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Do you have what it takes to finish first? The App Store is packed with super fast, super fun racing games for every driver. From battling with your favorite characters in Disney Speedstorm to piloting one of over 400 different cars on officially licensed tracks in real racing. 3. It's all right here. Blast down the track with no limit drag racing 2. Race and collect the latest and greatest cars in CSR2 realistic drag racing or even take over the International Car Racing arena with Asphalt Legends and take on the toughest drivers from around the world with NASCAR Manager. Just visit the App Store to find these racing games and more and get ready to start your engines. Leave boredom in the dust on the.
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App Store this message comes from capital1. The Capital One Venture X business Card has no preset spending limit, so the card's purchasing power can adapt to meet business needs. Plus, the card earns unlimited double miles on every purchase, so the more a business spends, the more miles earned. And when traveling, the VentureX business card grants access to over a thousand airport lounges. The venturex Business Card what's in your wallet? Terms and conditions apply. Find out more@capital1.com venturexbusiness40 unsexy frugal living Tips that actually Work welcome to the.
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Frugal Friends podcast where you'll learn to.
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Save money, embrace simplicity, and live a richer life.
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Here are your hosts, Jen and Jill.
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Let's be honest, the Internet is full of Frugal Living tips that sound great until you try them and realize they either save you like 35 cents or feel like a part time job. These are not those tips. These are the unsexy ones. The ones that actually helped us pay off over $100,000 of debt between the two of us.
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And between the two of us, we have lived every version of Frugal from broke to burnt out to extreme no spend months. And finally we found a version that actually works without making you miserable.
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Welcome Frugal Friends. I'm Jen. I'm Jill and let's get into these 40 tips. And you know we're going to start with our absolute favorite one. It's the one we start off, our book Buy what yout Love Without Going Broke with. It is doing a 90 day transaction inventory. And so what you're going to do is skim the last three months of transactions, circle those repeat buys, circle those purchases that you don't remember and or don't feel good about right now. And we want to cut the lowest joy items. And this is something no matter how long you've been Frugal or how long you've been on top of your personal finances. We're always gaining new habits and losing old ones, losing good ones if we're not being intentional about them. So this is something you want to do at least once per year.
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Number two, put a 24 hour pause on non essentials. We want to work our way up to 30 days. We want to put more time in between desiring something and actually purchasing it, but starting with 24 hours. So this can include putting it on a wish list, revisiting it tomorrow. The reality is that most of these impulse desires fade and as we let them fade, we can learn what we want to do instead, to actually fulfill whatever need it is that we were initially trying to fulfill. So there's a lot of learning that can happen. But put it on pause for 24.
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Hours at least 24 again, working up to that 30 day is magic. Next is moving bill due dates to when you get paid. So if that is first of the month or bi weekly or every other week, we want to move bill due dates as close to having a max of two batches come out as close to payday as as possible. And that is going to ensure, especially if you're just starting out, that you are never missing your bills and overspending so that you cannot afford them.
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Number four is to price check insurance every 12 months. So we're talking auto renters, phone, pet insurance. Your loyalty to these, these companies is super expensive. And this is one of those areas that does add up to hundreds of dollars annually sometime in the low thousands and a lot of times we can negotiate these or we can price shop them so this doesn't have to take a ton of time. And we're not looking at it all the time. But every 12 months let's relook at this bill and see if we can lower it.
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And if you've been with us for a while, you know our bill of the week segment, I feel like every other week the bill of the week is somebody saying, I did this. You told me to do this and I did it. And I'm saving money on this bill, this insurance, yada yada, it works.
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A link to policygenius. They are a company who helps you price shop insurances. So. Frugalfriendspodcast.com PolicyGenius but again, it'll be in our show notes.
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Yes. Okay. Next is to audit subscriptions quarterly. So there are a ton of great subscriptions. We're not against subscriptions, but you do need to be thinking about them every couple months, Especially with, like, streaming. Like, we don't need more than maybe, like, two streaming platforms at a time. So maybe you go in and you're like, okay, this one, I'm going to cancel it. You cancel it. And it's still. You get everything you paid for. It's not like if you paid for the year, you're not going to get the whole year. But go in, cancel preemptively the things you're going to want to cancel so that you don't miss that day and get charged for it. And then all of your other subscriptions, whether that is a subscription box or a gym membership, go through audit. Am I using this enough to warrant it? Should I take a break? Should I, If I'm not taking a break, change the subscription in any way.
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Oh, be sure to sign up for our friend letter. We link that in the description as well. Every month we send out a budget toolkit where we talk about a big money move that you can do that month. And a lot of times, it's like, recommendations for price checking, subscriptions, how to negotiate. We give tools and resources on how to do that. So if you're not signed up for that free newsletter, do that. Okay. Number six is carry a tiny fun money envelope.
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Like a T. An actual tiny envelope.
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Like, you know, I'm just kidding. Make it small.
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Tiny things are cute, and you will want to part with it less if it's tiny. So actually make it tiny. Yeah.
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So, like, you decide how much goes in there. Tiny amounts. You decide, though, because if you choose, okay, I'm just gonna have 20 bucks in this envelope for a week. Spending that is far better than $60 in impulse purchases. So you have the fun money envelope. You get to spend it, you decide what's in it. But once it's gone, it's gone. And we're not making all these other random money decisions that are going to slowly chip away at our goals.
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All right, next is to set grocery caps by store instead of by week. So if you're like me and you do a monthly Costco run, but then you also do smaller shops throughout the week or throughout the month, like weekly. That's so hard for me to say the words phrases. So hard. Then set caps by store for the month or like Walmart by the week and then Costco by the month, I'm gonna get there. I'm gonna get there. So I will set, like, a $400 limit for Costco and then like a $50 limit each week at Walmart. And so this can be helpful if you do go to Mult. People like to go to Publix and Aldi or Trader Joe's and Aldi. So if that is something you like to do, set caps by store versus by week.
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I love that idea. Okay, number eight, shop your pantry first meaning build meals around what you already have. A lot of times we won't start to think about what we're going to eat that week until we're at the grocery store.
