10 Commandments for Frugal Living

5. Thou shalt look for alternatives before buying.

If you need something, automatically going out and buying it is not an approach that a true frugal person would take. Instead, before spending any hard-earned money on something that may only be used a few times, consider alternatives.

Is it possible to borrow it from a friend, a neighbor or a place such as the library? Would renting it be less expensive in the long run? Do you have something else already on hand that can be used to perform the same task? Buying is only one of many options when it comes to getting things you may need.

4. Thou shalt ignore the Joneses.

Part of living a frugal life is understanding that life isn't a competition over who has the most stuff. It's important to concentrate on your and your family's needs, and not what others are spending their money on. Just because your neighbors bought it doesn't mean that you need to go out and buy something on par or better.

3. Thou shalt not pay full retail price.

When you are going to make a purchase, you should never pay full retail price for it. There are a number of ways to avoid paying full retail such as using coupons, finding discounts, waiting for sales and negotiating a lower price. With a bit of preparation and forethought, there is never a reason to pay full retail price for anything you purchase.

2. Thou shalt not waste.

One thing that those who are frugal hate is waste. While this obviously includes the waste of money, it also goes beyond money to such areas a wasted resources and wasted time. Efficiency is a frugal person's friend, and those who are frugal tend to follow the green mantra of reduce, repurpose, reuse and recycle for the things that they do possess.

1. Thou shalt do things yourself.

When something needs to be done, the first choice to perform the task should be yourself rather than hiring someone else to do it. Frugal people tend to be do-it-yourself experts and do not pay others to do things that they can easily do by themselves. When they don't know how to do something, they research it to see if it is something that they can do with the proper instructions or something sufficiently complicated that it's best to let an expert handle.

While it may take some practice at first, getting these 10 frugal commandments down will make your savings account look a lot healthier in the new year.

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