Frugality Tip: Stop Watching TV
Seriously.
Here’s the thing, I used to watch TV idly as a way to relax. I’d turn it on and watch whatever was mildly interesting. Since I had a cable TV subscription, something was always on.
Then, I noticed something about myself. I would watch a show I didn’t even like. Even reruns. I called this “mindless entertainment”. After all, I was only unwinding. But the way TV sucks you in to watch one show after another, I found that I watched at least 3 hours each night. This amounted to at least 15 hours of TV per weekday. Even more hours were spent watching TV during weekends.
I realized that I had a problem when I was watching an episode of The OC for the third time. And I actually hated the show!
If I wanted to be more productive and have more free time, clearly I had to cut back on TV and find other ways to relax.
Now, I still have a TV but I rarely use it. When I was cutting back on expenses, I canceled my cable TV subscription. I have cable TV again because of someone who lives with me, but when she leaves I’m going to have it disconnected again.
Because I don’t really watch TV. And you know what, I think I owe at least some part of my financial stability to that. Here’s why:
- If you watch less TV you won’t be as prone to tempting ads. Don’t get me wrong, everyone is prone to being convinced by advertising, but at least by cutting back on TV you have less exposure. Also, ads take up around 1/4 of a show’s air time, and life’s too short to be spent watching random ads.
- You can do something more productive or restful for your downtime. This includes bonding with friends and family, reading, working on a side business, managing your money, or even sleeping.
- Foreign shows, news, and other forms of entertainment can be found for free online. You just need to know where to look. No need to pay a premium for subscriptions, and no need to wait a certain time/day for your favorite show. In other words, you get to choose carefully which shows you’ll invest your time in.
One disadvantage is that my friends give me crap about how I don’t know Kim Chiu, or who the latest matinee idol is, or how I’m a “loser” for not watching Pinoy Big Brother. But come on – as far as disadvantages go, who cares? I’m never the one who complains about not having enough time for sleep/hobbies/family.
Try it. Disconnect your cable TV subscription, if you have it. Turn off the TV set. You’ll be surprised at what you could accomplish. Why not add that to your list of goals for the new year?
Read More2009 in Review: The Best of Frugal Pinoy
First of all, I’d like to greet all Frugal Pinoy readers out there:
Happy New Year! Thank you for supporting and reading Frugal Pinoy. I hope that you continue to find this site useful in 2010. Most of all, may you have a healthy, happy, and productive year ahead of you!
Now before we leap into 2010, let’s take this opportunity to review Frugal Pinoy’s top 10 most informative articles for the year.
Does Frugal Pinoy apply to you?
At the start of 2009, I wanted readers to ask themselves if the articles I post here are relevant to them. This was my response to some comments from both friends and strangers that the site was not applicable to them.
A Different Way of Looking at Income
Do you judge or measure your income per month? If so, you may not be earning as much as you think. This article explores the reasons why we should measure our income by the hour instead.
Money Myths: Frugality Means Sacrificing Fun
In this article, I attempt to debunk the myth that a frugal life is a hard and boring life.
6 Signs That You’re Living Beyond Your Means
Don’t know how much you’re spending each month? Feeling guilty about using that credit card? Watch out. You might be spending more than you earn.
In this short post I talk about my decision-making process behind my investments. Hint: it has nothing to do with the hot stock tips.
Getting Out of Debt vs. Saving: Which Should You Prioritize?
When you’re trying to make ends meet as well as paying off debt, you might feel like you’re being spread too thinly. How do you choose between saving for emergencies and being debt-free?
When Listening to Experts Use Your Brain
Researchers found that when people are presented with an expert, they drop all attempts at decision-making – even if the expert is fake. Is it possible to make independent financial decisions despite all the “expert” advice we receive?
Money Myths: Can Money Buy Happiness?
Scientists learned that having enough money for necessities can buy a feeling of peace and security – but anything else beyond that is up to you.
The Hard Truth: 30 Money Questions You Should Ask Yourself
A no-BS list of questions to help you face the truth of your financial situation.
Free Download: Frugal Pinoy Budgeting Spreadsheet
I made a free downloadable budgeting spreadsheet for Frugal Pinoy readers. There’s a video tutorial to help guide you through it.
Also, let’s not forget that nearing the end of 2009, I launched the 25 Days to Healthier Finances series. In that series, I posted one article per day with an actionable task that readers (and I) can do to make our financial lives better.
That’s it from me for today. Again, I’d like to thank all the Frugal Pinoy readers (even the newcomers) for supporting and reading the blog this year.
All the best,
Celine
Read MoreDay#17: Know the things you don't care to spend on.
This is Day #17 of “25 Days to Healthier Finances”, a series of blog posts where Frugal Pinoy readers and myself work on 1 task a day to make our financial lives better. Please stay tuned for the next installment of this series, which will be up tomorrow. Here’s today’s installment:
When it comes to time and money, we usually focus on the things we have to do. Paying the bills, finishing up that report, cleaning the house. While these things are important, we should be equally mindful of the things we shouldn’t do.
Today’s Task: Know the things that you don’t care to spend on.
