – and have gotten three likes. No reviews yet, but hopefully soon enough.

Anyway, I would be absolutely thrilled if you headed over to Amazon and checked out the book – at the very least, clicking the like button up by the “write a review” link.

Thank you for your patience with Saving Without a Budget. I hope you enjoy How to Make a Budget: Simple Budget Techniques and Ways to Save Money so much that you forget all about the fact Saving Without a Budget has been dormant for the past month!

All too often I hear people complain about how hard it is to begin living frugally because they think they are going to have to live this terrible life in the World of No, meaning any impulse they have to spend money on something they’d like automatically must be shot down with a resounding no.

I’d like to think nothing could be further from the truth.

Yes, living a frugal life does require a bit of sacrifice and you are going to have to give up some of your guilty pleasures.  I’m not arguing that.  What I am saying, however, is that by choosing to live a frugal life you aren’t necessarily headed down the path of self deprivation either.  In fact, many people – myself included – feel their quality of life actually increases once they fully commit to living below their means and making a conscious effort to not get caught up in the rat race of “who can buy the most things.”

Frugal = Compromise

If you’re still having trouble with the concept I have a trick that may help.  Going forward, when you hear the word frugal and throw up in your mouth a bit, instead, use the word compromise.

Here is a great article by Meg Favreau of WiseBread, which, as its title suggests, gives you 12 Frugal Compromises you can make that allow you to avoid self deprivation while enjoying a life of living below your means:

When we talk about frugality, it can be easy to get into an “all or nothing” mentality. Our two options are to eat a big meal out or cook at home. To have a lot of stuff or pare down all of our possessions to the very basics. But the reality is that there are a lot of savings compromises that can be made — frugal things you can do that, while they may not save you as much money as other efforts, might also save you time, make you happier, or make your life easier. Here are 12 frugal compromises to consider.

Here’s the Cliff’s Notes version of the article, which, again, you should read in its entirety.

1. Buy part of your meal already prepared
2. Hire moving helpers
3. Meet somewhere cheap for dinner
4. Buy new accessories
5. Drink cheap beer… or just one nice beverage
6. Hire a cleaner once a month
7. Don’t take the car… sometimes
8. Get take out instead of delivery
9. Rearrange the furniture and buy one new thing
10. Have a coffee treat day
11. Trim your own bangs
12. Use disposables alongside reusables

Obviously, all of these things are little splurges that won’t sound like much if you’re currently living a lavish lifestyle.  That being said, take it from someone who has been practicing frugality for a few years: a lot of these little guilty pleasures can actually help to keep you on the frugal path.

So, what are your thoughts on this?  What are some frugal compromises you allow yourself to have?  Leave a comment below and, as always, please share this post using the social bookmarking buttons below and at the top of the page – especially Facebook and Twitter.

Editor’s Note: Throw out doesn’t necessarily mean put in the trash. Recycle, donate, sell or put in the garbage is what I mean.  Putting that in the title makes it a little long…

A little over a week ago, my wife and I did a deep clean of our house, and it was, in a word, awesome.

Even though we had only been in our house a little over eight months, we were able to get rid of enough stuff to donate seven boxes of clothes, linens, and electronics; recycle two bags of papers; and throw out three bags of stuff that should’ve been gone years ago.

Throw it out!

On top of that, our home now bigger and far more open, we can actually use the office, and, in general, we just feel a lot better because we’re not being suffocated by junk!

Obviously, I’m happy with what my wife and I did and I think we made some real progress.  That being said, I just found an article on Wise Bread that really, really wish we would have had prior to our deep clean.

In the article, “25 Things to Throw Out Today,” author Paul Michael not only lists the 25 things you need to throw out, but he also references my favorite quote from the movie Fight Club:

There’s a great quote from Fight Club, one of my favorite movies. It comes from Tyler Durden, Brad Pitt’s character, and it’s prophetic — “The things you own end up owning you.” After watching several seasons of Hoarders, that’s got to be one of the most truthful statements ever to come out of a movie.

