Modern Frugality with Jen Smith
Modern Frugality with Jen Smith
Getting financially healthy is as much a mindset game as it is a numbers game, and part of changing your mindset includes changing how you view certain words around financial health, like budgeting, investing, and, our topic today, frugality. Before I set out on my path to financial wellness, I thought of frugal people as cheap people. Being frugal was not a goal I had for myself. Fast forward 10 years, and I know that frugal people are fabulous, and frugality is more of a money hack than anything else.
Joining me today to speak more on this topic, and how you can change your mindset to embrace frugality, is Jen Smith, founder of the blog site Modern Frugality and co-host of the podcast Frugal Friends. She joins me to share how she became a frugal convert and how embracing frugality led to debt freedom for her and her husband.
What are we drinking?
Jen - Coffee
Shannon - Black Cherry Schweppes
Podcast Notes
Jen has a video on her YouTube channel about the buy now, pay later option and how it promotes impulse spending. It is her most viewed, most commented on video, because everyone disagrees with her. They want what they want when they want it and it helps them to get it.
When Jen graduated from college, she didn’t spend on big things, but on small things. She would always look for the cheapest gas, but she would impulse spend at Target.
It wasn’t until she started paying off her debt that she started to embrace frugality over being cheap. She got engaged in 2015 and as soon as she said yes, her fiancé decided he wanted to pay off his student loan. She had a YOLO mentality to money, but he eventually got her on board.
Jen started side hustling to get out of debt, but two months in she got shingles, because of the stress. She started doing monthly no-spend challenges, and that woke her up to how mindless her spending was.
We have access to so many things and we can get whatever we want. Frugality comes down to being a good steward of your resources, including money and time. Figure out what you value, so you can spend whatever you want on those things, and figure out what you don’t want so you don’t waste on those things.
Frugality is about being intentional. We all work hard for every dollar we make, so make it hard to spend the money. Are the conveniences what we value? Is it that inconvenient to make dinner?
Frugality is not the most convenient but it isn’t inconvenient. Being cheap is inconvenient and it is a burden on others. Reframe your mindset to change things up and test to see if it works in your life. It helps you determine what you value.
Frugality is taking a pause and asking yourself if you can do something for less or if you even need it. Shannon switched from shopping at Ann Taylor to TJ Maxx and buying fewer cloths, and she started making dinner every night, but she will not give up her cleaning lady of 12 years.
You don’t need to cut your own hair and you don’t need to can your own vegetables, just figure out what works best for you. Try small things at first and then keep going. Jen is willing to try a lot of thing to see what works for her.
Frugality is a journey and there are bumps and setbacks. You can change your lifestyle or you can use frugality as a reset.
Writing down your expenses can help you face what you are spending and it can help you think twice about it. You don’t get growth without discomfort. Frugality allows you to gain power over the way you spend your money. Committing to the discomfort and the exercises is taking the power back.
If you feel more in control of your finances, you will have more life satisfaction. It is measurable and you can see results right away.
When you buy less, you spend less, and you consume fewer finite resources, like plastic. The first “R” in reduce, reuse, recycle is reduce. Take care of what you own so it lasts longer and doesn’t end up in the landfill.
Cheap buys the cheapest thing and it doesn’t last. You can spend more being frugal and will you spend less over time because it lasts. Frugality plays off of minimalism as well. There are so many environmental benefits of being frugal and it has a compounding effect.
The most beneficial tip that Jen can give to someone who wants to start being frugal is to start planning ahead. It is easier to be cheap when you are last minute.
You need an emergency fund, so you can invest in higher quality items when you need them or before you need them, like a car. If you are buying a car at your discretion, you can wait for the best deal and you can sell your car versus only buying what is available at the time.
Meal planning is so important to keeping your food budget in control. Food is the biggest thing for most people, because you need to eat every day. Having quick food on hand is important for those days where you want to order out.
When you add things to an online cart, pause and think about if you really need the item.
A great frugal hack is a no-spend day. Just like you schedule a workout, schedule a frugal day where you make food at home and don’t spend. Schedule two or three of those a week. You don’t realize how much mindless spending happens on a day-to-day basis.
No-spend days are not about deprivation, they are about saying yes to other days and other more meaningful things. You need to know what you value and what you would rather spend your money on next month and then it becomes easier to make those “no” decisions. This is something you get to do, because you have an income.
Long-term goals are important, but they aren’t going to motivate you now. It is important to set up short-term goals and know what those are.
Jen and her husband together made $35,000 a year when they started their frugality journey. It took them 2.5 years to pay off $78,000 in debt and they took a trip to Bali. Every time she had a limiting thought, she questioned it.
Within a year of working with The Gym, 90% of clients meet their goals. They get there because they are continually focused on their goals and they commit. If you are focused, you will get there. If money was a stressor in 2020, let 2021 be the end of that.
You don’t need to say you are frugal, you can say you are fiscally conservative. Frugality is you hacking your financial choices in the best way possible.
Don’t worry about other people’s goals, it has to be your own journey. Start with making smarter choices with each dollar.
Takeaway: My biggest takeaway is the value of changing your mindset and being open to adopting practices like frugal behavior. If you’re new to it, I always suggest starting with one or two areas of your life and see how it feels. You may actually enjoy the process — I speak from experience!
Random Three Questions
What is your favorite frugal spend that you have made within the last five years?
What is something you have enjoyed bingeing lately?
If you won a million dollars, what would you do with it?
Connect with Jen
YouTube: Modern Frugality
Instagram: @modernfrugality
Podcast: Frugal Friends
Website: Modern Frugality
If you have any topics you would like me to cover on this podcast, or if you’d like to get in the financially naked hot seat, I encourage you to email me to Shannon@fingyms.com, or join the private Martinis and Your Money Facebook group, and let me know what you want to hear.
2020 was a challenging year, and if money was one of those challenges for you, please don’t let 2021 be more of the same. Despite a global pandemic, we witnessed Financial Gym clients achieve amazing goals all year long. We’ve worked with over 6,000 clients at this point and we’ve literally seen it all and would love to help you achieve your financial dreams in 2021. So head over to, or send friends to, financialgym.com to get set up today.