Unicorn Browband

Last month we received an order for a Unicorn Browband, a costume attachment for a horse’s bridle to give the illusion of them riding a unicorn. People often order the Unicorn Browband when they have a parade, show or a costume contest. The customer placed an order for a ready-made unicorn horn and then sent an email with special requests, one of which we agreed to do for her at no extra charge even though it cost us more.

She also told us her horse had a very large head and asked us to make the horn larger, which we couldn’t do because the horn was already made, and we advised her to order a custom horn in order to better suit her horse, but she decided to just take the smaller, less expensive one that she had ordered.

So we finished off the item (the horn was made but the length of the browband had to be customized to her specification) and added a special feature that she requested — Velcro loops instead of regular sewn loops at the ends — and shipped it off to her. A week later, she e-mailed to tell us the horn didn’t look right on her horse because it was too small and wanted to return it and order a larger custom horn as we had suggested at the time of her order.

We don’t normally allow returns due to health concerns — you never know if a customer will try a costume on an animal that isn’t clean, has parasites or communicable diseases and then return it. But because sales are slow this year and she wanted to order a replacement item, we made an exception and offered to send her a gift certificate for the purchase price after she returned it to us. She waited another 3 weeks to send it back to us, and when I emailed her a claim code for her store credit, she wrote back and said she had changed her mind and just wanted a refund.

A quick Googling of this customer shows that she participates in horse shows, and I am inclined to suspect that she used the unicorn browband for a show and then returned it for a refund, because she didn’t send it back to us until a month after making her order. This may or may not be true, but it wouldn’t surprise me if it was because I have heard of people doing the same thing with clothes.

I know businesses are supposed to love their customers, and I do like most of mine. But many people believe that a business must always treat customers as if they’re always right and give them anything they want, to which I don’t agree. As a customer, I am aware of what is honest and right. If I neglect to read a product description or terms of sale before buying something (which I never do), then it’s my fault. Perhaps this is unreasonable, but as a business I expect customers to be equally honest and take responsibility for their own errors.

So Madoline and I have decided that we will no longer accept orders from this customer. It may not be the smartest thing to do to turn away potential future earnings from her, but her actions have proven her to be more of a hassle and not worth the money we might earn, because:

• She wasted our time by not reading the product description
• She expected special features that weren’t offered or included with her purchase
• She ignored our advice to order the right size for her horse
• She expected special treatment when her decision to not take our advice turned out to be a bad idea
• She lied about wanting to order a replacement item and took advantage of us after the item had been returned to us
• She may have used the item for a show before returning it over a month after the order

All these reasons make it not worth our while to do business with her again. Maybe she’s not dishonest and merely unintelligent and inconsiderate, but I have no desire to deal with her in the future. I know we may lose a few sales that way, but most of our products are custom made from scratch to a customer’s specification and it’s not worth the risk of custom-making something for her just to have it possibly used and then returned under false pretenses again.

We agreed to give her a refund minus the shipping costs and a 15% restocking fee to cover the expense of her special requests and customization, and I will lock her account so she can’t place future orders.

Is this a wise business decision? Probably not. But as I said before, when it comes to my business, It’s Business But It’s Also Personal, and I won’t put up with dishonesty and aggravation (the dishonest ones often require the most personal attention and interaction) to earn a few dollars.

Related posts:

• It Saves to Be Nice Part 2: How to Be a Nice Customer
• Daylight Saving Time: Turn Your Clocks Forward Today!
• It Saves to Be Nice Part 1: It’s Business But It’s Also Personal
• It Saves to Be Nice Part 3: How Being Nice Pays Off
• 20 Minutes Can Save $180 & Tips for Receiving Better Customer Service

* * *

When we were all learning to talk, one of the first concepts our mothers tried very hard to ingrain in us was the habit of saying “please” and “thank you.” There is a very logical reason for this aside from keeping you from embarrassing her in front of other parents. Social evolution has shown that being polite is advantageous to one’s position in all walks of life. Most people prefer being around and talking to nice people (with the exception perhaps of Dr. Gregory House), and the natural reaction to niceness is niceness in return.

This goes for business interactions as well as personal. As much as people like to believe that business dealings – whether you’re the consumer or the business – are impersonal, it just isn’t true. If you have ever had a job where you had to deal with the general public, unless you are an absolute saint, I am sure you’ve met your share of unpleasant people and your behavior towards them was affected by it. Even though company policies (instituted by executives who don’t have to deal with difficult customers on a daily basis) often dictate that “the customer is always right,” human nature has its limits.

