Wonderful Ways To Save Money
This is an extremely useful and insightful article about how to save money. Many of writer Frankie Calkin’s ten points are directly relatable. I can especially identify with items 4–7.
Starting at the end with number seven, I certainly like the suggestion “do not waste money on a pool.” You can have a lot of fun swimming at your local community pool(or finding a local beach on the shores of oceans or lakes). But to counter this item, consider how owning a pool can be very nice for some(especially families). A critical point would be to make sure you and other household members use the pool regularly, so then you are getting your money’s worth. Do water aerobics and play water games. Have family and friends over for a pool party. We’ll get to list item number four in a moment, but the truth that you can have a lot of excitement and fun for low cost also applies here. Growing up on a farm, this was the pool we had:
This was a separate water trough bought solely for us kids to play in. It was about seven feet in diameter and could hold about four feet of water. My siblings and I enjoyed many nice summer days in the sun splashing around, tossing balls, and even making a homemade water slide by placing our swingset slide in the pool. Those times were super fun and created priceless memories.
Number six is similar. Don’t spend extra money on ultra-fancy gym memberships or throw thousands of dollars away for some super-expensive equipment. A basic gym membership might give you access to all of the weightlifting and fitness equipment you need. Additionally, you can find some very reasonably priced exercise items at many retail locations or online. For instance, I found a very nice mobile exercise bike for under $100. My wife and I both ride it regularly. Another possibility here is considering different sports, outdoor activities, or recreational activities that can help you stay fit. Can you really match the fulfillment found in getting out in Nature, enjoying a pasttime like biking on outdoor trails, or perhaps paying a little money for just one exciting Zoomba class at the local community center? If you do find it worthwhile to pay thousands for top-notch equipment or the gold and platinum level gym memberships, make sure you are fully utilizing them and getting your money’s worth.
Number five — don’t spend money on time shares. I honestly have never been able to wrap my head around what a time share is exactly. Isn’t a time share just where you pay a monthly fee to keep dibs on some rental or vacation property that you can use a few times per year? This seems to be what a timeshare is according to this Forbes article. So, it’s like owning a cabin at some exotic remote woods location — only you own dibs on the property just a short time period each year. The article states that time shares and the like are hard to get out of with ongoing fees, maintenance charges, and the like. And if you have to spend $50,000 over the course of a multi-decade timeshare, wouldn’t you just be better buying one of those van-homes to travel even internationally(excluding costs for ferrying over oceans)?
And then we get to number 4 — stop spending money on excessive entertainment. This is extremely hard and has been a challenge for generations. In previous times you would go to the video store and rent a few movies for several dollars, or you would purchase the VHS and music tapes. Soon came CDs and DVDs, and the ever-evolving trends continued. These days, we see all of those exclusive shows on digital streaming services. Ok, you start with Netflix and Hulu. Then, you carry over to Amazon Prime with about five or ten channels. Soon, you are adding other services and spending a couple hundred dollars per month. And this is just in the digital space. It seems that to break from from cyber-spells for anything real-life, we have to go do something exotic or high cost to keep our attention like attend a famous musician’s concert, tour an IKEA-like retailtainment location, or take a helicopter ride over a famous natural landmark.
I echo Calkin in pushing that we need to get back to simple, inexpensive things. Some of the pasttimes that bring the most immeasurable joys can be as easy as going outside for a walk, pulling out an old board game or deck of cards to play with friends, or reading a book. And how can you top the traditional adventure? We’ve had computers, mobile phones, and other technological devices for quite a few decades now. But what about the eons-old tradition of camping out under the stars with a campfire you have gathered the firewood for and started yourself? And while it’s life-changing to take exotic trips abroad or attend a live-music star concert, infinite riches are also found in the ordinary — including conservations with loved ones, communing with Nature, or volunteering for a non-profit, community, or spiritual organization.
Overall, I would fine most of the other suggestions to be highly valuable. I am critical of Calkin’s suggestion that you can save money by skipping out on some of your college education. You can’t skip out if you want to be a lawyer, medical doctor, teacher, or numerous other types of professionals. But there are ways, as Calkin suggests, that you can decrease the exorbitant cost of college tuition. (Note, this is not by becoming a citizen of a country where college education is government-funded if you are in the U.S. or another country where college is more costly). Community college is a good suggestion. Another option is to seek training or entry-level work in a profession you desire to enter, then take advantage of company funded tuition or tuition reimbursement programs. An employer might not pay all of your college costs. But having a smaller debt load and a higher-level job in your desired (or a related field) is a positive outcome when so many are working extra jobs just to keep up with the minimum payments on their massive debt load.
Overall, everyone can find a few takeaways from Calkin’s ten suggestions. They might also offer additional points. Whether or not these actions can help you retire in just a decade is certainly open-ended and dependent on so many other factors. Some people may even completely disagree with these points and say “live it up!” So many have enough money to spend on top country club memberships, multiple luxury vehicles, and even numerous expensive homes. But one thing is clear despite economic background and financial situation — seeking less costly pasttimes and lifestyle choices can help one remember what is priceless and immeasurable.
