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Yes, you can live fabulously frugally and maintain your fabulousness
If you think fabulous And thrifty mutually exclusive, you think wrong. You can live incredibly frugally and here are 7 ways to do it. Now you can live even better with the free offer 5 building blocks for a happy gay life available here.
Become gay if you live fabulously frugally:
Fabulous frugal living is about doing more, but better
Frugality isn’t about eliminating fun from your life. It’s about spending money on what matters most and finding ways to do it more with fewer.
Frequently Queer money® Guest David Rae is a Certified Financial Planner and Accredited Investment Fiduciary based in Los Angeles. He has been helping clients achieve financial security for 17 years, building a reputation as a specialist in serving the LGBT community. David writes a regular column for Forbesand his works have appeared in The Huffington Post, Investopedia And The lawyer. He was also interviewed Night lineThe Show today And NBC Nightly News and more.
David joins us to discuss how to live a champagne lifestyle on a beer budget. He shares his perspective on what it means to live incredibly frugally and explores why the queer community is often tempted to overspend. David shares advice on how to treat yourself, how to balance money management with gift giving, and how to negotiate a raise as a member of the queer community. Listen in and learn how you can involve your friends in your amazing financial security journey!
7 amazing tips for a fabulously frugal life
1. Plan ahead and save accordingly
A twist on a popular saying goes, “If you don’t plan to spend money, you’re spending money to fail.”
Most of us spend money unconsciously and then regret our spending like a whiskey ass or can’t sleep because we lack financial security. As our friend Paula Pant says, “You can have everything you want, you just can’t have everything.” But few of us know exactly what we want and don’t plan on getting it.
2. Find ways to do more for less – “Not so expensive”
The stereotype has been embedded in our DNA for so long: gay men are supposed to lead fantastic lives. Sorry to burst the nitrous oxide balloon, but we’re not all white, aspiring gay couples who live in modern houses and drive Audis.
After taking on $51,000 in credit card debt, we realized that in many ways we were living a champagne lifestyle on a beer budget. Many of us can afford to spend money in certain areas of life, but most of us cannot afford to spend money in all areas. So we learned to find “not so expensive alternatives”. NSE for a portion of our expenses.
There is an NSE alternative for everything in life. These may not be alternatives you want to live with forever, but they will help you get out of debt. And the more options you have for living NSE, the easier it will be to stay debt-free.
We found NSE alternatives to watching TV, drinking wine, and meeting our annual travel gay quota. Now that we are debt free, we still use some of these NSE substitutes.
3. Use Milestone Rewards to achieve goals
Use Milestone Rewards as incentives to achieve your goal.
Milestone bonuses are affordable rewards we give ourselves when we reach milestones in achieving financial goals. They also don’t destroy our financial goals because they represent too great a reward. Examples include going to the cinema, having an inexpensive dinner, drinking a good bottle of wine, or buying an affordable yet stylish item of clothing – perhaps a cool t-shirt.
Milestone bonuses should be enough of an incentive to keep you on track toward your financial goals and not put you off your savings and investing plan.
4. Talk to your friends and family about your money goals
People don’t talk about money enough. The queer community doesn’t talk about money enough. That was the whole purpose of the Queer Money Live Tour last year – to get our community talking about money.
Share your goals. Share your wish. Then share how you achieve these goals by spending, saving, and investing your money wisely.
The more we talk about money, the more we learn about money and the better we get at managing our money.
The stronger we are financially as individuals, the stronger we are as a community and the more we can advocate for and promote equality.
5. Know your worth and get that raise or promotion
While LGBTQ people face discrimination in the workplace, studies also show that we do not sufficiently seek or advocate for raises and promotions in our careers. Let’s stop this!
Know your worth. Apply for this big job. Demand equal pay and push for raises and promotions.
6. Hire a financial coach for accountability and planning
Do you think you just have to do everything yourself with your money? NO.
Why do professional athletes have coaches? Why do rich people have financial advisors?
Because all needs a coach to achieve outstanding performance. If you are not sure what your financial goals are, if you are not sure how to create a plan to achieve your financial goals, and if you are not sure if you have what it takes to achieve your money goal achieve – get a trainer.
7. Use tools to save and invest
Achieving money goals is a million times easier when you use the tools and resources designed to help you achieve your money goals. There is no other part of the economy as designed for success as the stock market. The earlier you get in, the better.
Topics that deal with a fabulously frugal life
David’s take on a fabulously frugal life
- Find ways to do more with less
- Save and plan ahead
Why queer people spend more money than they have
- Make up for feelings of inferiority
- Push yourself to create the appearance of success
How to Live a Champagne Lifestyle on a Beer Budget
- Focus on what is important to you
- Plan expensive things in advance (e.g. travel)
How often should you treat yourself?
- Use incentives to achieve financial goals
- Plan a small amount per week/month
Here’s how to include your friends in your financial journey
- Let them know you’re saving
- Share steps to buying a home and paying off debt
How to Balance Budgeting with Gift-Giving
- Talk to friends/family about goals
- Set a Budget for Gifts (or Skip This Year)
- Draw names or make a white elephant
The myth that frugal people are poor
- Smart financial decisions = long-term prosperity
- Don’t judge based on the car or the clothes
How to negotiate a raise
- Know your worth and don’t be afraid to ask
- You may have to be willing to change jobs
David’s favorite money management tools
- Financial advisor for responsibility
- Quicken or Mint to track expenses
- Honey extension to save on purchases
The difference between cheap and economical
- Cheap = you don’t pay your fair share
- Frugal means making smart spending decisions
Connect with David Rae
More resources for an incredibly frugal life
