My Personal Finance Journey

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My name is Jacob, a husband to a wine-blogger wife, father to two bouncy-boy toddlers, and I'm the owner/author of My Personal Finance Journey. By day, I am a scientist working in bio-pharmaceutical development. Personal finance has been my hobby since 2007 when I started teaching myself through books (that finance B.S. degree didn't teach me much!). Learning how to save, adopt a frugal mindset, and invest my own money soundly has allowed me to have a savings rate > 50%, increase my net worth by > 20 times, grow my career, and always do what I love. Check out the About Me page to learn more!

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Five Frugal Living Tips Everyone Can Follow

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Welcome to My Personal Finance Journey! If you are new here, please read the “About” or “First-Time Visitor” pages to find out more about us. If you would like to receive free updates on articles like this by email, then sign up here or you can subscribe to the RSS feed. Also, check us out on Twitter or Facebook. Thanks for visiting! Keep on learning!
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Click here to enter my free $50.53 giveaway for a chance to win 5% of My Personal Finance Journey blog income and give another 5% to a charity of your choosing! Deadline to enter is April 30th, 2013.

The following is a guest from Trudy Swann, a regular money saving blogger making the most of life’s frugal ways. Enjoy! 

There are a number of reasons you may choose to live a more frugal lifestyle – you could be putting aside a few pennies for a special occasion, the holiday of a lifetime or alternatively, a new home. Others are forced to be more frugal due to a shortage of loans for people with no credit, something that has become harder to find in recent years.
Regardless of whether you wish to save up for a certain object or event, the first step is to cut back on a few unwarranted expenditures. Listed below are several common ones that might be relevant to you! 

1. Swap the coffee shop for your own coffee/espresso maker

Many consumers will buy items they quite simply don’t need; this is often down to sheer convenience. Take your morning latte for example – I find making my own at home and transferring it to a thermos flask saves me a nice chunk of money each day. If you wish to buy a fancy coffee machine (just like the ones they have in many branded coffee shops), taking out an unsecured loan will can potentially help you with the purchase. The money saved on regular coffee trips can be used to pay off this loan.

2. Make your own lunch

Other ways to save include making your own lunch and taking it to work. I once spent a minimum of £5 per day on lunches; this quickly mounted up over the week. Your office should come equipped with a kitchen area, which will allow you to store any pre-prepared meals in a cool environment. By preparing my own meals, I can make a saving of £20 per week, which totals to £900 over the year. (52 weeks – 5 weeks holiday & 2 weeks bank etc = 45 x £20).

3. Swap the gym for the great outdoors

The majority of individuals that own gym passes and don’t use it is phenomenal.

Many purchase a yearly sports pass with all the right intentions in mind, however both work and home commitments make getting there more effort than it’s worth. Unfortunately, gyms are not cheap, and my monthly membership fee was proving to cause a huge dent in my salary. Working out shouldn’t solely be about the gym and there are plenty of other non-gym based activities available, most of which will easily fit into your current schedule. A lot of them are free too.

You could also try pay-on-the-day Zumba classes and home Yoga videos, both boast to offer fun workouts without the lengthy contract. Activities such as walking the dog and walking the children to school are also great ways to burn calories for free.

4. Grow your own vegetables

If like me, you are lucky enough to have a garden, use it wisely. Growing your own vegetables is not only a fun pastime; it’s also a great way to eat healthily while saving. Many supermarket-bought produce will be slavered in pesticides, which cannot be good for us to eat everyday. By growing my own however, I know exactly where they have come from.

5. Swap the bus for the bike

As the summer months draw in, I tend to opt for the bike instead of the bus, which saves me pounds; it also allows me to lose a few pounds in the meantime. Cycling to work is a great way to clear the head – just in time for any hectic morning meetings you have planned!

How about you all? What are your favorite ways to save money each month? Do you use any of the things mentioned above?

 Share your experiences by commenting below!

Jacob’s Thoughts – Listed below are my random thoughts as I was reading this article.