Now, we all have a little hoarder inside each of us. We see some things that we just can’t bear to get rid of, probably because there’s an emotional attachment to them. Sometimes things are valuable, and we keep them for that reason. On rare occasions, we don’t even know why we’re hanging onto something, but we are.

Well, there’s a great feeling of liberation that can come from shedding these items. If you’d like to feel it yourself, here’s a list of 25 things that you should throw out today. And by that, I mean donate, dump, trash, incinerate, whatever you like… just remove them from your life.

You should certainly take the time to read the entire article, but for brevity’s sake, here’s the entire list of the 25 things you should throw out today:

1. Clothing and shoes you haven’t worn in the last 18 months
2. Old paint
3. Contents of the junk drawer
4. Dated receipts, paychecks, and bills
5. Unread books
6. Expired medicines and vitamins
7. Cups and mugs
8. Plastic containers
9. Linens
10. Power cords
11. Magazines
12. Spices
13. Old greeting cards
14. DVDs, VHS and audio tapes, CDs and video games
15. Makeup
16. Old underwear, socks, and bras
17. Dated technology, including old cell phones
18. Coat hangers
19. Toys
20. Those “fix it up” projects
21. Cribs, car seats, and other baby/toddler products
22. Perfumes and colognes
23. Jewelry
24. Rugs
25. Food

Check out "The Joys of Less" for more motivation on decluttering your home and life!

This, obviously, is a very inclusive list and highlights a lot of items we hold on to for nonsensical, and even reasonable reasons.

For me, getting rid of things like power cords, plastic containers, coat hangers, etc. is difficult because it’s easy for me to see a scenario where I could use the items in the future.  The problem is, those scenarios hardly ever come to fruition, so all I’m left with is something I don’t really need taking up space in my house.

Long story short, print out this list and over the next weekend or two, deep clean your house.  Sure, it’ll be painful while you’re in the middle of cleaning, but once you’re done you’re going to have gotten a rid of a lot of stuff and you’re going to feel great for it!

What do you think of this post?  Leave a comment below and, as always, please share this post by using the social bookmarking buttons below and at the top of the page – especially Facebook and Twitter!

One thing I noticed today is the fact I’m always on or paying attention to some sort of electronic device.  I’m always either checking email on my Blackberry, surfing the internet on my laptop, or watching something on TV.

(Well, not always, but probably much, much more than I should be.)

Stop trying to sell me stuff!

And, in today’s age of social media and 24 hour news, I’m pretty sure I’m not the only person who is overly connected and is probably much more reliant on electronic devices than I should be.

Obviously, being plugged in all the time this isn’t the greatest thing in the world because we should probably be out doing other stuff , but beyond that, it also makes it tough to continue to live a frugal life and avoid needlessly buying crap.

Think about it: your email, internet, TV, even texts, are constantly filled with things that are trying to get you to buy stuff you don’t really need.

More or less, electronics makes it tough to avoid wanting to go out and spend tons of money, especially if you’re already predisposed to be a big spender.

So, do yourself a favor and take this weekend off from your electronics.  Seriously, give it a try (especially if you feel like you’re going to get the shakes if you don’t check your email on a Saturday afternoon).

Leave your cell phone at home.  Don’t get on the internet.  Stay away from your TV.

I’d be willing to bet that by doing this you’ll end up spending a lot less money than you would otherwise – unless of course you escape your electronics by spending six hours at the mall!

So, on that note, have a great weekend and I’ll write more on Monday!

While driving home the other day, I heard the Bon Jovi song “Wanted Dead or Alive” on our local classic rock station – which, by the way, makes me sad that music I listened to as a child is now considered classic rock – and somehow became inspired to write a version of the song that would be good for Saving Without A Budget.

On that note (no pun intended) I came up with the following lyrics to “Wanted Debt or Alive,” which is about how many of us over spend using money that isn’t even ours to begin with.  So, because I’m not going to sing it to you, click play on the “Wanted Dead or Alive” video and read the lyrics as you listen to the song.

Enjoy!