It’s Business, But It’s Also Personal

As a small business owner (Franga Designs) who also does customer service, I have personally dealt with hundreds of customers in the past few years. Because our product is custom pet clothing and costumes, our dealings with customers are often more in-depth than the average business as it often requires several email exchanges discussing design and sizing (fabrics, colors, pets’ measurements, special event deadlines, etc.).

The nice thing about our line of work is that we are working with fellow dog and horse lovers, and in my experience these types of people are some of the nicest in the world (yes, I am biased.) Everyone thinks that their dog or horse is special, which is exactly how it should be. And most everyone who cares enough to have a custom outfit made for their pet is a nice person. But even in this line of work, I have dealt with some customers who just rubbed me the wrong way.

When we custom design an outfit especially for a customer, we determine the price we charge per project based on material costs, complexity of the design, time to make the outfit, etc. Most of the time, we are methodical and reasonable in our pricing. But I have to admit that once in a while, when a customer rubs me the wrong way by being rude or unreasonably demanding, we do tend to charge a little more than we might otherwise to compensate for the unpleasantness – and sometimes in the hopes that they’ll just go away.

I know it’s not smart business practice and that we might lose money this way. And it is rare that a customer offends me so much that I do this, but it has happened once or twice. So, why do we do this?

Risky Business

When we feel that if a potential customer is troublesome in the initial stages of the sale, they could turn out to be troublesome after we’ve made their custom design. A troublesome customer might file a chargeback on their purchase after receiving it, seize their money back while keeping the costume, which would cost us the money we’ve spent on special ordering the materials, time spent making it and the cost to ship it.

Check back soon for Part 2 of 4 in our series on how it saves to be nice!

Related posts:

• It Saves to Be Nice Part 4: How to Save Money by Helping Businesses Keep Operating Costs Down
• It Saves to Be Nice Part 2: How to Be a Nice Customer
• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #10
• It Saves to Be Nice Part 3: How Being Nice Pays Off
• Business Decision: Turning Away a Customer

Productivity

• Check out one of my earlier posts Save Hundreds with Open Source Software for a list of open source applications with short descriptions of their functions and links to the websites for free downloads. These are not free trials but completely free programs that stay free and upgrade for free.
• Google Calendar is a handy online calendar that can send alerts to you by email or pop-up reminders. The program allows you to share your calendar with friends and family who also use Google Calendar so you can coordinate schedules with each other.

Computer Protection

• ZoneAlarm Free Firewall can filter all traffic in and out of your computer. The most secure setting will warn you of even legitimate access to the internet and of every attempt by a program installed on your computer to access the internet to check for updates, etc.
• ZoneAlarm Spy Blocker Toolbar protects you from spyware while surfing the net.
• McAfee SiteAdvisor warns you of bad sites and has profiles for each tested site with details on downloads, spam email count, and user reviews. It also shows the safety rating for web search results with a small icon next to each link: green for safe, red for unsafe, yellow for caution, and gray for untested (you can submit a test request for gray sites).
  

Communication

• Skype allows you to make free computer to computer video and voice calls, and calls to phones for a small charge. We use the free computer to computer calls to talk to our overseas relatives
• If you use Hotmail, you can also use Windows Live Messenger for voice and video chat sessions with your contacts. You can also send mobile text messages to contacts in your address book.
• Gmail is my favorite free web based email program because, not only does it give you ever increasing storage (6.76 GBs as of this writing and counting), but it lets you forward your email to a desktop email client such as Outlook or Thunderbird. If you access your mail online, it has a nice filtering tool to help you sort your mail and also has a built in chat program, Google Talk, that allows you to chat with your online contacts without having to download anything.

Entertainment

• Hulu has an ever growing collection of new and old television programs and movies which you can watch for free online with a very reasonable amount of advertisements. The commercial breaks are shorter than you would have to sit through (15 or 30 secs) when watching a show on TV. For some newer shows, only the last 5 or 6 episodes are available, but there are also full seasons and full series of episodes for some shows.
• Network channels all have websites that let you watch the last 5 or 6 episodes of their current shows online. Here is a list of links to the home pages:
  • NBC
  • ABC
  • FOX
  • ABC Family
  • Sci Fi
• SHOUTcast is a free internet radio site that has a large selection of genres and stations and good sound quality.
• Joost is a player that allows you to watch thousands of TV shows and movies on your computer.

