The 7 Personal Finance Articles We Loved This Week

It’s Thursday, and you know what that means: time for another round of awesome personal finance articles hand-picked by ESI of Rockstar Finance!

I have to admit, I am not a “frugal” person. I always take a rideshare to the airport instead of the bus, I love going out to eat, and I love buying clothes. But there are a few frugal things I do in my daily life that really do help me save money. For instance, I almost always make coffee at home or drink the free coffee at the office instead of buying something ~fancier~. I also bring my lunch to work most days, and I opt for cheap breakfasts and lunches when eating at home (like eggs or something over rice). And I’ve had the same pair of sneakers for about five years (and it shows — they actually desperately need to be replaced).

Point being, we can all expect to be frugal all the time — eating super-basic bean dishes all the time does not equal a fulfilling life if you’re someone who really loves food. So I loved today’s first post, all about the many frugal living options you have without resorting to the extreme inconvenience of a hyper-frugal life. For instance:

Instead of house hacking or roommate living, here are other frugal tips on creative ways to “frugalize” your living space:

• Choose “less house” than you need to keep your mortgage and utility costs lower.
• Keep possessions to a minimum to reduce the square footage your family needs to use (and pay for).
• Investigate ways to reduce your utility costs, like cutting cable or making energy use more efficient.
• Share tools with family and neighbors, so you don’t have to purchase them all yourselves.

Be sure to check out the rest of this week’s great picks below!

1. 6 Extreme Frugality Rules I’ll Never Follow (and 23 Frugal Tips to Do Instead) – Practical Cash      

“Thanks to shows like TLC’s Extreme Cheapskates, you might watch fascinated and mildly horrified as people display their examples of extreme frugality and tell tales of budgetary scrimping. After watching someone eat roadkill for dinner or wash their laundry in the shower to avoid laundromat costs, you might be willing to chuck frugal living out the window altogether.”

2. Why we are doubling down on the 9 to 5? – Apathy Ends      

“I haven’t been shy about stating one of the main drivers for our pursuit of Financial Independence is my attitude towards the corporate grind. My issues aren’t personal, I just don’t like when other people have control over my time and decisions. No biggie.”

3. 7 Ways To Deal With Annoying Coworkers – Miss Functional Money

“I have a fun job. (Mostly.) I love my coworkers. (Except when I don’t.) I don’t want to throat-punch somebody every hour. (Typically.) When those times come when I do find myself wanting to strangle and/or curse out a fellow employee — and oh, my sweet innocent flower, those times will DEFINITELY come — I rely on a few tried-and-true methods to get me through the day.”

4. Just How Much Money Will You Save Taking Cold Showers? – Financial Uproar

“There seems to be a small (but vocal, oh God how they are vocal) minority of the personal finance blog-o-net that somehow thinks taking cold showers is a worthwhile thing you should be doing. And not just after a failed sexual escapade, either.”

5. Does FIRE Make Life Harder? – Can I Retire Yet?

“I envisioned living a life of freedom, purpose, and happiness. At times, that has been the case. But that’s only part of the story. In reality, the past year has been one of the hardest of my life.”

6. How to Be Frugal Without Depriving Yourself – Fly to FI

“From the outside, it looks like I’m living just the same as everyone else, but instead of spending every penny I earn, I save 85% of my income. I’m not staying in every weekend, I’m not eating a ramen noodle diet, and I’m certainly not skipping out on vacations.”

7. Will I Be Comfortable Withdrawing From Principal in Early Retirement? – Retire in Progress

“And you start withdrawing from your nest egg. Taking money out. On average still experiencing net worth growth – if you picked a safe enough withdrawal rate and didn’t face a 1929 thing right after retirement – but not as steep as you were used to.”

Image via Unsplash