It’s all the same
Only the stores will change
Everyday
It seems I’m spendin’ away

Another store
Where the sales are so bold
I shop all night
Because I’m easily sold

I’m a spender
On a Visa I ride
I’m wanted
Debt or alive
Wanted
Debt or alive

Sometimes I’m cheap
Most times it’s not for days
To the cashiers I meet
I’m glad to hand my pay

Sometimes you tell the day
By the bill that’s on the brink
And times when you’re alone
You buy everything but the kitchen sink

I’m a spender
On a Visa I ride
I’m wanted
Debt or alive
Wanted
Debt or alive

I’m a spender
On a Visa I ride
I’m wanted
Debt or alive

When I walk these streets
A loaded AMEX string on my back
I buy for keeps
‘Cause I might have to pay it back

I’ve spent everywhere
Still I’m spendin’ it all
I’ve seen a million offers
And I’ve bought them all

‘Cause I’m a spender
On a Visa I ride
I’m wanted
Debt or alive

I’m a spender
FICO’s not on my side
And I’m wanted
Debt or alive
And I’m wrong
Debt or alive
I still spend
Debt or alive

Debt or alive

What did you think?  Any good?  Worth putting together a YouTube video over?  Leave your comments below.

This weekend, my wife and I did our first deep clean of the home we bought give or take nine months ago.  And let me tell you, it was one of the most awesome and cathartic things we’ve done since moving in.

Decluttering is a cathartic experience!

(Well, that was definitely a bit of an overstatement, but it was certainly long overdue, and despite all of the hard work, it definitely made us feel great!)

After cleaning out what was meant to be the office but somehow became the de facto “junk room,” the garage, and our bedroom closet, we were able to donate seven boxes of stuff, recycle two bags of papers, throw out three bags of stuff, and ultimately lift what felt like a three ton weight off of our shoulders.

Long story short, I’m not really sure how to explain it, but getting rid of all of that stuff just felt great!

Before my wife and I started our deep clean, we had to lay down some ground rules.  After all, this wasn’t our first time attempting to deep clean, it’s just every time prior had ended up being nothing more than an exercise in futility.

As it turns out, there was really only one ground rule we need to abide by.  And, in an attempt to help expedite your spring/summer/fall/winter cleaning, I thought I would share the one rule that worked so well for my wife and me.

This is not my wife and me. If you can tell which is the woman, you win a prize.

When either of us would grab something, no matter what it was, and try decide whether or not to keep it, we had to ask ourselves: “Will I ever really look at, use, or need this again?” 

If the answer was anything other than a definitive yes, we had to put it in the donate, recycle, or trash pile.  If the answer was maybe, I think so, possibly, or even if there was a pause in our thought process, the item had to go.

Due to the fact we made de-cluttering such a black and white issue thanks to this rule/question and answer, we were able to get rid of things that had done nothing but take up space and collect dust.  Things like stuffed animals, broken DVD players, sweatshirts that hadn’t been worn in years, and useless papers – all gone.  And it felt great!

So, on that note, I would like to offer the following advice:

1. De-clutter and downsize, and do it immediately.  Your living space will feel a lot bigger and you won’t feel like such a slave to your possessions.
2. Enact the “will I ever really look at, use, or need this again?” rule.  This will maximize your de-cluttering efforts and expedite the awesomeness that comes with it!

Chance are, you’ll find tons of stuff to donate (which can lead to a nice tax write-off), recycle, and throw out.  And by getting rid of all that stuff, I guarantee it’ll feel great.

Now, enjoy this video on some extreme de-cluttering!

In a sad sign of the times, a recent survey found that a majority of Americans do not have enough cash in savings to be able to deal with just a $1,000 emergency expense. Considering most of us will face an unforeseen expense this large or larger in our lives, this statistic is very, very troubling.

Looks like a majority of us haven't been taking care of our piggy banks

The survey, which was done by the National Foundation for Credit Counseling (NFCC), found that 64% of Americans would have use something other than money on hand in order to be able to cover an unexpected $1,000 bill.

The largest number of close to 2,700 respondents, 36 percent, said they would tap their savings account to fund the unplanned expense. Utilizing rainy day funds for an emergency is exactly why a person saves, to protect them against the unknown. However, the remaining 64 percent are in a much different situation, living on a slippery financial slope.