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No, no, no, do not do that.
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And then sometimes, you know, less innocuous, we might plan our just around whatever we found on Instagram or TikTok inspiration or whatever. Sounds good, it's a little better, but it's still not the heavy hitter that is shopping your pantry, making a list of what do I already have on hand? What meals can I build around what's in my freezer, fridge and pantry? That's going to be a game changer. And actually we just did an episode recently so good about this reverse meal planning. So we'll also link that so you can watch that next. If this is an area where you do tend to overspend spend, that's going to be an excellent one to queue up. Next.
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Yeah, if you're searching for how to save money on groceries, that is the episode.
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It's the 80% of people don't do this when grocery shopping.
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All right, so next is to use a staple list for bulk buys. And if you're a Costco girly like us, then sometimes you can be tempted to go into that bulk buy store, whether It's Sam's Club, BJ's, what have you and try something you've never tried before but in bulk. And then you at home and you don't like it and then you have like 40 pounds of it. And that is something we don't want to do. If there is something you want to try and it's at Costco, look for it at Walmart or Publix first. Okay, so that's like a side tip. What you want to have is your bulk buy list. So these are the things that I will buy in bulk on, especially when they're on sale. And these are things that you can be sure I'm going to use and they're not going to go bad before I use them. And don't deviate from that list unless you already know that you like it.
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Okay. Number 10, freeze leftovers in single portions. This is such a hack for the future you that wants to get takeout that you Already have something that's easily reheatable. Already pre portioned a little bit adjacent to this. I'm actually doing this today and I feel like such a master of my kitchen right now because I feel froze. Leftover stir fry from a meal that I made weeks ago, but it didn't seem like fully enough. It was one of those things where it's like, ah, this is only enough for like maybe one person. What do I do about that? Because there's two people in our house. However, I still froze it my friends, and I'm thinking I'll just add more meat to it. So I also bought a flank steak. I actually asked the guy at Costco, he was like, putting out the meat because steak is so expensive. I'm like, I can't afford this. But we asked the dude putting out the meats what's the best bang for our buck. And I'm pretty sure it was a flank steak. So a really long guy that was less expensive than literally everything else in the case. And he was like, just take off the like spiny. I don't know what, I don't know. Biology, anatomy. Cartilage in the back so that it's not so tough. Like when you get it home, slice that out and then cut it up into steak pieces. Done. But in that process, there lot of other additional chunks of meat. So I kept that too. So I'm just going to use like my little chunks of meat, add it to what I thought was just like one portion for people. It'll be dinner tonight. So a little bit of a digression, but just to get your wheels turning on that one.
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That kind of freeze everything. Freeze, freeze everything. That is an extra tip. And that kind of leads us into our next tip, which is to batch cook boring bases. Say it four times fast before you do it.
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We can't do words today.
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So rice, beans, roasted vegetables. And I like, I'll buy my, my vegetables frozen and then just throw them right into the oven. They do not need to be defrosted. And I'll make all this stuff and I'll freeze it. I think rice is even better. Like you cook it and then put it in the fridge.
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I agree.
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And then like re cook it. Yeah, like do all of these in bulk and then you can divvy them up into individual portion sizes. And that saves me throughout the week. I don't have anything in like full portions. I'm divvying up like 3 ounces into each thing. And then I'm just putting 3 ounces of meat on top and then 3 ounces of veg. And like that is.
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Are you weighing it?
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I do weigh it. Well, because I have found that if I don't weigh it, my eyes and my mouth do not do me justice. So like I have cooked theoretically 4 servings and then I'm eating and then the leftovers are not four servings. It ends up, you know, in total being three servings. So I want, if I am planning to get four servings out of this, then I want to make sure I get four servings. So I'm weighing it out, making sure they're even so that I can eat my two and then save my other two. Yeah, so that is important. But yeah, you can divide these into individual servings as well. Even if you don't have like the pre planned meal. Just doing what you can. You know, the silicone bags or the plastic bags are wonderful for this.
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Number 12, adopt a secondhand first mindset. We've done full episodes on this topic, but when we can begin to think can I get this used or pre owned before making a. I'm going to buy it new purchase, it can save us so much money over the years. So whether you need clothing or a tool or an electronic, there are whole ways to get things secondhand. And it doesn't need to involve you going to a thrift store. There's so many resources online. We actually even created a challenge around buying secondhand first. We should link that in the description too in case this is an area you really want to take a deep dive on. We have listed all of the different resources where you can get sports equipment, electronics, like literally, you name it, there are resources. So begin to think about how can I get this pre owned first go to those sites, it can even be done online and then take the next steps to. All right, if I can't find it, then where am I buying it? How can I get a discount on it? How can I pay full price guilt free? But secondhand first.
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Yeah, I'm a runner and running shoes are so expensive. They're the most expensive things that we buy. And I just found a company that resells shoes that either were not sold by the company in season, were tested, you know, in the 30 day window in return, stuff like that. So like slightly used but not.
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I'm getting a watch and it's going to be the refurbished kind.
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This I got from Facebook Marketplace. Well, Travis got it for me. Secondhand, secondhand. It's the way to go. The shirt was secondhand that's, you know, I don't think these were. But, you know, there is something. There's a place to go for everything secondhand. All right.
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Your ring is secondhand. So is mine. All my rings are secondhand.
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Yeah. Okay. So the next two tips are kind of like a double whammy. So this one is adopt a one in, one out rule. So if something comes home with you, whether it's secondhand or new, it has to come in with a plan for something else to come out. And that ensures that the thing you're bringing home with you, you truly value and truly want. And it also has the benefit of reducing clutter that comes home. And I know frugal people, we have a problem with bringing in free stuff, but this applies to free, too. We bring something in, we have to bring something similar. Not just like some rando thing, but, like, something similar that would go in. The similar place has to go out.
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And we're not talking about just trashing things that can be selling it, finding a new home for it. But it also calls into question, am I sure that that thing has to. Is it so unused, tattered, worn? I think a lot of times we're like, we're going to replace this, and then we don't or it doesn't need to be replaced.