Reference

• Wikipedia. If you’ve performed a web search on the net, you’ve probably already stumbled across Wikipedia, which is a free, open encyclopedia that anyone can edit. It may or may not be 100% accurate, but it is convenient and has a great collection of articles and images on just about any topic, person or place including cities, actors and operas. Wikipedia is available in English, French, Spanish, German, Japanese, Polish, Russian, Portuguese, Dutch and Italian. (Time Saving Tip: To search for something straight from your Google toolbar or search, just type the keyword and the word “wiki”, i.e. “horse wiki” and the link to the entry will most likely show up first in your search result.)
• High Beam Encyclopedia is a collation of articles from Britannica, Oxford University Press, Columbia Encyclopedia as well as other published newspaper and magazine articles.
• Google Translate provides fair (though not the greatest) translations for 23 languages. It can translate typed/pasted in sections or entire webpages. This allows you to make use of websites you otherwise might not understand or save you time where you already know the language but take longer to read. It also has a dictionary for looking up words from those 23 languages.
• Reference.com has links to a host of reference tools including atlases, almanacs, a dictionary, thesaurus, literature and more. (Time Saving Tip: To look up a definition of a word, for example, “antithesis”, type “definition antithesis” in your search window. To look up synonyms (thesaurus) of the word “simile”, type “synonym simile”, and the search results will link you to the page of the entry.)
• The Gutenberg Project is a digital library of works that have fallen into public domain through expired copyright. The library includes fiction and non-fiction literature, audiobooks, sheet music and more.
• Google Calculator is a handy tool that lets you type in a formula or question in your search window and it will calculate and show you the answer. For example: type “1+5″ in your search bar and it will give you “1 + 5 = 6″. It can multiply, divide, add, subtract as well as calculate units of measurement such as miles, kilometers, megabytes, grams, degrees, pi, currency exchange rates and much more. Check out this great Google Calculator Demo at the Learn Google Search blog.

Free Downloads

• Download.com has a large collection of safe, free and trusted software downloads with editor and user reviews.
• Softpedia also has a large collection of downloads.
• Mozilla, home of the Firefox browser has a large number of great open source software including web browsers, html editors, email and calendar programs. Be sure to also check out the list of Mozilla-Based Applications which include other interesting and useful programs.
• Firefox Browser Add-ons: If there is a function you wish your Firefox browser could perform, chances are someone has already had the same thought and created an add-on for it.
• Google Pack includes the following (you can select which items you want):
  • Google Earth: a map program that lets you look at satellite, terrain and street level images. Includes driving directions and businesses
  • Norton Security Scan for viruses
  • Google Desktop to help organize your files, pictures and web history
  • Mozilla Firefox Browser with Google Toolbar
  • Adobe Reader
  • Skype
  • Star Office word processing, spread sheet, presentation and other office programs
  • Google Toolbar for Internet Explorer (helps block pop-ups)
  • Spyware Doctor (starter edition)
  • Picasa for editing and organizing your photos
  • Google Photos Screensaver to create slideshows with your photos
  • Google Talk for chatting online or by voice and sharing files
  • Real Player for playing media and transferring music to iPods or other players

Shopping

• Amazon.com is our favorite shopping site for almost everything we can’t get at our local grocery and drug stores. The Free Super Saver Shipping for orders over $25 allows you to spend your money on things rather than shipping charges. We also have the Chase Amazon Visa Card that gives us 3 points for every dollar spent at Amazon.com and 1 point everywhere else, and a $25 gift certificate when we reach 2,500 points.
• We occasionally shop at Overstock.com when the price is considerably less than can be had from Amazon. In our experience, their service is just as good, if not better, than Amazon’s due to the online customer service chat and faster shipping time, because Amazon’s free shipping takes an additional 4-5 business days before leaving their warehouse. They offer flat $2.95 shipping on all orders, and cheaper media shipping for 1 or 2 media item (books, music and DVDs).

Related Posts

• Save Hundreds with Open Source Software
• The Frugal Literate’s Guide to Affordable Reading
• Public Domain Music: Music You Already Own
  

Related posts:

• June 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals
• Welcome MSN Money Central Smart Spending Readers!
• Under the Weather – Recommended Reading
• Festival of Frugality #140: The Frugal Quotes Edition
• Ludwig & Wolfgang

Originally posted 2008-05-26 12:33:47.

Due to issues with our wireless router, I am currently in the market for a lengthy and affordable ethernet cable so that I can work online on a laptop while Madoline does her artwork (as can be seen in our CafePress Shop) on our desktop computer.

Prior to leaving to run errands today, I checked Amazon.com’s pricing for ethernet cables so that I might pop into the local Radio Shack on my way home to compare prices. I wasn’t in Radio Shack for more than a couple of minutes before I was on my way out again as it was immediately apparent that their prices were 3 times what I would pay for comparable products online.

As I reached the door, the shopkeeper addressed me in the fashion typical of solicitous shopkeepers, and the following conversation ensued:

Shopkeeper: Did you find what you were looking for?

Me: Yes, I was just checking the prices on ethernet cables.

Shopkeeper: What length cable do you need?

Me: 100 ft.*

Shopkeeper: And?

