Frugal Living Tips: September 2014 Edition

August has been a crazy month for me as I’ve been getting used to my new job.

The downside is that I’m burning through more cash than expected driving to and from work each day. On the flipside I’m preparing my own lunches at home and am finding that I’m also eating less due to my more sedentry lifestyle now.

I’m also sleeping a lot better now that my body has got used to the 7am start (rather than my old 3.45am alarm call!). All things considered I’m very happy I made the jump.

Financially my budget has shifted around quite a bit this month and it’ll probably take a little while till it calms down properly; I am carefully tracking my expenses again in order to modify my existing budget to meet my new lifestyle – without spending any more money each month.

This is key because the saving continues in order to provide that nest-egg I seek, so that I can set up my own business in the next few years and fast track my journey to financial freedom.

On the vegetable growing front things are really going well. I’ve got fresh red peppers and tomatoes coming out of my ears right now. We’ve also been feverishly harvesting and freezing sweet corn, green beans and rainbow chard to see us through the winter.

Add to that the fact that it looks like we’re going to have the best crop yet of leeks, butternut squash and cabbage, combined with what we’ve already got preserved and we’re going to be saving tons of money on food over the next few months.

I’ve even started saving seeds for the first time ever – so we’ll be able to spend less getting the garden started again next spring. It all adds up I assure you!

But that’s enough of my babbling. The main reason for writing this “round up” post each month is to highlight some of the best blog posts I found since the last edition.

I do this both in the hope that you, dear reader, will find some excellent new articles to read but also as a way of “bookmarking” them for myself so I can easily return back to them in the future. There’s nothing more annoying than searching the internet for a particular blog post you’ve read before but now can’t find!

So without another moment wasted let’s dive into the goodies from last month…

Firstly I wanted to highlight a few “vanity” posts that I have either written or been featured in over the last month. A big thank you to the bloggers below who kindly featured my work.

How To Save Money By Avoiding The Convenience Premium

I can’t believe how much people are willing to pay for convenience. If you’re serious about being more frugal and getting free of debt then a key strategy can involve avoiding this “premium”.

8 Ways To Save Money At The Gym

Gyms are expensive, but for some people they’re necessary. As much as I’d love to exercise at home or run in my local area, the size of my home plus the unreliable British weather makes this a struggle. So here I decided to discuss some of the techniques I’ve picked up over the years for paying less at the gym.

Side Hustle Ideas

Many of us obsessed with personal finance maintain some kind of “side hustle” to maximize our earnings. Here, Pauline discusses some of the most unusual side hustles around – including a few of my own.

With those out of the way, let’s look at what else caught my interest last month…

Thirteen Strategies for Financial Independence Through Self-Sufficiency

While I’m a long way from self sufficiency, I love to grow as much of my own food as possible. This article, however, takes it a step further and shows how to use self sufficiency as a key tool for gaining financial independence.

How to Save Money on Expensive Prescription Drugs

Here in the UK prescriptions are cheap but I understand that my friends across the pond can pay a lot of cash for basic medicines. This article grabbed my attention therefore, with all sorts of tips for saving money at the drug store.

How I Made $200 This Week for Doing Nothing

“Nothing” may be an exaggeration but when you understand the process it’s still just about the easiest “free money” available right now.

Why Working for Yourself Isn’t All That its Cracked Up to Be 

Over the years I’ve spent some of my career working for others, and some of it working for myself. And while being self employed is a dream for many people, it isn’t always all that it’s cracked up to be. This honest article discusses the pros – as well as the cons – of working for yourself.

Don’t Burn Your Bridges When You Leave Your Job

Having just left my last job – which I didn’t enjoy – it was very tempting to leave on bad terms. While I’d like to think I am too professional to just walk out of a job, it should come as no surprise that this article about quitting your job grabbed my attention.

Job Loss and Debt: Could You Pay Your Debt Without a Job?

Hayley discusses the often sensitive subject of job loss. These days, very few of us are ever 100% safe in our careers, but the higher your debts are, the harder that being laid off will hit you. In this thought-provoking article Hayley discusses her own experiences of unemployment+debt and examines some simple solutions.

Living on Last Months Income

Well this was one post that just went crazy this month! And it’s no surprise! Many of us manage to save a percentage of our monthly salary – either for paying off debt or putting towards future investments – but what if you could save it all and live on last months income instead? Tempting? Read on to find out how.

The Retail Therapy Trap

Monica may not post very regularly at the moment but every article she publishes is worth it’s weight in gold. Here she discusses the temptations of (and solutions to) those who rely on retail therapy to relax, unwind and reward themselves after a hard week.

Thanks for reading my round up. I hope you’ve uncovered at least a few articles that you didn’t know about or mean to re-read but never got around to. Normal posting will resume next week. Oh and if you’re looking for a guest blogger to write on your personal finance site, why not get in contact?