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Okay.
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On the flip side, one out, one in.
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So I have a story about this.
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Go for it.
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I have a friend, and she has. We were talking about her spending, like, the things she valued most, and it was candles and water cups. And she said she's a nurse, and there's something about nurses and cups. I don't. I don't know if that's a thing or if she was just lying to me. So if you're a nurse and you have a thing about water cups, let me know if she's lying to me or not. But. So I was like, okay, how many candles do you have? And she's like, 50. I was like, okay, how. And she. You could see her kind of like 50, like, you know, kind of recoil a little. I was like, okay, I get the vibe that you think that that's too many candles. What do you think is a good amount of candles to have in your home? And she's like, 20. And I was like, okay, cool. So I'm gonna challenge you not to buy any more candles until you have 19. So that's that one out, one in. So if you think you have too much of something, don't bring any more in until you have that space, that one Space to bring something else in. And so that's easy for something consumable like a candle, but for a cup, I, I don't know how many she said, but we were basically like, make sure before you bring another cup in that you don't do that until you have that one space for that extra cup. And so that comes through really wearing your cups in, using them till they are literally unusable or gifting cups that you think somebody else would love. Like, I'm not using this cup, but I think, you know, this nurse friend would love this cup. So doing stuff like that, not flippantly getting rid of things so that we can just bring more in, but really focusing on utilizing the things that we have.
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Number 15, fix that annoying thing. You know what I'm talking about? Like the drafty window, the wobbly chair, the squeaky belt. Just sit in your car. Yeah, I don't know if you'll be able to fix it, but fin find somebody to fix it. There's always something that we can do to either maintain or improve. And we're not talking huge things. I'm talking about big renovations. Just that thing that's lingering and bothering us. This type of maintenance and care is what can make our things last longer. So if we notice an issue, we notice a little snag in the furniture or our clothing or this thing needs to be tightened up. That's going to help with the longevity of those pieces. If we can catch it early, respond to it, build our skill set while we're doing that.
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Yes. Next is to learn your three high impact meals. So these are meals that are easy, affordable, everyone eats them and you just repeat them constantly, not every day. But knowing that you have some meals on deck that are easier than takeout. And we have a list of 15 easier than takeout emergency meals. Frugalfriendspodcast.com meals. We'll also look at and link it in the description, but learn those and repeat them often. Stop trying to make dinner so complicated. There are so many beautiful recipes on Instagram and TikTok on the Internet. Stop trying to make them all. Make them few and far between. Make them during special times. Most of your meals though should be super stupid simple.
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Number 17, automate your boring wins again. Not glamorous, unsexy, just, just automate stuff. This is going to make the biggest impact. So save first. When you get paid, have money, being pulled out, going into savings, going into retirement, investing, you decide what your current goals are, but then work everything else around. What's Left over. We just did an episode called Payday routine. Everything that you should be doing when you get paid or what you should do every time you get paid. So check that one out if this is interesting to you. If you don't have auto savings or auto investing, like updated for yourself, this is really important.
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Yeah, most people have their bills automated, but it's the savings and the investing that we don't. And it's really something that we need to get done. We need to get taken care of. Next is to lower your water heater temp to 120 degrees Fahrenheit. It is cutting energy. It's safer for kids. It's just good all around. Don't go below that because then you can start to get some nasty side effects. But if you're not there and you want to lower your energy bill, try cutting it down.
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Number 19, use task batching for errands. So doing one loop a week of your gas and your groceries, your dry cleaning, I don't know what you're doing. Your returns, do it all in one loop because that's really going to cut down on those impulse purchases. You're going to have to do far less worrying about how much fun money you have in your envelope or putting things on ice for 24 hours if you aren't going out to the stores as often.
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Yeah. Next is to maintain your car on schedule. And this one's such an important one. So if you zone back or you're focusing on something else, come back to me for a second just for this one. Maintaining your car will save you thousands upon thousands upon thousands of dollars every year. So making sure that you're getting those oil changes on time, that you are checking your oil, that you are, you just know the bas basics of what things should look like. You don't have to be an expert, but when you go to get your oil change and somebody shows you your filter and be like, oh, this is gross, you should replace this. And you know from looking at YouTube that that's actually what a normal filter with a couple more months has on it. You can be like, no, thank you. It's, it's really that simple. It's just being like low level knowledgeable about your car maintenance so that you can keep it up to date and running well so it doesn't break from preventable things. There's so many things out of our control with our car, but there are so many things that are in control. And so we, our friend Hayden is a car fanatic. We had him on an episode recently. And he loves to use social media to like comment on how people like waste so much money from not maintaining their car. And so we'll link to one of his YouTube videos about that so that you can laugh and then not become one of those people. When I was a kid, getting gifts was magic, but as an adult, it's mostly stuff I don't really want. Except for Mint Mobile's holiday deal that actually feels exciting. They're offering unlimited Premium wireless for just $15 a month. It's their best deal of the year and a gift I'd use every single day.
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I made the switch because I was tired of paying way too much for the same coverage. With Mint, I get high speed data and unlimited talk and text on the nation's largest 5G network for just $15 a month. The service is just as good as my previous provider and I'm saving a ton.
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Switching is super easy. You can bring your current phone and number over to Mint. No contracts, no nonsense, just reliable service and real savings. It's a practical gift that actually pays off.
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So don't get them socks this year. Get them Premium Wireless for $15 a month. Shop Mint Unlimited plans@mintmobile.com frugal that's mintmobile.com Froogle Limited Time Offer upfront payment of $45 for three months, $90 for six months or $180 for 12 month plan required $15 a month equivalent taxes and fees Extra initial plan term only over 35 gigabytes may slow when network is busy Capable device required Availability, speed and coverage vary. See mintmobile.
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Com We've said it before. Fees are the enemy of frugality. That's why we love Chime. Traditional banks sneak in maintenance fees, overdraft fees, and balance requirements. But with Chime, there are no monthly or maintenance fees ever.