Me: Well, they’re three time as much as I can get them for online.

Shopkeeper: Quality!

Me: Yes, well, the quality on Amazon is quite good.

Shopkeeper: Oh.

Me: Thanks, though.

Shopkeeper: OK.

*So I can work from my smaller and therefore warmer room during the winter.

I left feeling a little sorry for these local, brick-and-mortar businesses. Even when times are good, they have a hard time keeping up with the vastly discounted online stores. And now that times are bad, they must suffer even more. And as we live in a remote area, prices here were already higher than most cities.

Being a small business owner myself (albeit online) and experiencing first hand the strain on business brought on by the poor economy, it seems a bit traitorous that I am not supporting the small local business, and instead going to the lowest bidder.

But I also cannot justify nor really afford an expenditure of $60.00 on an ethernet cable when I can get a 100 ft. no-name ethernet cable for $20 including shipping or 2 Belkin 50 ft. ethernet cables for $24 and with a gift certificate (so no out-of-pocket expense for me) on Amazon because I feel sorry for the local store. After all, I have think about my mortgage, food and utility bills.

As for the question of quality, Radio Shack’s cable may be better than the $20 one on Amazon, but judging by the user reviews for the less expensive product, I am fairly certain that it would serve my purpose adequately.

Of course, the most preferred scenario would be to figure out how to get the Wireless router working so that I won’t need to have a 100′ cable running across the house. So good luck to me. And to all the little guys out there.

Perhaps if and when the economy picks up and money is no longer an object, I’ll be able to help support local businesses more. If they’re still around, that is.

Related posts:

• Interesting Reads From Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #11
• Language Lesson ~ Finance: A Fine Word
• Save on Groceries, Auto Repair, Movie Tickets, Dining, Travel, Recreation and More with the Entertainment Book: Currently 50% Off
• Tips for Staying Healthy This Winter
• Five Ways to Make Some Extra Income on the Side

As mentioned previously in Part 1 of this series, It’s Business But It’s Also Personal, no matter how professional a business tries to be, we sometimes can’t help but be affected by the people we deal with because we are human. When a customer is nice to us, we are nice in return. In many ways, this goes back to the customer as monetary savings (stay tuned for Part 3 in which we give examples from our personal experiences).

So how to be a nice customer? It’s really very easy. It’s not much different from being a “nice person” and we all know how to do that already, don’t we?

• Be aware of the person you are dealing with. Remember that the person you are writing or speaking to is a 3-dimensional person whose actions and decisions are based on the way you make him/her feel with your words. When talking to customer service reps in person, look at them and talk to them as equals. Talk to them as you would want to be talked to. A friendly smile doesn’t hurt either.
• Be tactful when you approach a business to inquire about pricing or discounts. You should be polite when talking to anyone, but when you’re looking to gain from an exchange (i.e. receiving a discount on a purchase), you don’t want to come off sounding demanding and expectant. Say “hello,” give a little introduction – it doesn’t have to be long and elaborate – if you have the time or if the occasion warrants it, then politely ask your question. It doesn’t take a lot of time or effort and the person helping you would be more inclined to help you because:
  1. By using a greeting, you are acknowledging the service rep as a person.
  2. Giving a short introduction to your situation/intent/etc. adds a personal touch, making yourself seem more human than just another nameless, faceless customer.
  3. By asking politely, i.e. using “please” and “thank you,” you again show that you consider them a person and worthy of basic human courtesy.
• Don’t expect. If you’re asking for a discount, do so without expectations. Remember that when you are asking for a discount, you are asking them to do you a favor, not the other way around.
• Don’t haggle. Discuss, suggest, ask, but don’t haggle. In some places such as the car lot or swap meet, haggling might be common and expected. In some instances, though, I find haggling rude and even offensive, especially if we (the business) have already offered a discount on a product and the customer keeps coming back with counter-offers that are so low that the sale would be a loss for us.Of course, this depends greatly on the type of business you’re dealing with. In our line of work, where we are a small business that hand-makes each product, our profit margin is quite low. Big businesses that have a bigger profit margin might not mind the haggling, but even then, be nice in your negotiation, and you’ll probably get a better deal.
• Remember the chain of command. The personal you’re dealing with in all likelihood is not a high-level employee that can grant your every wish. Most customer service agents are taught to deal with common customer issues and do not have the authority to authorize a big discount or erase fees from your account. This person is most likely another 9-5 worker not unlike yourself who is trying to earn a paycheck to pay their rent.
• Be sincere. Don’t act nice for the sole purpose of getting a discount or a freebie. Be friendly because you can and want to be, not because you think you have to in order to get something out of it.

For more tips, check out a post I wrote earlier this year: How 20 Minutes Can Save $180 & Tips for Receiving Better Customer Service.