The survey revealed that to resolve the problem, 17 percent of respondents indicated they would borrow the money from friends or family. Perhaps even more troubling is that another 17 percent said they would neglect existing obligations in order to satisfy the emergency need. This option can easily snowball out of control and have serious consequences. The next highest number of responses was in the category of selling or pawning assets, with 12 percent choosing this option. The resolution options of taking out a loan or obtaining a cash advance from a credit card were each selected by the least number of respondents, nine percent [each, combining for 18% in total].

Click here to read the entire press release from the NFCC.

These are certainly troubling statistics and underscore the importance of making sure you establish some sort of an emergency fund. After all, it’s not that hard to see how a random $1,000 expense can pop up once or twice per year – your car’s transmission needs to be replaced, your roof springs a leak, your refrigerator stops working, you break an arm and insurance only covers a portion of your out-of-pocket expenses… the list goes on and on.

So, what do you do if you don’t have an emergency fund? Start building one today!

The most straight forward way to do this is to combine slashing your unnecessary expenses – unused gym membership, premium cable channels, dining out, etc. – with living a frugal lifestyle – clipping coupons, finding free entertainment, hitting up the library, etc. – and then taking all that saved money and putting it into a savings account that you absolutely, positively do not touch.

This, of course, assumes that you’re not heavily in debt, in which case you should split the saved money between paying down your debt – high interest consumer debt, in particular – and building your rainy day fund.

After a few months you will hopefully you will have built a sizable enough fund that you could take on an unforeseen $1,000 expense without having to take drastic measures.

What do you think about this survey? Leave your comments below and, as always, please share this post using the social bookmarking buttons below – especially Facebook and Twitter.

It’s no secret that saving money requires some degree of sacrifice and, many times, sacrifice is far from fun. That being said, living a frugal lifestyle doesn’t have to be synonymous with living a dull lifestyle.

If you can spice up the ways you save money and take a different approach to frugality, you can actually make the act of saving money an enjoyable experience – and not just for the money saving aspect of it.

Here are seven simple ways you can make saving money fun:

The cheapest family in America has fun... saving money!

1) Start small. If you start off with the goal of slashing your monthly spending by 75% you’re going to fall short, become frustrated, and quit. Instead, take an incremental approach to saving. Maybe you save an extra $100 the first month. When you do that without a problem, you increase the monthly savings to $150. Before you know it, you’ve dramatically slashed your spending without any of the frustration!

2) Take the glass-half-full approach. Instead of dwelling on what you’re cutting out of your life – the premium cable package, the unlimited data plan on your cell phone, etc. – focus on how great it’s going to feel when you’re able to pay off your credit card bill, rebuild your nest-egg, or retire early. Taking this viewpoint will make you realize you’re gaining something far more important that what you’re getting rid of.

3) Incorporate some low-stakes gambling. Make a bet with your significant other (or a friend if you’re unattached) to see who can save the most money in a week. The loser has to cook the winner’s favorite meal. Having the chance to have turkey tacos waiting for me has definitely given me extra motivation to keep my credit card in my wallet!

4) Make it a family activity. If you’re a parent, involve your kids when you make your budget or clip coupons. It’s a great way to spend family time, and it’ll get your kids thinking about saving money. Plus, they’ll feel proud when they point out a great deal at the grocery store!

5) Keep one-upping yourself. Turn coupon clipping into a game by always trying to save more money from coupons every time you go to the grocery store. Before you know it, you’ll have slashed your grocery bill by 30 to 60 percent! That being said, don’t buy something for the sake of using a coupon, that sort of defeats the purpose!

6) Be  an active saver. Don’t save money simply by sitting on your butt and not doing anything. Go out and take a walk around the park, volunteer somewhere, or grab a book from the library. There are plenty of free or low cost activities you can do, so take advantage of them!

7) Reward yourself! What’s the point of saving all this money if you never spend it. Since you’ve done so well at saving money, indulge yourself with something small. It’ll be a good incentive to keep you going, too.

