Cut The Fat – Losing Things You Don’t Need
Posted on by Forest in General, Saving Money & Finances
I really think that being frugal transcends saving money and can work well in all aspects of your life. To be truly frugal it helps to stand back, take a look at yourself and cut the fat every now and then. By this I mean just getting rid of everything you don’t use or need… There may be a few creature comforts you want and that’s fine but they should still be put under some serious scrutiny.
Finances
You have probably read a lot about cutting back your finances so I won’t over-indulge in reiterating tips here but I feel it needs some mention at least. After all most of us begin our career as a frugalist to save some cash.
Start by sitting down with a pen, a few highlighters, paper and your financial statements and budgets.
On your budgets and bank / credit card statements highlight using different colors to show if an outgoing is essential or extra. Essentials include rent/ mortgage, health insurance etc etc.
Write every “non-essential extra” on a piece of paper. When done writing with your list, be honest with your self and cross out everything from this list that will not be absolutely missed. This could be things like a subscription to a magazine you never finish reading an over the top cable package or morning coffee (I know everyone always uses this example!). Get rid of them… If recurring cancel the bills, if they are things you do then stop doing them.
For the non essentials you have kept you now need to assess each one. Look at them and see if they can be cut back in anyway. For example for your cell phone bill (this should be in non-essentials 
) check that you are not paying for any extras you don’t use.
Now the fat is cut on that stuff you need to tackle the things you marked as essential. This is difficult but you may be surprised at how much cash is being wasted. For example you may be able to merge utilities for a cheaper monthly payment. You may be able to find a cheaper insurance quote for your health and car and you may be able to walk/cycle for one part of your daily travel expenses. Cutting coupons can be beneficial too. Those Macy’s coupons can come in handy around the holidays should you draw your boss’ name in the office grab bag.
Around the Home
Pretty much the same principle applies here. List everything you can see in your home. This may take a while so you can do it detailed, room by room, or you can start with a general list. Obviously things like a frying pan are essential. But what about that ice cream maker and the instant bread machine! If you don’t use them then start using them or put them on the ‘get rid’ list. The kitchen is an easy room to start for this but you will likely find something in every room. Even in the living room you may have a chair that is never used or a table that just gets in the way. Unless it has genuine sentimental value, get rid of it! Less clutter and more freedom from objects will make you feel richer in many ways.
At Work
Take a look at your workspace. I am sure it’s a mess and full of post-its, random papers and nick nacks that you think make getting through the day easier….. Trust me they don’t, and this goes for home workers too. Either organise or get rid of all un-needed stuff. The minute I organised my work space, work became more productive. Use this process for digital desktop too. Think of files on your computer like a real desktop, file them or get rid of them (obviously do a back-up first!).
Now work also entails a work life and there is plenty of fat to cut here! If your time is flexible in any way then you may want to replace your irregular breaks and office chats with more regulated breaks and routes round the office. Only turn on skip and messenger tools at certain times of the day (You may benefit from limiting your hours on certain sites). Your random 20-30min breaks here and there can be replaced with 15min breaks every 2 hours where you have a quick chat, grab a tea/coffee but are ridged with time…. You will likely find so much more work being done and if you work on flexible hours you may be able to actually leave early every now and then! I’m not suggesting you lose your social life at work, just organise it and make better use of everything.
Diet!
I love eating, I REALLY love eating. But I am careful about not wasting money on food I don’t like that much. I realised I was buying too much candy, I would eat it really quickly and not really benefit from the enjoyment of eating it… It was more like a habit. This is the kind of thing that needs trimming. Create a food diary and strike off everything that is not essential, cut back your meals in size by around 10% (you won’t notice the difference really) and once you have the diet of a Tibetan monk regulated it’s time to start bringing extra’s back in for pleasure, not just for the sake of eating. I must admit I am still not perfect in this area but am writing about an ideal here 
What else?
I have hardly begun to cover all the areas that the fat can be cut in but it’s a start in some major areas. My fat cutting has taken a few slow years but it could have been done much quicker. I feel lighter in many ways and I think my more frugal mindset has helped me save stress and cash in the long run.
Abit More About Getting Rid of Objects
In the work and home areas you may end up with a bunch of objects that you need to get rid of. Throwing them in the trash can isn’t really a good option and you need to sensibly dispose of this stuff even if you don’t have the willpower to deal with it.
Firstly any items that can should be listed for sale. Ebay and Craigslist are both excellent choices but you could post in your local classifieds or notes in a local shop too. If you are getting rid of clothes you may even be able to sell some of them to reuse clothes stores such as they great Plato’s Closet chain.
For items that don’t sell you can try freecycle or asking friends and family if they need them. For example an old ratty chair may be perfect for a local furniture maker or even for someone just starting a home. You can also donate them to places like Goodwill or the Salvation Army.
Finally you will be left with some stuff that you can’t even give away. It’s likely more than 90% of this can be recycled! If you have a serious amount of scrap metal and paper you may be able to sell if but most people don’t have this amount (some old electronics may contain some valuable metals so it’s worth investigating this stuff). I urge you to recycle these objects even if you have to go out of your way… You will feel much better for it.
Continue This Discussion…
Right now my new forum is in soft launch… Meaning that I am building a cozy small community before a full scale release. You got this far so I would be honored if you would come over and continue the discussion and give some of your tips and ideas.