In my business (and most others these days), most of my customer service is done through email. I have received many emails where the entire content consists of one terse sentence – un-capitalized, un-punctuated, no greeting, no please or thank you. Of course, one could say that well, we’re a business and we’re the ones wanting to earn the customers’ money, making the customer the boss and they can talk to us any way they want.

This may be true to a degree, but we are also providing a service or product that the customer wants or needs. We also determine the price at which we will sell the product or service to the customer. When a customer is nice to me, I feel like being nice back and sometimes do so by giving them a break on pricing because we like working with nice customers and a lower price encourages their business. When we are making our customers’ orders, we always do the best job we can, but when it’s a customer with whom we have an especially good relationship, we often add extra touches beyond what might be expected.

So customer relations really is a 2-way street; for an optimal end result, both parties – consumer and business – should be on their best behavior.

Related posts:

• It Saves to Be Nice Part 4: How to Save Money by Helping Businesses Keep Operating Costs Down
• It Saves to Be Nice Part 3: How Being Nice Pays Off
• It Saves to Be Nice Part 1: It’s Business But It’s Also Personal
• Business Decision: Turning Away a Customer
• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #10

A few months ago, we put a link on our blog for Dogs in Danger, a website featuring shelter dogs who are due to be euthanized if they do not find a home very soon. We had hoped placing the link would result in some adoptions of needy dogs. Well . . . . good news! It worked! Although we didn’t end up with one of the dogs on this website (the suitable ones being too far away), looking at all the pictures and descriptions of poor homeless dogs made us finally decide to adopt. After all, an adoption would benefit all parties. It would provide a home and family for the dog while making our business more efficient and hopefully more lucrative.

Another reason for adopting at this time is that foreclosures are causing many owners to give up their pets. By taking a dog out of a shelter, we could make room for another, reducing the euthanasia statistics by one. When the digit 1 represents a life, it’s not such a small number after all.

We began searching online for dogs at local shelters who might be a clothes model, pet, and little sibling for Luwie and Wolfie. There were so many cute ones that we were actually tempted to take two . . . or even three. But finances being a consideration, we had to be practical and choose only one.

There was a dog at the Lancaster Animal Shelter who instantly caught our eye. She was listed as a chihuahua, though we think she is half Italian greyhound or whippet. The poor little dog had actually been recently adopted and returned with the complaint that she was too big for a chihuahua and was very nervous and unhappy to be back at the shelter. Not only was she physically perfect for the job, having a neutral color and clean outline, but she was (and is) incredibly sweet and submissive, and went limp like a ragdoll when picked up.

With a payment of just $38.00, this little girl became our Sophia (pronounced “so-FYE-uh” in the 18th century way), Sophie for short. And we are glad to announce that everything worked out happily. We are fond of Sophia, who is our first toy dog, and she seems quite satisfied with us. Wolfgang is delighted to have a new friend and Ludwig is beginning to get curious about her after raising his eyebrows (he really does) and saying “What’s this?” for 24 hours.

Sophia has started a new life as a little princess with a big wardrobe and has reached the happy ending of the doggy fairy tale which is a “forever home.” Of course, we couldn’t wait to dress her up and already made her two new outfits. Isn’t she lovely?

* * * * * * * * *

Related posts:

• Yes, Dogs Can Catch Colds … and it’s Messy
• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #3
• “Shopaholic” Books: Entertaining Lessons on Financial “Don’ts”
• Introducing Frugaltroph
• More About Us

The first year I had to file self-employment tax, I was completely clueless as to which forms I needed to fill out. I spent hours going through the IRS website looking for any and all forms, instructions and publications that might apply to me. Now, after several awkward starts, starting and running a new business partnership for almost 3 years, and filing my own taxes for the past 4 years, I have become a little more familiar with the system and process, which has made the ordeal somewhat easier (though, unfortunately, not much pleasanter). If you decide to do your own taxes, here is a little guide of some of the basic forms and publications that might be of use to you and save you the hours and hours it took me to figure it out.

The reason I am doing this is that I have often found instructions or publications that apply to me and think will answer all my questions only to find out as I read that I need to refer to even more publications and fill out another form. As everyone’s circumstances may differ, so might the forms and publications you need.

You may not need all of the following and you may need more if, for example, you have children which I don’t (aside from Ludwig and Wolfgang but the IRS doesn’t think they qualify as dependents even though they eat home-cooked meals, wear clothes, occasionally brush their teeth, and sleep on beds,) but these should point you in the right direction and get you started.

Please Note: I am not a tax professional but merely a private individual & small business owner who has been filing my own taxes for the past few years. All information here is provided as is, for your information only, with no guarantees. If you are unsure about anything, please contact the IRS or a tax professional for assistance.