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And that alone feels like a win. Plus, Chime gives you access to over 47,000 fee free ATMs nationwide, more than the top three national banks combined, so you can get your cash without the extra charges.
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B
I also love Chime's real time transaction alerts. My younger self would have saved so much more if I'd had those little reminders keeping me mindful of every purchase.
- [26:24]
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Work on your financial goals through Chime today. Open an account in 2 minutes@chime.com frugal that's chime.com frugal Chime feels like progress.
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Chime is a financial technology company, not a bank. Banking services and debit card provided by the Bancor Bank NA or Stride Bank NA members FDIC Spot me Eligibility requirements and overdraft limits apply. Timing depends on submission of payment file fees apply at out of network ATMs bank ranking and number of ATMs according to U.S. news and World Report 2023.
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A
Time checking account required Number 21 Keep a replacement fund for things that just get worn out. We're not talking about something at as big as an emergency fund, but things that might need to be replaced that could stress your monthly budget. So this is tires, tech shoes, glasses. Set a monthly drip into that kind of sinking fund, about $20 a month. Then you won't be as strapped when you do need to replace some of these items that just you weren't totally thinking about, you weren't incredibly imagining. But now you've got a few hundred dollars set aside and it's not as overwhelming to have to pay for that thing.
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B
Yeah. And if you don't already have a high yield savings account for those types of savings frugalfriendspodcast.com cit really good high yield savings account for those smaller amounts under 5,000 next. And this is one that we've learned from Jill and I forget where you learned it from is the Internet. The Trash can test. So if you're looking at this beautifully curated home decor in Target or wherever you are, West Elm, take it out of its beautifully curated home before you take it home and put it in the trash can section and put it next to all the trash cans. And how does it look now? How's how you like it now as much? Or was it just curated so beautifully? And because we're not saying your home is trash, but we're saying that trash cans are probably the worst decor in your house. So if it looks good next to that, then maybe you do still want it.
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Sometimes the piece only looks cool because of where it sits in the middle midst of everything else.
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So if we're not taking home, especially the cheaper items.
- [28:47]
A
Yeah. So if we're not taking the entire display home with us, the trash can test can help us to see what does this thing look like on its own? Do I still find it cute? If not, move right along. 22. Set a cap on gifts per person. This one is especially important around the holidays, which is fast encroaching on us.
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Encroaching, yes, that's coming for us. Specific word.
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A
So agree with your loved ones ahead of time. Focus on kind of shared plans or experiences together. Communication is really important when it comes to this particular line item of a budget. But of course, there's gift giving that happens throughout the year. And if this is your love language, you know you are a person who's buying gifts year round. Still, especially for you, setting what those caps are going to be per month, maybe that's even a line item of your spending plan. Here's how much I have to spend on gifts for people this month. Whatever it is, make sure that you've got some sort of boundary for it. Otherwise it really can get out of hand.
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B
Next is to borrow gear before you buy. And we've talked about this so much much specifically in our hobbies episode where we want to do something, we go out, we buy all the stuff to do it, and then we either don't do it or we end up not liking it as much as we thought we would or being as good at it. So borrow what you can before you go out and buy something, whether that is from a friend, from a tool library, the library, neighbors. This is why it's so important to, like, have relationships with people and be in community with people so you know what stuff you know people are doing and what you can do. Because these hobbies can be great ways to build relationships. If it's a hobby that you truly want to do, and who, who's to say if it's pickleball, you might want to quit your job and pursue it full time. So you may just, you may not need to borrow any pickleball paddles you could. Actually, what's more likely to happen is you're going to try and borrow pickleball paddles from somebody who plays pickleball, and they're just going to give them to you as an excuse to buy better pickleball paddles. So be prepared for that.
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A
Number 25, put seasonal purchases on a calendar. Buying off season, not in season can save us a ton of money. And a lot of times the sales that are running during the seasons aren't really for savings. They're for market marketing. They're to get you to spend money. So being aware of that, that's another thing that we talk about in our budget toolkit that we send out monthly in the friend letter. Again, it's free frugalfriendspodcast.com friendletter where we will tell you what is truly on sale, where are the deals if you need these things, when should you be buying them? So that can be helpful. You don't have to be a guru on all these things. You just need frugal friends.
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B
Yeah. And when we say off season, we like Shoulder season. So like not, not at the height of summer, buying all your summer things because they're not actually on sale. They're not. They just got more of them at the end of the season. Then when everything's getting cleared out, that's your sweet spot. And we'll tell you about all the shoulders. We love shoulders. Switch to unit price Thinking. So I recently bought shampoo and I spent $94 on a bottle of shampoo, which is outra gist. But hear me out. Versus buying the tiny bottle that I have been buying, I am saving $1 per ounce. So I am saving money overall. And I know it's shampoo that I will use because I've been using it for years. So it saves me per ounce. And this is the idea with bulk buying. But again, we want to make sure it's buying in bulk that we will use. Not just because we're saving per ounce ounce, but we have a proven track record of utilizing it. So thinking then per ounce works for us.
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A
Number 27, use a household checklist. We are coming at you like a fire hose right now with all of these frugal tips and we're not going to be able to remember all of them. We're not going to be able to be knowledgeable on every single thing. We need these things on autopilot. We need checklists, we need reminders, we need to be told what we need to be focusing on when we need to be focusing on it. So we're talking air filters, fridge coils, re caulking things, cleaning the gutters. All of this stuff that does need to be done and sounds so overwhelming as we're listing it all out that you need to negotiate this, you need to replace that, you need to fix that. But you know what, it's all super manageable if we space it out through the year. And you know, the only way that we're going to be able to space it out through the year is if we plan for it like in our plan or we do actually have a resource for this very thing. It's called our annual finance planner. You can get it linked in the description for girlfriendspodcast.com planner. We really do believe that something like this can be super helpful as a resource to us that we're checking in with weekly and just knowing, oh, what is the task for this week or for this month. And by the end of the year, we find ourselves having stayed on top of all of the maintenance things. We've negotiated all of the bills, but it hasn't Been overwhelming because it's been broken out into small baby steps.
