I receive dozens of questions from readers asking various questions as to why it is that I do certain things the way that I do – like why I make our own laundry detergent or why our grocery budget is so high or why I no longer coupon. Therefore, I thought I would share with y’all my money philosophy.
What is a money philosophy? It is essential what your thoughts and beliefs surrounding money are, the structure of money and the way it flows in and out of your household.
My money philosophy is pretty simple – if I am struggling there is not much that I will not sacrifice or go without in order to survive. However, since I am no longer in financial trouble and can breathe a little easier every month, my money philosophy has evolved a little.
My current money philosophy is that I will continue to do all that I can to save my family money but I will not sacrifice my sanity to do so. In other words, when I started recognizing that couponing was costing me more time and money (my Sunday newspaper subscription) than I was saving, I stopped. That is right, I no longer clip coupons and I am totally okay with that.
I make my own laundry detergent but I still make sure to have a bottle of store bought detergent on hand for inevitable lazy moments when I put off making a new batch of detergent until I have no clean underwear to wear. True story.
Same goes for our grocery budget, I do certain things to help us save like use the app Checkout 51, shop at Aldi, use digital coupons (loaded onto my Kroger Plus Card), and shop sale items when necessary. However, since we are no longer struggling and my hubs’ money is what pays for the groceries, I purchase lots of meat because that is what my hubs wants. Whereas I could live off pasta and cheese for the rest of my life and be perfectly happy, my hubs has.to.have.meat all the time. He puts up with meatless Fridays during Lent but that is only because he knows he will not win that battle.
Therefore, our grocery budget is more than what most people spend but I am totally okay with that because my money philosophy is all about saving money and saving my sanity at the same time. They have to be in harmony or I go crazy. Of course I do my best to save on meat by buying in bulk, buying what has been marked down, freezing and storing the meat from my hubs’ hunting trips, and sticking to the basics (chicken, pork chops, ground chuck, and either a roast or top sirloin). However I do not worry about trying to convince my hubs to go meatless more often because that would just be an argument and drive me crazy.
Then there is the argument of “how can so many people feed their large families for only $50 a week”? Yes, it is true that many large families have huge stockpiles of food, and I am a tad bit jealous of their stockpiles. Their stockpiles allow them to only purchase a few staple items to make it through the week or month. However, their stockpiles are wonderful and nice but they would not work in our home. We simply do not have the storage space for all that food (we do not even have a pantry – just a cupboard).
I am sure that I could probably clear out sections of closets to store food, but to be honest that would cause me to lose my sanity. The last thing I want to see when I am attempting to pick out clothing to wear for the day is food. That would stress both my hubs and me out – not to mention our boys would find their way in there, probably destroy it, and consume half of it.
This is just the way that I apply my money philosophy and I am sure your money philosophy looks different from mine. We all use money differently and we all value money differently, but we all need to know what our individual money philosophies are to make sure that we always stay in line.
What is your money philosophy?
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Kristin says
I love reading when bloggers post their monthly expenses, but I make sure I don’t compare myself to anyone else. Everyone splurges or saves on different things! I know I splurge on Starbucks frequently and people have told me how much money I could be saving if I didn’t buy coffee all the time. But, I save in a lot of other areas so I am ok with getting that coffee!
Jessi says
Heck yes Kristin! I completely agree – we can’t compare our situations to others.
Amy @ DebtGal says
What a thought-provoking question! I guess my money philosophy is that I will do everything I can to make it easier for my husband to get his work done, since he is far and away the primary earner for my family. At the same time, I will do everything I can to save money and earn additional money, so we can pay off our debts as quickly as possible. But I won’t sacrifice our health in doing so. Clearly I need to think about it more, so I can refine it…
Jessi says
I love your philosophy Amy!
Kylie says
I live in Australia where coupon img does not exist and we have only a few choices in supermarkets so its refreshing to read a budgeting blog not centred around coupons! Our money philosophy at the moment is to reduce our debt with every spare bit of money we can! Interest rates are very low here at the moment and while the kids are young we are taking advantage of it! Most of our friends have the complete opposite but that’s ok and it works for them! Love reading your blogs from down under!!!
Jessi says
Thank you so much for your kind words Kylie! 🙂 I didn’t know that couponing doesn’t exist in Australia and I love hearing how others, especially in other countries save. Definitely take advantage of those low interest rates to get the debt paid off – y’all are rocking your journey! 🙂
lydia @ frugaldebtfree says
This is great. Our philosophies are very similar. Mine is, living simply and try to spend less than you save.
Emilie says
My sister in law teases me for always bring my resuable bags to save 5 cents on each one but then I get gas at a full serve station and pay extra. I hate pumping gas…especially in the snow and 25 below wind chill.
My husband did not like the homemade detergent so I buy Tide (with coupons on sale).
I would rather sleep than put applesauce into container that would get lost and moldy in my boys lockers so I buy purchased applesauce cups. My kids still get fruit and I sleep in.
We each have choices to make based on what is right for ourselves and our families.
I think deep down everyone needs to have the same philosophy: don’t spend more than you make; plan for the future; have a budget that you rework often and enjoy life!
Jessi says
Yes ma’am! I believe there must be a balance with money and enjoying life! 🙂
Becca says
My husband has a very healthy attitude towards money: Money is a just tool to make your life easier. Over the years I’ve struggled to adjust my attitude so that it is more in line with his, because I like his better than mine, which is: Eeeek, I need more money to feel secure. We have no debt and a relatively high income; we save about 30% of our income and have substantial savings; we don’t really care about consumer goods or keeping up with the Joneses’ type stuff – it just feels frivolous to us. On the other hand, a lot of people would consider us very frivolous for going overseas every year. Travel is important to us; we want to expose our children to different customs and cultures. We don’t care about brand-name anything but I love knowing that my kids are well-traveled and I hope we’re teaching them to be fearless.
Jessi says
Oh that is such a wonderful gift to give your children! And ahhhhhhmazing job saving! 🙂
Toni @ Debt Free Divas says
Good question. I should probably define this specifically, but in general I feel strongly about building something tangible that my children’s children will benefit from. A good girlfriend, who is now a grandmother manages property that her dad acquired throughout his life. I love that his great grandchildren are still enjoying the fruits of his labor. I’m going for something in that vein.
Jessi says
Wow! That is amazing! My Papa was that way and I believe that is the best legacy you can leave! 🙂
Becky says
I like your philosophy! And it’s nice to read one about grocery budgeting without mixing in vegetarian meals. Your husband sounds a lot like mine, minus the hunting–his favorite thing to say about food is “any meal without meat is just a snack”!
Jessi says
Hahahhahaha! I love your husband’s saying – my hubs would agree! 🙂
Melanie M says
I recently started reading your blog and love it! Can you share the recipe for that tasty looking rice, sausage, and veggies meal pictured up there? I’m with you about meatless meals, but my husband feels the same way as yours! Thanks for all of your great ideas!
Jessi says
It’s gumbo! 🙂 The recipe I have is from eMeals, so I’ll have to work the post into my editorial calendar for you. 🙂
lana says
My money philosophy (I’ve been a SAHM for 23 years and our family’s money manager) is to thoughtfully spend the money my husband works hard to earn.
Like several comments, we spend less than we make. We also have had the resources to travel due to budgeting.
We’ve paid off our home, cars and kid’s college expenses and we still have about 17 years until retirement to save. We are currently saving 40% and I hope to save more and give more than just a tithe.