It’s simple. Just jot down the expenses that really don’t matter to you. Here’s a short list of some things that don’t matter to me:
- Dining out
- Watching most films in the cinema
- Clothes and accessories (as a side effect of rarely going out)
- Cable TV
Things that matter to me:
- Books
- Good quality of food
- Maintaining a solid but beautiful house
- Hobbies such as woodworking and gardening
What does this mean? By making the list of the things that don’t matter to you, you’ll know what expense traps to avoid. For example, why would I spend P500 to try out a new restaurant when I can use that money to buy high-quality ingredients for a home cooked meal? Or, why would I spend P200 to watch a movie in a mall dahil wala lang akong magawa, when I can usually buy 5 books with that at my favorite used books store? It’s like building a list of “not-priorities”.
You can also do this exercise for a major purchase so that you won’t be distracted. When buying a new car, this may be your list of not-priorities:
- Color
- Exterior design
- Quality of speakers
By making this list before you look at cars to buy, you won’t be distracted by the bells and whistles that don’t matter to you. You won’t go “Shit, panget pala gas mileage nito, nadistract ako sa sleek, chromed-up design.” Conversely, if the exterior design matters to you the most, you won’t be distracted by sales pitches about payment terms or storage space.
When we have limited resources, we need to know the things we can “sacrifice”, and the things we don’t care about should be the first to go. That way, we know that we’re left with the things that matter.
Read MoreDay #5: Pick 2 No-Spending Days This Month
Here’s today’s installment:
Today’s Task: Pick 2 no-spending days this month
Look at your calendar. Pick two days, it doesn’t matter if they’re one week apart or if you pick two succeeding days. Then, label these days as your no-spending days. Write it down somewhere, preferably a desktop calendar or something that you look at every day. Then, commit to it.
Sure, it’s impossible to have absolutely no spending in one day. After all, we use electricity, food, and water daily. In this case, when we say “no spending” we mean no cash out. Don’t even charge your credit card.
But what about transportation? Well, you can either pick a day where you don’t have to go to work or run errands. Or find a way to get to your destination for free (carpool, walking, biking) – as long as it’s practical. Or you can simply aim to spend less on transportation that day (take the jeep instead of a taxi, etc.).
What about food? Cook. I’m amazed when I hear about people who are college graduates and have been employed for a while yet can’t cook anything. That’s a very, very basic skill that everyone needs to learn. It’s your nutritional intake, for crying out loud. Kahit pagsaing lang ng kanin o paglaga lang ng itlog. Don’t know how to do these things? Learn. Kaya nga may Google.
Why do this at all? It’s not just about lessening your expenses, it’s also about doing a practical experiment to see what you can cut back on. It’s easy to overlook spending on daily coffee, convenience foods, and other unnecessary daily expenses, then wonder where your paycheck went. By seeing how little you can spend on some days, you’ll have a more realistic idea about the expenses you can do without. Who knows, you might end up having one no-spending day each week.
Personally, I’m picking December 5 and December 7.
Read MoreMoney Myths: Frugality means sacrificing fun
Why don’t you just enjoy your money?
This is something people ask me when they hear about my frugality. Whenever I hear this, it seems like people have the following misconceptions:
- that I deprive myself from enjoying life,
- that I always choose the cheapest products,
- and that I can’t pay for the things I want.
The thing is, I do enjoy my money. I get to spend my money on hobbies like carpentry, gardening, model airplanes, and art. I also have the money to travel for more than a week at a time, and to splurge on ingredients for culinary experiments here at home.
Still, I consider myself frugal because I try to get a bargain whenever I can, and I shop wisely. I also know that if I had zero income (and had no emergency fund), I can support myself and the 4 people living in my house for under P10,000/month. But obviously this doesn’t mean I’m not having fun.
Frugality is about achieving balance between your enjoyment of the present and the security of your future. It’s about ensuring that you can afford financial emergencies, retirement, and big purchases such as a house or a car. In other words, you have to prioritize.
What I’m actually doing is saving on the things that are less important to me and channeling them to my hobbies, travel expenses, emergency fund, and retirement fund. Here are some ways that I practice my frugality:
- I buy only food items which I know I’m going to use.
- I only dine out when necessary.
- I don’t buy signature clothing.
- I don’t call or text more than I have to. (Also, I don’t buy expensive cellphones.)
In other words, spend less whenever you can and don’t spend on something that isn’t important to you, or something you don’t need. If you’re not a photography buff, why spend P20,000 buying a new camera? If you only have two children and don’t plan on having more, why buy a 5-bedroom house?
Another way to be frugal without destroying your “fun” is to trim extra expenses rather than eliminate them completely.
If you find that your coffee habit is costing you over P1,000 pesos a month, you don’t have to quit cold turkey. You can cut back on one cup a week, then two, until you find the number of cups you can drink which allows you to get a caffeine without overdoing it. In fact, you might want to try brewing your own coffee at home, if you have the time. These things may seem like a sacrifice, but it’s nothing compared to quitting your fun habits completely.
You don’t have to give up the things that you enjoy or that make you happy. After all, your hobbies, favorite food, activities, and trips should be a source of enjoyment and not a source of financial stress.
Of course, I’m not telling you what to do. I’m just demonstrating that yes, it is possible to enjoy your hard-earned money without sacrificing your financial independence and security. It’s up to you to find your own way of doing that.
How do you balance frugality with enjoyment?
Image by Richard Sweet from sxc.hu
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