Do you have any simple ways to make saving money fun? Leave your comment below and, as always, please share this post by using the social bookmarking buttons below – especially Facebook and Twitter!

I know the title of this post is harsh and many of you are likely to disagree with the use of the word “slavery” but I feel there really is no other word that best describes the situation someone is in when they are severely in debt.

Someone who is massively in debt is, for lack of a better term, owned by the company to which they owe money.

Let me explain:

A debtor no longer work for themselves so that they can stash away money for a rainy day or splurge on something nice for the family.  Nope.  When you’re in debt, you are working to earn money simply so you can pay off the credit card, the car loan, the mortgage, and whatever other debt you may have accumulated.

You are no longer working for your best interests, instead, you are working to pay off all of your interest.  You no longer live life on your terms, rather, you’re living your life by the terms of your loans.

And if you don’t pay back your debt fast enough, making just the minimum monthly payments, you end up in tighter and tighter shackles.

Getting a Total Money Makeover can get you out of your debt-induced slavery.

Now, I know you can do things like declare bankruptcy, but that’s almost always a last resort, and is a painful process that takes plenty of time and still leaves you owing some money.  It’s not as if your slate is wiped clean.

I also know that in many cases this slavery is self imposed, due to poor financial decisions and an unwillingness to tackle the problem before it spiraled out of control.

But, thankfully, there is a way to free yourself from your debt slavery, and that way is you.

By coming up with a simple, yet comprehensive plan to tackle your problem once and for all, you can not only pay off your debt, but set the ground work for a very successful financial future.

What A Debt Freeing Plan Would Look Like

Obviously, each person’s situation is going to be unique to them, however, below are three steps that are likely to be a starting point in any debt reduction plan: 

1) Know the difference between needs and wants.  Having this understanding is absolutely fundamental if you are to live below your means and overcome your debt.  The example I always use is food: you need something nutritional that fills you up, but you want to out and eat a steak at a nice restaurant.

A need fulfills something that either helps to or does sustain you.  A want simply fulfills a desire.

Once you understand this, as part of your debt solving plan you need to look at every single purchase you make under this microscope.

2) Go on a spending fast by cutting out the want spending and reducing the needs spending.  Now that you understand the difference between needs and wants and you’ve become serious about tackling your debt, you should cut out all want spending until your debts have been paid off, or, at the very least, at a much more manageable level.

From there, look at where your money is going for your needs.  Can you find ways to reduce your weekly grocery bill?  What about your utilities?  Anyway, I think you get the point.

Creating a budget and sticking to it is a great way to cut out spending on wants.

Now you’ll really be on the path to slashing your expenses and spending less money.

3) Put the money you’re now saving toward paying down your debt.  Now that you can make more than the minimum payments or can now contribute more towards your bill each month you need to do it!  The more you contribute towards your payment, the faster you’ll be out of debt and able to live your own life.

Let’s look at this example: you have $10,000 in credit card bills, an annual interest rate of 18%, and you make just the minimum monthly payments

If you were to pay just the minimum monthly payments, it would take you nearly 28 and a half years to pay off the loan, and that assumes you don’t add any more debt to your balance.  Plus, at the end of the 28 and a half years, you will have paid $14,500 in interest, meaning you eventually pay $24,500 to borrow $10,000.

That’s not a good deal.

Now, let’s look at the better example: you have the same problem as above, but because you’re saving money, you’re going to pay $500 per month towards your bill (about double what you would be paying at the beginning of the minimum monthly payment scenario)

By paying well above the minimum monthly payment, you are able to pay off your $10,000 debt in just two years, and pay only $1,500 in interest charges.

Two years vs. 28 years.  $1,500 in interest vs. $14,500 in interest.

You tell me which is better?

So, on that note, if you’re in debt, work like hell to get out of it.  If you’re not in debt, work like hell to stay out of it!  Don’t end up being owned by your debt!

What do you think of this post?  Please leave your comments below and share your thoughts.  Also, please share this post using the social bookmarking buttons below – especially Facebook and Twitter!