IRS Tax Forms

If you operate your business as a sole proprietor (individual), you would file Form 1040 Schedule C. If you are in partnership (with a relative, friend, etc.), you would file Form 1065. As I have 2 sources of income, one a sole proprietorship and one partnership, I will list both. I will color individual-only forms in blue and partnership forms in a lighter gray. The forms applicable to both are in normal color.

In the order in which I usually fill them out:

• Form 4562 – Depreciation and Amortization
• Individual: Form 8829 – Expenses for Business Use of Your Home
• Individual: Form 1040 (Schedule C)
• Partnership: Form 1065 – U.S. Return of Partnership Income*
• Partnership: Form 1065 (Schedule K-1) – Partner’s Share of Income, Deductions, Credits, etc.
• Partnership: Form 1040 (Schedule E) – Supplemental Income and Loss
• Form 1040 (Schedule SE) – Self-Employment Tax
• Form 1040 – U.S. Individual Income Tax Return

* Note: If you are filing as a new partnership, you will need to apply for an EIN (Employer Identification Number)

IRS Tax Publications

These are the publications that I refer to most or have needed in the past for my businesses:

• Publ 334 – Tax Guide for Small Business (For Individuals Who Use Schedule C or C-EZ)
• Publ 535 – Business Expenses
• Publ 541 – Partnerships
• Publ 583 – Starting a Business and Keeping Records
• Publ 587 – Business Use of Your Home (Including Use by Day-Care Providers)
• Publ 936 – Home Mortgage Interest Deduction
• Publ 946 – How to Depreciate Property (for Form 4562 – Depreciation and Amortization)

Other forms & publications that may apply:

• Form 3903 – Moving Expenses
• Publ 521 – Moving Expenses
• Publ 547 – Casualties, Disasters, and Thefts (Business and Nonbusiness)
• Publ 584 B – Business Casualty, Disaster, and Theft Loss Workbook

Again, these may not be all the forms you need, but they should get you started. And now that you know what you need, a few words on your options for obtaining them.

Where to Get Tax Forms, Instructions & Publications

My preferred method is to get the publications by mail because some of them are quite long and I personally find them much easier to read, as well as mark or highlight important parts, with hard copies. They can also be downloaded in PDF format and read or printed with Acrobat Reader. But due to the length of these publications, you may run out of paper or printer ink if you print them all out.

The best thing to do, I find, is to order all the ones I need by mail, which takes about 7-14 days to arrive. If you find that you need another publication when you’re reading them and there’s no time to get the new ones by mail, then you could download them on the computer.

A very convenient feature of the PDF forms is that they can be filled out on computer in Acrobat Reader or Foxit (open source PDF program). This makes the forms a lot neater in appearance as you won’t have erasure marks or have to re-fill them all out if you make a mistake.

Here are the links for the various options to get IRS forms and publications. It’s a good idea to scroll through the lists of all the various forms before ordering to make sure you get all the ones that apply to you.

IRS Forms & Publications Main Page

• Forms and Publications By U.S. Mail
• Download Forms and Instructions
• Download Publications and Notices

If you need any other info or assistance, you can probably find it at the IRS website.

Related posts:

• March 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals
• Blog Carnivals
• April 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals
• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #2
• When “Free” Things Aren’t Free: Beware the Hidden and Indirect Costs

Some of you may have noticed references to the Wall Street Journal in a few of my recent posts. This is because I began receiving a print subscription of the Wall Street Journal a few weeks ago – for free. I am a member of the e-Rewards program, which offers rewards currency in exchange for completing market research surveys.

I have joined many survey programs before, but this is the only program that I have found to be reliable. With consumer surveys for market research, there is often a pre-screening survey that you have to fill out to see if you qualify. Some of these pre-qualification surveys take about 10 minutes to complete, after which you find that you are not eligible. With e-Rewards, they give you a small reward – $0.50 in rewards currency – even if you don’t qualify. It’s not much, but it’s better than nothing. And it adds up fast.

e-Rewards currency can be redeemed for a number of rewards such as magazine subscriptions (subjects range from fashion, to fitness, to business, etc.), Blockbuster video rental coupons, Borders Bucks, ariline miles, hotel points, coupons for dining and luxury merchandise stores, and more. Click here to see a full list of rewards.

Unlike other survey programs that try to enroll as many members as possible with referral programs, e-Rewards is a little more exclusive. In order to join, you need to be invited – often by a company that has hired e-Rewards to conduct market research surveys.

However, you can email them through their Member Services page to request an invitation to join the program (click on the last selection “Invitation Request” under “Subject”).