  • With the exception of # 4 above (growing your own garden), I utilize all of the tips above quite effectively each month.
  • I bike to work instead of driving a car and/or paying for a parking pass.
  • I do not pay for a gym membership since it is included in my student activity fees as a graduate student.
  • I bring and/or eat lunch at home almost every day of the work-week. The only time I don’t is once every couple of weeks when I go out to eat with a group of friends.
  • Lastly, I make my own coffee at home so that I don’t have to buy it at the coffee shops on campus.

***Photo courtesy of http://farm2.staticflickr.com/1394/4605158343_a2c4873f90_o.jpg

About the Author Jacob A Irwin

Hi folks! My name is Jacob. I am the owner and operator of My Personal Finance Journey. I started this blog in January of 2010 and have enjoyed the journey ever since. Since finishing up graduate school in Virginia in 2014, I have been working in biopharmaceutical development in Colorado. You can read more about me and this site here​. Please contact me if you have any questions!

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  • moneybeagle says:
    April 30, 2013 at 12:23 pm

    I'm all over the first two. At work they have free coffee that is absolutely horrible. On the other side of the spectrum they have a Keurig machine, which can make great coffee but that adds up. Many people also stop at the nearby McDonald's or other places for coffee. I actually brought in an unused coffee maker from home, and I make coffee that I bring from home in that. It saves a lot of money and makes much better coffee than the free stuff.
    My recent post If You Hate Your Bank Then I Have Bad News For You

    Reply
    • MyPerFinJourney says:
      April 30, 2013 at 2:33 pm

      Thanks for sharing moneybeagle! I did that as well at my last job. Do you ever have coworkers that try to “borrow” some coffee from you?
      My recent post What Exactly Are Bitcoins and Are They Right For You?

      Reply
  • Jules@FGSW says:
    April 30, 2013 at 11:57 am

    I am going to be trying out my own garden hopefully. I want to try zuchinni because I know I spend way too much money on that in the summer!
    My recent post Dog Vs. Cat: A Lesson in Marriage and Julie’s Faves 4.21.13

    Reply
  • Edwin @ Frugal Wiz says:
    April 30, 2013 at 8:20 am

    Growing your own vegetables is my favorite tip of them all. It’s amazing to plant some seeds, add some water and months later get fresh veggies that are truly homemade. It saves you the cost of the food plus some trips to the grocery store.

    Reply
  • Jenny@FrugalGuru says:
    April 29, 2013 at 9:57 pm

    Neither bus nor bike is practical where I live, and walking is out of the question! I work from home and don't do coffee, so those things are off the table, at least. I can't do a garden this year–it's just not possible for me, with the baby coming.
    My recent post Savings Strategy: Best of the Worst, or Worst of the Best

    Reply
    • MyPerFinJourney says:
      April 29, 2013 at 10:57 pm

      Thanks for reading Jenny! In general, do you think that folks that work from home spend less money than those that don't? Or, are there other money-draws that come up when at home working?
      My recent post Five Frugal Living Tips Everyone Can Follow

      Reply
  • Pauline @ Reach Financial Independence says:
    April 29, 2013 at 10:32 pm

    I try to limit waste as much as possible. Be it food, services I don't need, too much heat or AC, etc. using just what you need saves money.
    My recent post Little house in Guatemala, week 24/25

    Reply
    • MyPerFinJourney says:
      April 29, 2013 at 10:58 pm

      I bet that goes a long way! I'm curious – how much do you all spend per month in electricity with the A/C in Guatemala?

      My recent post Five Frugal Living Tips Everyone Can Follow

      Reply
  • myfijourney says:
    April 29, 2013 at 8:42 pm

    I only do the first two.

    I love my gym membership, don't have a yard to garden, and despise both bikes and buses (If I can't walk, I drive).
    My recent post Caterpillar (CAT) Dividend Stock Analysis

    Reply
    • MyPerFinJourney says:
      April 29, 2013 at 9:34 pm

      Thanks for sharing myfijourney! How much does your gym membership cost? I've never bought one, so I was just curious how those are running these days?
      My recent post Five Frugal Living Tips Everyone Can Follow

      Reply

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