- [34:29]
B
And this is a lot. So maybe I'll throw this into a PDF and send it out in the friend letter. So if you get the friend letter today, then it'll be in there. If you haven't signed up, then sign up. I'll put it in the next two friend letters as well. All right, next is to declutter quarterly. We are always accumulating even if we have our one in one out rules. So we still want to be decluttering because less, less stuff means less rebuying. We know what we have and you don't forget what you own. So always be decluttering.
- [35:04]
A
A, B, D, number 29. Live a no fee life, baby.
- [35:10]
B
No fee life.
- [35:12]
A
You're not. You're not charging me fees. You're not getting extra money from me. I'm a. I'm a fee. I'm a fee free female.
- [35:19]
B
Female I like. So sorry.
- [35:24]
A
Yes. Develop a mantra around it. Your whole personality. So we're talking about avoiding ATM fees, late fees, delivery fees, whatever we gotta do to build systems around our lifestyle to dodge these things. That's gonna be really important. So yeah, even, even if that means that, okay, it's worth it for you to maybe be an Amazon prime member or to wait until you have enough things that you need to buy online that you do reach that, that free shipping or you're not banking with a bank who to be charging you ATM fees. Whatever the case, we're. We're returning our library books on time so that they're not charging us late fees.
- [36:07]
B
But if you're going to pay fees to somebody, pay them to the library. I'm so serious. I. So I was told that successful influencers have an enemy. And I wonder if fees should be our enemy. Wow. Let us know in the comments what our enemy is if we have one or what it should be.
- [36:27]
A
If you've come to make an enemy out of Booktok.
- [36:31]
B
Booktok is not my enemy. They chose me. I didn't choose them. They're not my enemy. And fees are one of my enemy.
- [36:39]
A
We'll see.
- [36:40]
B
You let us know because we're ready to pick an enemy waste. All right. 30 is pack like a mom. So pack water snack max phone charger even if you don't have kids because these random convenience buys can nickel and dime us. And it's especially with snacks. I'm out and about and I get hungry and then I go and go to a drive through or a Chipotle or Something like that. But I started with my little built puff protein bars. I always have one on. You will never not see me with a one of those puff protein bars and nectar electrolytes.
- [37:27]
A
I'm just remembering when the three of us, you, me and Eric, who is our third wheel, were on a plane to Portland. It was like a six hour flight and every single one of us was pulling out snacks. So you want this? You're like, no, I've got that too. Who wants a protein bar? Who wants trail mix? Who wants a beef stick? Like no, I already have all those things. Every single one of us pulling snacks from our bag.
- [37:55]
B
Staying hydrated is important. So if the water fountain is bad and the water is bad, you have a little electrolyte mix so that you can stay hydrated. That helps. So these are little things but like when you pack like a mom, you overall save money because you're doing less, you know, drive through takeout sort of stuff.
- [38:14]
A
So number 31, plan any social spending around free or low cost options. So decide how it is that you want to connect with your friend or group of friends and then choose a least expensive option. We really love Facebook events for knowing what's going on in your community. Eventbrite will have free events if you are signed up to the newsletter of a local venue. A lot of times they will let you know when tickets go. So discounted. Or if they're giving away tickets because they didn't end up selling out, they'd rather have a full room than not. These types of things are happening regularly. So being aware of how can I have fun? What does my city or my town have to offer and then building out your social experiences around those things.
- [39:09]
B
Yeah, Rakuten right Now is offering $50 cash back for new users when you spend $50 and Groupon is one of their cashback sites and they. So if you're going on Groupon to look at something to do for the holidays, then definitely use the link in the description and sign up for Rakuten. Buy your tickets. You have to make at least $50 worth of purchases in the first 90 days at these qualified vendors. But you've got Groupon, Sam's Club, Petsmart, you know, all those and and then you're essentially getting your tickets for free.
- [39:46]
A
I love that.
- [39:48]
B
Next is use the library like a pro.
- [39:52]
A
Jen's favorite.
- [39:53]
B
We love the library. We are library girls. Library is my personality and books, audiobooks, museum passes, seed libraries, tools, events. I love the library and it is such a treasure to the community. If you're not going to your library at least once a month or taking advantage of something from the library. What are you doing? What are you doing? Show me library love in the comments. Let's be together on this and create this library movement.
- [40:30]
A
If fees are the enemy, library is the friend.
- [40:34]
B
Library is the hero. It's is the protagonist of the story. Library is hero, fee is enemy.
- [40:43]
A
Oh, yes.
- [40:45]
B
Actually, I think we're. I think we're gonna nail this influencer thing. I think we're gonna nail it eight years in.
- [40:52]
A
Finally got it.
- [40:53]
B
We are gonna do it.
- [40:54]
A
Number 33, unsubscribe from or roll up retailer emails. So keep deals in a folder if you're getting a ton to your inbox and only check them when you are actually looking, looking for a deal or discount on something or you plan to shop at that store. We really like a resource called Unroll Me. Also have that linked in the description. We got a lot coming at you in this description. So that keeps marketing emails out of your inbox. But if you want to check a specific brand because you do know that you like them, you know that whatever it is, it fits you. It's. It's totally your style, then keep it, but don't have it be bombarding you daily. Utilize some of these resources to roll it up. I just done subscribed from Starbucks this morning. I don't know how they got my email. I don't go to Starbucks. And they're sitting here in my inbox like, no, thank you.
- [41:49]
B
Travis found a Starbucks gift card and gave it to me. And I don't shop it buy from Starbucks anymore. But I did, I put it in my, I think just in case, like I wanted to buy somebody else's Starbucks and now I'm getting push notifications because I had to redo the app.
- [42:08]
A
Oh, no.
- [42:10]
B
So yeah, yeah. If. If you want to know our thoughts on Starbucks, ask us on another episode. We ain't got a time. We got to keep going. Cap restaurant orders. So one appetizer for the table. Water first. Split mains. Be those people or don't even get an appetizer.