I’m not promising that you will receive an invitation; I’m not 100% sure how it works. I was invited through a Borders monthly newsletter. But it’s certainly worth a try.

My subscription to the Wall Street Joural is a free 6-month daily print subscription ($40 value) delivered to me via USPS (we live in a remote area) six days a week. This reward has no limition on redemptions so I can continue to renew my subscription through my e-rewards.

I spent weeks trying to decide on my rewards – I was divided between fashion, home decoration and business magazines, but finally settled on the Wall Street Journal because I figured it would give me some good blogging ideas. And it has. I just haven’t had the time to blog about it all. But it’s still very educational, covering a broad range of topics, and helps keep me abreast of what is going on with the economy, finance and business world, which at this time is really important.

The only problem is with the paper delivered 6 days a week, they’re piling up faster than I can read or blog about them.

Related posts:

• Friday Fun: Calvin and Hobbes Lemonade Stand Economics Lesson & WSJ Giveaway Reminder
• Interesting Reads From Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #14
• Free Printable Templates: Mini Wall Street Journal Carrier Gift Bags
• 2009 Financial Resolutions Blog Contest: Win a Free 6-Month Subscription to the Wall Street Journal
• Wall Street Journal Giveaway Winner and Carnivals of the Week

Originally posted 2008-07-30 06:00:32.

The topic for this month’s PF Bloggers Group Writing Project, “Poorest Time of Your Life” which was decided about 5 months ago, comes at a somewhat inopportune time. When our group picked out these topics, whoever it was that suggested this topic must have thought that we must all be in a position where the poorest time of our lives were in the past and could serve as an inspirational story of financial achievement.

But with the recent and current economic developments (or should I say, deterioration?) and the rate of inflation, I really can’t say if the poorest times of our lives really are past. At first thought, I just assumed that the poorest time of my life was past, but upon further contemplation, I am beginning to question if NOW might not be the poorest time of my life.

When I sat down to write this essay, I had planned on writing about two brief periods in Madoline’s and my past when were quite poor. They were transition periods in our lives, however, which really didn’t last very long and probably didn’t really count as being poor.

Poor Period 1

The first was right after Madoline graduated from college which coincided with the ending of my first job, which was a 9-month contract position. We had had a falling out with our stepfather who, as trustee of our mother’s estate, was in possession of the income she had left us. For more about this, please refer to our Family Financial History.

While our rent was still being paid by our mother’s money, we had little left from my earnings and were living in a town where employment opportunities were scarce. For about a month, we made a little money here and there teaching piano lessons and singing at weddings of acquaintances, after which we managed to secure 2 out of 5 full-time positions that opened up at a new company in town.

Poor Period 2

The second poor period was after we quit that job and moved to California. We had saved up $10,000 after working 11 months and had also managed (with the help of an attorney) to persuade our stepfather to turn our mother’s income over to us as she had intended. While the monthly income wasn’t a lot, it was enough to pay the rent and some bills on a small place, and we felt the need to leave Hawaii and start afresh.

We spent $800 on 2 one-way airfares; $225 on airfare for our dog, cat and 22 mice ($75 per ticket – the mice counted as “one”); found a place to live for $650/mo. in Hayward, CA; and figured we had enough to cover the movers and sustain us for at least a couple of months while we looked for jobs.

But we underestimated the costs of the move which was based on the weight of items moved. Because we didn’t have a parents’ house where we could leave things, we had to take everything that had meaning to us, such as a an antique desk of our mother’s, our piano and mementos of childhood. We had no idea how much everything weighed and assumed it wouldn’t be more than 1,000 lbs., so we had estimated about $1,200, but when the movers’ invoice arrived in California stating a total of almost $3,500, I knew we were in trouble.

After the initial costs of moving in, buying necessities for our new place, putting a down payment on our car (read about that catastrophe here) we had just about $3,500 left for the movers. Our monthly inheritance income check had been delayed due to mail forwarding, and for a few weeks, we literally had no money in the bank. I have a memory of one night when we rummaged through all our pockets and purses for change. We gathered about $10 with which we then went to the grocery store to buy food.

We began job hunting as soon as we got a car, and took the first jobs offered to us at Togo’s Eatery (a sandwich shop similar to Subway). When we got our first paycheck, around $100, we took it to the bank and deposited it. The clerk told us the balance would be available immediately, so we went grocery shopping and put it on the debit card. We found out later that the clerk had misinformed us and that we had gotten an overdraft because it turned out the balance wasn’t immediately available after all.

But this only lasted a few weeks. Our mother’s income check eventually arrived and continued to arrive each month. After our scare of being poor, we saved like crazy. We continued working at Togo’s for the time being and got hired on to manage a new pizza restaurant that our boss opened a couple of months later.