Continue The Conversation “Cutting The Fat” On The Forum
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16 Responses to “Cut The Fat – Losing Things You Don’t Need”
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Forest: Absolutely agree Larry. In fact cost is the last t...
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Daddy Paul
04. Mar, 2010
Goodwill has a recycling program in most of the USA with dell. The computers are either restored or recycled. A much better alternative to the dump.
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Forest
04. Mar, 2010
Hey Daddy Paul, thanks so much for your regular comments.
This is an excellent service, Goodwill are awesome.
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youngandthrifty
04. Mar, 2010
SOME fat in your diet is good though. LOL. Maybe I should get on the next episode of Hoarders!
Great tips! My work desk looks like a bomb hit it… so will try and fix that. =) Better “feng shui” for your life, anyways!
.-= youngandthrifty´s last blog ..Yakezie Challenge Mid-week Round-Up =-.
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Forest
04. Mar, 2010
Yes I agree for sure…. Was trying to say it’s good to cut bad to nothing and build back up again…. Look at what you need for a healthy balanced diet… I need to do thi right now as eating habits have been bad last few days!
The desk is important
.
Thanks so much for popping by….
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Jeff @deliverawaydebt
04. Mar, 2010
Great topic. I just finish cutting the waste at my desk at work. It took quite awhile but I was able to do it. I feel so much better because of it
.-= Jeff @deliverawaydebt´s last blog ..Can You Be Content While In Debt =-.
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Forest
07. Mar, 2010
Awesome Jeff…. knowing you I am sure it’s meticulously organised now
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Red
05. Mar, 2010
Great post! I can attest to the fact that getting rid of things in your home that you don’t use or need goes a long way to alleviating stress. If you don’t own it, you don’t have to store it or clean it! And, like you said, you can usually sell it and bring in some extra cash for things that were just sitting around your home before.
I’d like to add to that last part that, when your things don’t sell, you can donate them to Goodwill and claim the amount on your taxes. There’s an “estimated worth” page on Goodwill’s site, where you can figure up how much your donated things are worth. My tax return increased substantially this year because of all my donations.
.-= Red´s last blog ..Pros and cons of being cash only =-.
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Forest
07. Mar, 2010
I didn’t know about the tax worth thing…. That is very handy! I’m not a US Tax Payer but my partner is and she makes use of this when back home.
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Money Funk
05. Mar, 2010
Great tips, Forest. I recently cleaned up my finances by cancelling recurring online subscriptions, letting magazine subscriptions run its course w/out renewal, etc… And cleaned up the work space, too. Total relief! I did that after I read the 4HWW.
But its also learning to revisit and re-clean and/or maintain the simplicity. Because we all know how fast one can consume things.
.-= Money Funk´s last blog ..Introducing Ally Interest Checking =-.
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Forest
07. Mar, 2010
I was probably moved to write a little more on this subject because of 4hww…. strangely though my email keeps growing, I really need to get that under control!
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LeanLifeCoach
06. Mar, 2010
Great post. All of this “fat” is what the Japanese call Muda. But don’t forget there are other forms of waste as well. Each in some way contribute to your finances. Waste of time, motion, transportation for example. Eliminate these and you have less cost or more opportunity to earn.
.-= LeanLifeCoach´s last blog ..Combating the Closing Techniques – The Assumptive Close =-.
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Forest
07. Mar, 2010
Ahhhh awesome, I wondered what Muda was in your blog name
.
Agreed, like I said, so many other areas to cut back in…
Thanks for stopping by
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Financial Samurai
07. Mar, 2010
Hey Forest,
Love the design of your site and that cool Yakezie Network box you got! I replied to one of your comments and was asking about your experience in Egypt (is this where you are now?).
Looks like a couple new members of the Oda (clan) are coming to visit!
I really love eating too, to the detriment of my budget, and my waistline. Hence, I’ve really decided to take tennis seriously to counter balance my eating.
I’m going to get a piece of paper and write out some nonessentials myself! I think we’ll go to the Salvation Army and donate things away too
Cheers, Sam
.-= Financial Samurai´s last blog ..Sometimes Saving Money Is About Principle =-.
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Forest
08. Mar, 2010
Thanks Sam, I am still not 100% happy with the look… It’s been a slow transition over about 6 themes and continued tweaks though so a bit closer to making me happy (but I will never be happy really
).
Sorry I meant to reply about Egypt but i forgot!! It’s cool here, crazy but cool. Things are cheaper than I have ever seen and more expensive than I have ever seen…. same goes for most things, it’s the land of extremes! Generally though it’s a good place to save cash and get finances back in order and there are some really great things to see…. The people are very friendly too and this city is unbelievably safe from a crime POV.
I just started a new workout plan that is working me hard and my body is crying for some heavy food…. Just gotta feed it some healthy heavy and not fast food
Thanks for stopping by and thanks a million for Yakezie… My Alexa has improved by around 20K since I joined just a week or so ago!! Sun 200k here I come!
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Barb Friedberg
29. May, 2010
I really appreciate this topic. (Although to look in my basement, you would never know it). I’m going to include it my round up this week. I could read about this topic for motivation all day! Best, Barb
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Forest
30. May, 2010
Hey Barb, thanks for stopping by and thanks for the appreciation….. Your blog is great and motivating too btw
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