There are several conventional ways to save money that we hear about over and over again such as using coupons, buying things on sale, shopping at discount stores, buying online, reducing your expenses, and living below your means. All of these are great ways to save money and survive a financial crisis in normal times. Unfortunately, we are not living in normal times and it will take some creative thinking to survive the current recession.
We, as Americans will have to change the way we think about money and how we spend it. We must change our bad spending habits to ensure we have a decent life in case an unexpected expense occurs such as a medical condition, job layoff or death of a loved one. We must also position ourselves for retirement so if social security is not available we can still survive and have enough money to cover our basic living expenses.
More than 2.6 million Americans have foreclosed on their homes this year and over 960,000 Americans have filed for personal bankruptcy. These statistics are alarming. One way to prevent being one of those statistics is using a radical approach called the Voluntary Simplicity Movement or simply living.
The Voluntary Simplicity Movement started in the 1960s and has grown widely with approximately 20 million people following all or some aspects of the phenomenon. Simply living is examining every aspect of your life to determine what is most important and eliminating the rest. Simple living has various aspects such as ecological, technological, financial, etc. Many Americans cannot embrace this concept out of fear, embarrassment, and reactions by family and friends. Living below your means is how many entrepreneurs got their start and became successful. They understood the sacrifice that needed to be made to achieve their goals.
The Frugal Simplicity aspect of the Voluntary Simplicity Movement means spending in terms of needs vs. wants, cutting back in various areas of your life – reducing expenses, and being responsible with your spending. Shopping frugally and living below your means reduces stress related to debt and helps to move towards a debt free life and financial independence.
Many Americans have tried creating a budget or spending plan, use coupons or cutting back on some expenses. Unfortunately many have started with the right intentions but failed to continue performing those actions as a lifestyle choice and reverted back to their old bad spending habits.
If you have tried everything else or felt like no other option would work – don't file bankruptcy or foreclosure. Try the voluntarily simplicity movement for 30 days and track the following: your stress level after the 30 days, how much money you saved, how much debt you were able to pay down, how you felt after the 30 days. Even if you don't continue the Voluntary Simplicity Movement, hopefully you will have made a great change in your life about the purpose of money and how you can use it to create a better life for yourself. For more information visit www.simpleliving.net.
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