- [42:30]
A
Who needs an appetizer?
- [42:31]
B
Who needs an appetizer? Still fun.
- [42:34]
A
Sometimes it's fun. Half celebrating.
- [42:37]
B
Restaurant portions are huge anyway, so if you wanna get your own thing. If you don't wanna split, get the box when they bring you the meal out and put immediately half of it into the box. Eat your portion, wait a few minutes, see if you're still hungry. And then you can always go like, eat it out of the box.
- [42:57]
A
But next level tip, bring your own box, right? If we wanna pair it with low waste. Oh, I was like, you bring in your own little Tupperware glass container, whatever it is, pulling that out of levels.
- [43:12]
B
To being that girl that I'm not at that level. It's an option and that's fine.
- [43:18]
A
I can be that girl.
- [43:20]
B
You can be that girl. You don't have to be that girl.
- [43:23]
A
You don't have to.
- [43:23]
B
But you can, like cap your restaurant.
- [43:26]
A
Orders, number 35, make a 10 free things I like list. So a lot of times when we're looking to do something, we're looking for that rush, that dopamine high. I we're just going to grab for something. A lot of times it's spending because that'll give us what we're looking for. But instead we need to have a list at the ready where our brains don't have to think. We can just look and say, what off this list can I do? It's already thought out for you, written down. You just have to choose. So whether that's a walk or doing some version of a home spa, puzzles, picnics, calls with friends, library, library, sketching, reading, listening to fun music, trying a new recipe, I don't care. It's your list. You get to decide. But write it down, make it accessible, put it somewhere that you can see it regularly. And when you're looking for that little bit of a spike so something that's a little bit special in life, visit that list. Decide what on here do I want to do do it'll save you money.
- [44:33]
B
Keep an opportunity cost sticky note on your wallet. So asking yourself, what is this purchase taking from my goal? And so you can do the math on your. So I guess the sticky note is not the calculator, it's the question. It's the question. And if you don't have a wallet, then you can make it maybe your background on your phone, but essentially you, you want to be able to name the price that what you're buying is taking away from the goal that you are trying to reach and asking is this worth it? And so we actually have an opportunity cost calculator in our budget frugalfriendspodcast.com budget that you can go in there and say this is the price and this is the percentage. So whether you're trying to invest for retirement, you could put seven or ten. If you're trying to pay off debt, then you put whatever debt you're working on, the interest rate on that and Then you can calculate the true cost to buying this thing and what it's taking away from your financial goal and decide, is this really it?
- [45:44]
A
Number 37, learn to say no without actually saying it or learn the butt trick. I think the butt trick might be easier and more fun to say. So a lot of times spending happens because of FOMO not wanting to miss out. We want to belong.
- [46:00]
B
So. So not want to be rude either.
- [46:02]
A
Yeah, we want to be able to go out with people. We want to do the fun thing. We don't want to seem like the cheapskate for most of us. But a lot of times it's that activity that isn't actually going to meet our values. It might push us a little bit over the edge. It wouldn't be money that we would have otherwise spent. But rather than saying no to the thing across the board, we can do a no, but no, I'm not going to be able to make it out to that event. But would you want to come over and I'll cook for us or would you want to meet at the park and, you know, BYO lunches? You decide what an alternative could be that that may mean that they say no and you miss out on the thing. But it also gets you to practice some of that creativity with what are some alternatives? And how can I still get that connection and belonging without spending money unnecessarily?
- [46:53]
B
Yeah, like I can't do dinner out on Saturday, but could you do happy hour on Thursday? I would not do it right before people go out because then after a drink you might be persuaded to go out. Do it on different days. But yeah, or like, can we try something a little less expensive next like this time or something like going out and being in community and being with friends, not saying no and living under a rock, but without actually saying like no and being crude. Next is review your spending quarterly by values. So this is a little different than your 90 day transaction inventory which we started this with. So you want to kind of green light what matches your season and red light what drains you. So think of this as the light version of the transaction inventory. You can do this on your budget spreadsheet like we have. You can kind of mark it. If you use use an app like Monarch, you can kind of just look through your transactions and visually see like, okay, these are the things that really lit me up. These did it for me. These are the things I don't remember or did not serve me and just kind of going through that the other three quarters of the year. Because remember, you're only going through a full transaction mentor once a year, but really continuing to make sure that your spending is in alignment with your values and your income.
- [48:28]
A
Number 39. Negotiate. Whatever. Whenever we get it lower, I'll be. Mm. I'm thinking Shakira. Literally, whatever.
- [48:38]
B
We're with you.
- [48:39]
A
Whatever. Negotiate that below. Car phone, Internet, hospital. Yes.
- [48:45]
B
What she's trying to say is whenever, wherever the option is available. Not whenever. We're. If you guys know my Gap story, I worked at the Gap, and some guy came in and tried to negotiate the price of clothing. And I was like, sir, this is the Gap, not Facebook market. Facebook marketplace did not exist at that time. I was like, but this is not the flea market.
- [49:08]
A
My dad tried to negotiate my prom dress at Bloomingdale's. I don't think it ended up working. I was too embarrassed, and I walked away.
- [49:16]
B
Oh, my gosh. Yeah, don't be that girl.
- [49:18]
A
Okay. But there, whenever, whenever, wherever it's available. So, yeah, we're talking car phone, Internet, hospital bills, all of these things. And actually, we have a challenge, a negotiation challenge that just came out in November so you could get your little thingies on this one where we have negotiation scripts, kind of everything that you could negotiate, how to negotiate it well so that it can go in your favor. So if you want that link in the description as well. We have been the most successful on lowering bills and saving money through negotiation. It is a skill to be built. It can feel a little uncomfortable, but as we stretch this muscle, we get.
- [50:00]
B
Better and better at it. So saying I'm not good at negotiating, so I don't do it. That's a cop out. We don't accept that. It is a skill that you can and should build as an adult. Whenever you don't have to be your.
- [50:13]
A
Mental or your bill.
