Frugal Millionaires
By caver1
@caver1 (1762)
United States
May 28, 2009 9:03am CST
This may sound like a contridition of terms. But it seems that being frugal may be how some have come to be millionaires or at least how they have remained millionaires in these tough econimic times.
Here is a quote from an article on the spending philosophy of millionaires.
"Frugal millionaires are unique thinkers when it comes to spending money: 1) they can easily delay their need for gratification when purchasing; 2) they are resourceful in getting what they want by carefully timing their consumer purchases; 3) they make living below their means painless; 4) they don't like wasting anything (especially money); 5) their sense of "self-entitlement" is highly minimized: and 6) spending is OK with them...depending on what they are buying (think: appreciating vs. depreciating assets)."
You can find the entire article here:
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/How-to-Spend-Like-a-Frugal-usnews-15357371.html
So could we all become millionaires if we practice these things?
4 people like this
8 responses
@cher913 (25782)
• Canada
28 May 09
i have an aunt that was raised during the depression and although she is very wealthy, she lives very frugally. until she went into a nursing home in early february, she watched her money very carefully, shopped at a discount grocery store and bought her underwear from the dollar store!
3 people like this
@velveteenbunny0 (13)
• United States
29 May 09
That is the way to live. Watching the dollars in case a unsuspected expense.
@SomeCowgirl (32191)
• United States
28 May 09
I think we can all become millionaires, or wealthy at the least just by being cautious of what we spend. The best teachers are those who lived through the depression!
2 people like this
@inkstainedheart (455)
• United States
28 May 09
My grandparents are the same way--my grandpa is in his upper 80s, but still grows a small crop of corn and melons each year!
1 person likes this
@sophie_dfuss (2365)
• Philippines
29 May 09
In some aspects I think its true. Those frugal millionaires don't spend their hard earned money that easy as we think even they have the capacity to buy anything they want. Some of them even take trips when its not non-peak season to save on flight tickets and rates of the posh hotels. There was a time when me and my bf when we have travelled, we were given a 50% discount off the rate of the executive suite from the hotel. They are many ways to enjoy life without spending that much. There are some of the written article that I do when it comes to spending and buying things. Be practical when it comes to other things.
@caver1 (1762)
• United States
29 May 09
Being practical is important. For many people it is the spur of the moment purchases that get them in trouble with their credit. If they would just think before hand about how much this will end up costing if they have to pay interest on it in addition to the purchase price. And of course those discount are great too!
@Countrymom (371)
• United States
28 May 09
I think we could all learn from frugal millionaires. My grandparents were raised during the depression. Everything was recycled until there was nothing left of it. They were "green" before "being green" was even a thought in most peoples heads. Being raised in the great depression taught them the value of money and how to use what they already had.
I have taken their lessons and applied them to my own life. Our family has 5 gardens and works hard at preserving our harvest each year. The lessons I have learned through my grandparents and their hard labors are of more value to me than money could ever be.
I believe that being a millionaire is more than just having money. Its having the life you want to live with minimal stress. Achieving this goal is much more rewarding than anything money could ever buy.
1 person likes this
@caver1 (1762)
• United States
28 May 09
You make a good point that it is not the money that is most important, but "having the life you want to live with minimal stress. "
I've tried gardening without much luck. We don't have good soil. I've tried growing in containers, but the squirrel eat everything except the hot peppers.
@ladym33 (10979)
• United States
28 May 09
I don't know about being millionaires because you still have to earn a certain amount of money to be a millionaire but I definitely think that we could all be better off. I think that like the article said they are resourceful in spending in getting what they want and carefully time their purhases. I think millionairs have a great skill at getting great deals. Which really helps their bottom line. I think if more people had those skills, and restraint that there would be a lot more people who were well off rather than a whole lot of people in debt.
2 people like this
@Raven1 (577)
• Australia
30 May 09
I agree with the article you linked to 100%. I live frugally and I'm very careful about what I spend. I live very comfortably in a nice home on the beach. I own my car. I don't have credit cards. I grow my own fruit and vegetables in my yard. We travel abroad once a year.
But... I have several investment properties in both the USA and Australia. I have a healthy share portfolio.
I'm not a millionaire. I'm just a single mom working to make life easier for my 4 year old daughter. I work at home full time, writing online.
Being frugal means that my money can be spent better elsewhere on making life comfortable and creating an income from assets rather than wasting it on trivial things.
@caver1 (1762)
• United States
1 Jun 09
You make an excellent point about investments being important. And your daughter is watching and learning from how you live. I don't buy alot of trival stuff, but my kids, both teenagers, when they have some money they only think of what they can buy. They both have lots of gadgets.
@inkstainedheart (455)
• United States
28 May 09
I sure hope so. If this article is correct, I'm well on my way to becoming a millionaire! My family was hard up for money when I was little, so I learned to save money and get the most for your money at a very young age.
I already do a lot of these things on the list--I really liked the idea of buying day-old bread from bakeries. I had thought about it before, but now that I have a large freezer, I can actually do this!
@cuteyanna (33)
• Philippines
29 May 09
Honestly, I really admired those people who remain frugal despite the fact that they have enough resources and it's true that most millionaires were frugal because I think they just value their money very much. We can be like them only if know how to spend and when to spend our money. In my case, I don't buy things that are usually wants meaning the things that people can live without but when it comes to food I don't limit myself to buy them because we need that so why do we need to limit ourselves. I limit myself to latest gadgets and expensive clothes, bags, shoes as well as accessories though if I decided to buy them I really treasure them and I used them for as long as they're good.
@caver1 (1762)
• United States
29 May 09
While we can save money on food by shopping sales and using coupons I agree that we should not skimp on food. If milk is high I still buy milk for my kids. Nutrition in important and worth paying for. But I agree with you, the non essentials should wait until you have the money for it. Not bought on credit just cause you want it right now
