Frugality is a good word. Being frugal does not mean being miserly or stingy, instead it means being mindful. Frugality makes one less stressful, because one buys what is necessary, therefore he wastes less. It can’t be termed as a tactic, it is a mindset which makes life more joyful. Frugality is about saving money, financial freedom and creating the long-term life one wants to live; it’s about living a life with simplicity and honesty. It is about personal accomplishments and satisfaction that comes from learning new skills, fixing things, and enjoying all of the gifts we already have. It’s about lessening the junk, it’s about being your own person and not the person society wants you to be.
Successful people have recognized the importance of frugality. Warren Buffet, Chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway prefers living in the same home he bought for $ 31,500 in 1958, his net worth is $69.1 billion. Azim Premji, Chairman of Wipro Ltd drives secondhand cars also and he always reminds employees to turn off lights when not required, and his net worth is $ 16.6 billion. So friends, prosperous people have recognized that frugality is environment friendly which simply means having a lifestyle that is healthier and saves the environment. Frugality helps us take small steps towards mother earth so as to make this planet a better place for us and generations to come.
A good way is to start with conserving water, driving less and walking more, consuming less energy, buying recycled products, eating locally grown vegetables etc hence creating less waste. Frugality means live and let live. If we do not save and oil, our life might come to a standstill. The world badly needs oil for many purposes: to power its cars, to plant it fields, to operate its oil-powered irrigation pumps, and to act as a raw material for making many kinds of products, including medicines and fabrics. Royal Dutch Shell Oil Company has predicted that the world will face an energy crisis unless investment in fossil fuels production is conserved.
Nearly every frugal strategy doubles as an environmental boon such as driving less, buying new things only when required, not wasting food, and not creating clutter by hoarding more and more. Although frugality can’t solve each environmental problem that modern society has created, it’s a humble start. The beginning is always small.
John Ruskin, an art critic in the 19th century, once wrote, “Every increased possession loads us with a new weariness.” He was so right. Think about it. The more materialism we accumulate in life, only adds to our frustration blocking our cupboards and wardrobes, and our energies. Frugality is not about spending less money……….it is how you choose to spend your time and how you choose to conserve other resources in totality. Carols Slim Helu, who is a Mexican business magnate, investor, and philanthropist was ranked as richest person in world from 2010 to 2013, Slim has lived in his same old house of six bedroom more than forty years. And, Charlie Ergen an American businessman and is the co-founder and current Chairman of the Board, and former President and CEO of Dish Network still packs a brown bag lunch. Brown bag lunch originally referred to the practice of employees bringing a packed lunch from home. Living frugally means deciding what is most important to you and directing your energy and money towards getting more of whatever you intend to have in your life. It doesn’t mean sacrificing your joy and happiness.
The biggest fact of frugality is, if we live life with simplicity, there is no boredom. It allows you to constantly use your creativity, exploring your hobbies such as cooking, gardening, singing, dancing which involves living a very real, very tangible existence. Frugality allows us to use our hands a lot. We don’t pay for easy solutions. And it relaxes our nerves to a great extent. Mark Zuckerberg may be frowned upon by many traditional investors and self-made millionaires but he is one of the richest people in the world and is undoubtedly more popular than most. Imagine a man who is worth more than thirty billion driving in a saloon car that costs just around twenty thousand. His obsession for grey tees is known and has a ton of those in his wardrobe. He and his wife have shown time and again that you don’t need to spend money needlessly, even if you have a lot of it.
Ratan Tata of Tata Group is regarded as one of the humblest industrialists you would ever meet. He wears affordable suits, drives affordable cars made by his group company and he has never indulged in any so-called needless luxury that is often synonymous with the life of the rich and famous.
Frugality brings peace and simplicity into your life. Evaluate your priorities. Evaluate the words of Edmund Burke – Irish Businessman “frugality is founded on the principal that all riches have limits”