- [50:15]
B
You don't have to be, like, an expert, like, professional deal negotiator. No, but you do have to to have some foundation in it so that you can get things at the price they're meant to be at. Because a lot of these things are overpriced with the intention people will negotiate them down. That is a fact. So it's not right, but you need to be able to do it.
- [50:39]
A
Bring them number 40 every.
- [50:42]
B
Okay, so this is what I have said my entire debt payoff journey. Well, since I started paying off debt, I have always said, the more time you spend making money, the less time you have to spend money. And that was brilliant. I did so many side hustles while paying off my debt. So if you have a big financial goal that you're trying to reach, try to do side hustles in your extra time. You're not going to get rich off of these side hustles, but they make you some extra money and they take up time so that you are not tempted to spend money. So it's a double whammy for me. Like, they were very beneficial in my debt payoff. And yeah, the more time I spend making money, the less time I have to spend it.
- [51:36]
A
Do you know what I always have time for and feels like a double whammy just because of how much fun it is?
- [51:41]
B
Anyways, the middle of the week. That's right.
- [51:56]
A
It's time for the best minute of your entire week.
- [51:59]
B
Maybe a baby was born and his name is William.
- [52:02]
A
Maybe you paid off your mortgage, maybe.
- [52:05]
B
Your car died and you're happy to notice, not have to pay that bill anymore. Duck bills.
- [52:09]
A
Buffalo Bills, Bill Clinton.
- [52:11]
B
This is the bill of the week. Jen and Jill. Hello. This is Mary. I'm the elementary school music teacher who reads a lot of books because kids are crazy. And you know what else my kids have gotten me on a tonsillectomy. That's right. They get me sick a lot. These puppies are coming out. And it turns out that one of the most common complications of a tonsillectomy is dehydration because obviously it hurts. You don't want to drink the water. And I'm trying to prevent that. So I decided I was going to get a big stockpile of electrolytes to supplement my fluid intake. And it turns out I had some rewards from. From when I used to do a subscription of electrolytes from noon, which I have since canceled because wasn't using it all the time. So I canceled it. But I still have the rewards. So all of my tonsillectomy electrolytes are free. I'm about to enter my tonsillectomy girl summer era and it's gonna be great. That's all I got for you. I hope you have a great rest of your day. Day. Bye. Bye. Oh, yeah, we love these cashback browser extensions. We love Rakuten. And again, right, as of recording this, you get. You can get $50 cash back. So this is the highest we have ever seen. We did not pay Tara to say that for us. So definitely frugalfriendspodcast.com Rakuten R A K.
- [53:57]
A
Oh, is it?
- [53:58]
B
Yeah. R A K U T E N.
- [54:01]
A
Yeah, yeah, there it is. Okay. Yeah, you focus on the browser. Extension. I'm gonna focus on what an amazing top tier elite bill of the week. This is about a bidet. Never in our lives have we had a bill about a B day. And I am am so here for.
- [54:22]
B
Singing in this episode.
- [54:24]
A
Yeah I am.
- [54:25]
B
You should be worried about copyright issues.
- [54:29]
A
That's not a song that that's a full original right there. We don't. Yeah, we just have to worry about.
- [54:35]
B
Else should be worried about copyright when they try to use it.
- [54:38]
A
How much money like we're going to be making off this song? $10 for what should have been $151. You're just keeping that tush clean. Keeping that money in your bank account using these browser ext are crushing life. This is goals. Everyone should be looking at this bill of the week saying goals. So if you if you want to try your hand at sending us a bill of the week that we've never heard before or just one that's going to make us super thrilled and excited. Frugalfriends podcast.com Bill we are here for it. Whatever kind of bill you want to leave for us. We've been doing this for seven and a half years and we still get new types of bills.
- [55:22]
B
Yeah.
- [55:22]
A
And that's thrilling.
- [55:24]
B
That's great.
- [55:25]
A
It's time for Black Friday. Dell Technologies biggest sale of the year. That's right. You'll find savings on select Dell PCs like the Dell 16 with Intel Core Ultra processors and with built in advanced AI features, it's the PC that helps you do more faster.
- [55:40]
B
From smarter multitasking to extended battery life, these PCs get the busy work done so you can focus on what matters most to you. Plus earn Dell rewards and enjoy many other benefits like free shipping, expert support, price match guarantee and flexible financing options.
- [55:55]
A
They also have the biggest deals and accessories that pair perfectly with your Dell PC, improving the way you work, play and connect. Whether you just started holiday shopping or you're finishing up, these PCs and accessories make perfect gifts for everyone on your list.
- [56:08]
B
Shop now@dell.com deals and don't miss out. That's Dell.com deals.
- [56:16]
A
Every year during open enrollment. I'm reminded how confusing healthcare can be. Higher premiums, fine print, and plans that never seem to fit. It feels like the system is built to keep us stuck.
- [56:25]
B
It's wild how easy it is to overpay for coverage you barely use. That's why we love what crowd health is doing. It's not insurance. It's a community of people helping fund each other's medical bills directly. No middlemen no networks, no hidden nonsense.
- [56:40]
A
With crowd health, you pay under $100 a month and get access to bill negotiators, low cost prescriptions, lab testing tools and a list of vetted high quality doctors. Doctors. And if something major happens, you pay the first $500. Then the crowd steps in to help cover the rest. It's healthcare sharing that finally makes sense.
- [56:58]
B
This open enrollment. Take your power back. Join crowd health to get started today for $99 for your first three months using code frugal@joincrowdhealth.com that's joincrowdhealth.com code frugal. Crowd health is not insurance. Opt out. Take your power back. This is how we win. Join Crowd Health.com now it's time for the lightning round. All right. An unsexy frugal habit. You'll never give up.
- [57:30]
A
Ooh, do you have one?
- [57:33]
B
I. Well, I think it's the library. I think we know that it's the library, Jill. I love the library. I think they are. The library is the pillar of the community.
- [57:48]
A
Yeah.
