I've seen a lot of co-workers throughout the years who supposedly claim to be financially savvy or even frugal, but in my eyes anyway, they are not really so.
That is until now.
And what makes this guy so remarkable is that he is in his early 20's. And yet, he is more frugal than I am.
So last night, I asked him how he became so frugal and why he remains so adamant to continue this way. His response was that he grew up poor. He parents were poor, and his grandparents were poorer still. Plus, I believe they've also worked as missionaries in poor countries as well, which may have helped shape his world view.
I knew I was looking at a true fruggie when I was telling him about my food budget (which I admit isn't that great, but is still reasonably frugal) and his response was, "You say you are frugal, but I don't think you are." Hahah! He called me out! Amazing, I love it!
So yeah, maybe we will talk about that some more later on, when we have the chance.
First real frugal co-worker I've ever seen
April 4th, 2014 at 06:37 am
April 4th, 2014 at 07:18 am 1396595903
April 4th, 2014 at 12:29 pm 1396614557
My last job had TWO frugal co-workers (out of only about 10)! Too bad I was decidedly UNfrugal at the time and charting my own course toward financial near-disaster. And I felt like they weren't very positive about that, although maybe looking back, they just got annoyed at my own financial foolishness.
April 4th, 2014 at 01:47 pm 1396619225
April 5th, 2014 at 05:14 am 1396674863
On one hand, I felta bit slighted, having worked so hard for so many years to stay frugal, but on the other hand, I loved it because it means that I found somebody who is seriously frugal I can related with, even though I admit that $12 a day for food is rather high.
Ceejay, after all these years, I can't imagine you being unfrugal.
CB, I absolutely agree with you. And even in this day and age of recession and financial difficulties, it is amazing how many are still living beyond their means.
April 8th, 2014 at 08:49 am 1396946999
My parents both come from bigger-than-average families, and their families had smaller-than-average incomes. My dad had 6 kids in his family and my mom had 8. Even though they both have taught me a lot, most of what I know about being frugal comes from my dad's side of the family. His mom had an interesting dictum that I try to live by, "The best way to be rich is to not spend your money!" That is very true... Millionaires are not frivolous with their money, otherwise they wouldn't be millionaires.
I grew up in a family of 7 (5 kids and 2 parents), and we weren't poor, but my parents had a frugal mindset that never changed with the family's ever-increasing income. One example that my dad still shows me to this day (even though I am on my own now) is that we can save money by not turning on the air conditioning unit in the summer. We never turned it on until it reached at least 90 degrees F for 5 days straight. It was unpleasant, but he instilled character and showed us how to save hundreds and hundreds of dollars every summer!
I have a lot more to say about being frugal, but my time is running short right now- I'll be more than happy to answer any questions or give any advice.
April 8th, 2014 at 09:02 am 1396947753
And by the way, Mike, you'll be happy to know that I believe we do have a few millionaires on here as well, many more that are doing extremely well, but most importantly, everyone on here is frugal, some very much so.
As for AC, my cheap way around it is to run only a window AC in my room hahahha. I do the same with a portable heater in the winter. However, this only works with bachelors.
Anyways man, feel free to start your own stuff here if you want, but either way, thanks for stopping by!
April 8th, 2014 at 03:10 pm 1396969804
My parents are very frugal too. I didn't really absorb the lesson consciously when I was growing up, and I made a lot of foolish financial moves in my 20s and early 30s. But once I started cleaning up my financial life, I started realizing the valuable examples my parents had set for me. So in the end they did teach me some of their ways; it just took a long time to sink in.
April 9th, 2014 at 02:33 pm 1397053986
April 16th, 2014 at 07:09 am 1397632191
Thank you.