- [57:49]
B
And I mean our, our Main Library for St. Pete just reopened after a five year closure and for renovations. And they kept, they wanted to keep the architectural, like integrity of its original design and that's one of the reasons it took so long and it is just gorgeous and fantastic. And our book is there. I love that and has so many like resources for the community. It's such, it's a sanctuary.
- [58:28]
A
You make library sexy though. That's the thing.
- [58:32]
B
That's my goal.
- [58:33]
A
It was unsexy until Jen's like, this is my thing. Thing.
- [58:36]
B
This is my thing.
- [58:37]
A
I'm a one, one issue voter and it's library and Amen.
- [58:42]
B
Amen.
- [58:42]
A
So sexy.
- [58:44]
B
Let me get political with you for a second. Libraries period, Jill.
- [58:53]
A
I think for me it's limiting food waste. It just isn't that sexy. Right? Like, it's more sexy to go buy new food.
- [59:01]
B
Food.
- [59:02]
A
And I'm out here just like, how can I reuse, repurpose this food, these meat bits into these, these bits of meat. How can I do something with this? Also, I am the person who is out to eat and, and definitely get like taking things to go. If there's food left over, I think I can be out with a lot of people who are just like, yeah, what? I'm going to box it up so it can sit in my fridge for a week so I can throw it out. I'm like horrified. What you're actually, you're talking like that's.
- [59:34]
B
Something that happens to all of us.
- [59:35]
A
And it's definitely not like if there is leftover restaurant food in my fridge, your girl gonna eat it, your girl is gonna eat it and your girl might even take your leftovers. You're gonna talk that way about your restaurant leftovers? I might be like, if you're not gonna take it, I don't deserve them. I'll take them. I'll find a good place for them in my fridge. And then my stomach.
- [59:58]
B
Leftovers do not get wasted when we are at the table. They get taken. Exactly. Thank you so much for listening for watching. We're so appreciative that you stuck with us through all 40 and let us know in the comments if we missed any unsexy Frugal Living tips that really help you. And if you have read our book, buy what you love without going broke, which in itself is one big frugal living tip, then we would love if you could leave us a review on Amazon. You don't have to buy it from the there, but it does help people see that it's a legitimate book that people read. Like Jessica who left a five star review about the book. She said, if I could give this book six stars, I would. It's the first finance book that actually resonates with me. I was introduced to this book by the Sounds Like a Cult podcast Dave Ramsey episode, which, side note, it was so fun. Were you on that one? Yes, it was. It was so fun. We love Amanda and we love Colts, so what a fantastic episode to do. Okay, back to the review. I can't stress enough, it's the best book on personal finance I've ever read. As someone who enjoys spending and didn't feel like Dave Ramsey was a good fit for me, I'm walking away with a handful of practical, psychological and tangible challenges to try and it felt so based in present day reality. In a world where everything is really expensive and money is hard. I feel like I need to share this with all millennials who are trying to make it comfortably in a 2025 economy. Jessica thanks Jessica.
- [61:39]
A
Wow.
- [61:40]
B
Beautiful.
- [61:41]
A
This is everything we are getting we want out of this episode.
- [61:45]
B
Yeah.
- [61:46]
A
If you've also read the book, please review it. If you are listening and you like this podcast, leave us a rating and a review. If you're watching us on YouTube, like and subscribe wherever you are. If you're enjoying this, we would love to keep you around, bring you into the Frugal Friends community and have you support us in one of these free ways. Doesn't cost you Money. See you next time.
- [62:08]
B
Bye. Frugal Friends is produced by Eric Sirianni. I think we just.
- [62:25]
A
I think we just said so much.
- [62:27]
B
Yeah.
- [62:29]
A
That really did feel like drinking from a fire hose, though.
- [62:33]
B
But we did it.
- [62:35]
A
But we did it.
- [62:36]
B
Is this the after show? We're not gonna. Are we gonna.
- [62:38]
A
This is the after show.
- [62:39]
B
No.
- [62:40]
A
Yeah. We still keep that for. This is the. What do they call it? Breadcrumb. That's not the word. Taylor Swift does it all the time. Treasure chest.
- [62:49]
B
I don't know.
- [62:51]
A
Easter egg. Is it the Easter egg for the people?
- [62:55]
B
No, I think Easter eggs are more hidden. These are. The after show is always after the.
- [63:00]
A
Yeah, but I feel like it's only the people who are like, real fans who stick around after the.
- [63:05]
B
Yeah. I don't think we know enough about Taylor Swift to say that we're doing something like she is doing.
- [63:11]
A
I was just trying to find the word Easter egg. That's all I was looking for.
- [63:15]
B
Okay. Wow.
- [63:18]
A
You really got it out for Taylor Swift.
- [63:19]
B
I do not have it out for Taylor Swift. I just don't think we can compare ourselves to her effort.
- [63:31]
A
Oh. I mean, with our success. With our, like, raging success.
- [63:34]
B
Except for our money.
- [63:35]
A
We are like, as big as Taylor Swift.
- [63:38]
B
Yeah. Except when it comes to the money. But otherwise, I just don't think, you know, musically, we're at her level.
- [63:47]
A
Oh, my gosh.
- [63:48]
B
Other things we are.
- [63:50]
A
Me, I was like a lyricist in this episode.
- [63:54]
B
Yeah. Maybe you are like Taylor Swift.
- [63:57]
A
Maybe finally waking up to that.
- [63:59]
B
Our partnership has been limiting your opportunities for superstardom.
- [64:06]
A
I'm glad you're finally seeing that.
- [64:09]
B
I'm holding you back. I see it.
- [64:13]
A
Shopify's point of sale system helps you sell at every stage of your business. Need a fast and secure way to take the payments in person. We've got you covered. How about card readers you can rely on anywhere you sell.
- [64:25]
B
Thanks. Have a good one.
- [64:26]
A
Yep, that too. Want one place to manage all your online and in person sales? That's kind of our thing. Wherever you sell. Businesses that grow grow with Shopify. Sign up for your $1 a month trial at shopify.com listen. Shopify.com listen.