So things were hairy for a while, but that brief brush with near poverty was an invaluable lesson and catalyst for our desire to live frugally.

Is Now the Poorest Time of Our Lives?

I am beginning to wonder if the present might not be the poorest time of our lives. While we still have money in the bank, I can’t but wonder how long it will last if this recession and rate of inflation keeps up. Our monthly grocery bill is almost double what it used to be (we only have one supermarket within 40 miles, which may mean higher rate of inflation). The cost of propane has increased at least 150% since we moved in 3 years ago. The list goes on. But our total income continues to decrease – both from our business, which was very promising and the reason we bought the house, and our inherited income.

While we are OK for now as far as having money for groceries, the mortgage and bills, I can’t help but worry that we’ll run out in a few months. It is truly scary because this is much more permanent than our previous “poor periods” which were nothing in comparison. We didn’t have mortgages back then. We were living in areas where we could find employment. We are again living in an area where employment opportunities are scarce to none, even when the economy is good. But this time we can’t move because we have a mortgage which we can’t refinance now or sell the house in this current market as our property’s market value has decreased by 40%.

Maybe I’m just being paranoid and worrying for nothing – I usually am. But what if I’m not?

* * *

About the PF Bloggers Group Writing Project

The Personal Finance Bloggers Network currently consists of 7 active personal finance and frugal living blogs. The Group Writing Project is a monthly project wherein each blog will write a post on a pre-determined topic and publish it on the same day of each month. Be sure to visit thePF Bloggers Group Writing Projectpage for the others!

Extended Group Writing Project Invitation

If you are a blogger, we would like to invite you to write your own post on this topic and submit it for listing with our entries on our Group Writing Project pages. Please visit the following page for details on how to participate in our Extended Group Writing Project

Related posts:

• Holidays Should Be Happy: Have a Party-Preparation Party to Reduce Stress
• Sewing: A Frugal and Fulfilling Hobby – Save Money by Sewing Your Own Clothes
• Is “Simple Living” Just Another Term for “Giving Up?”
• Does Thinking About Money Make You a Bad Person?
• Motivating Children to Practice Music (Part 2)

Originally posted 2008-11-19 07:00:01.

A few months ago, while I was at my local USPS Post Office to pick up a registered letter, a man came in with a stack of 5 or 6 DVDs and asked the mail clerk at the next window how he could mail his DVDs. Instead of explaining his various options to him, she merely recommended the Flat Rate Priority Mail Box, and unaware of his other options the customer took her advice and proceeded to pay $8.95 to mail his DVDs. Being somewhat of an introvert in public (and having had a previous problem with that particular mail clerk), I held my tongue at the time, telling myself it wasn’t any of my business and that I would only cause problems.

This incident riled me because the customer could have mailed his 5 or 6 DVDs for a lot less than $9.00. I have weighed a stack of 6 DVDs, including a few 2-Disc Collections, and they weighed in at about 1.5 lbs. A stack of 6 single-disc DVDs weigh in at just over 20 oz. Even if he had had 8 DVDs, the entire package, counting the box and contents, would have weighed in at 3 lbs. and he could have mailed it for $2.81 using Media Mail or “Book Rate”, less than a third of the price he paid for the Flat Rate Priority Mail. Granted, Priority Mail does take less time than Media Mail, but my experience with Media Mail in the past couple of years has been that it is a lot quicker than you’d think; I have had Media Mail from across the country arrive in as little as 3-4 days.

I learned from this incident that we cannot always rely on our postal clerks for shipping advice. While I have met many nice and helpful USPS clerks in the past, the unfortunate truth is that there are many whose main agenda is getting rid of customers as quickly as possible rather than helping them. So I have decided to provide an overview of common shipping options that every postal customer should have some basic knowledge of.

USPS Package Shipping Options

• First-Class Mail
  • Time: 2-5 business days
  • Cost: Starting at $1.13 for 1 oz. up to $3.17 for 13 oz.
  • Description: This is a good option for small and light-weigh items, including a single book or DVD with a total weight (envelope + item) up to 6 oz. as it would only cost you $1.98 as opposed to the 1 lb. Media Mail Rate of $2.13, and is faster than Media Mail. Using a padded envelope is highly recommended to prevent damage to the book or DVD.
• Media Mail (Book Rate)
  • Time: 2-9 business days
  • Cost: Staring at $2.13 for 1 lb. up to $25.26 for 70 lbs.
  • Description: Can be used for “books, film, manuscripts, printed music, printed test materials, sound recordings, play scripts, printed educational charts, loose-leaf pages and binders consisting of medical information, videotapes, and computer-recorded media like CDs and diskettes”, but cannot contain advertising.
• Parcel Post
  • Time: 2-9 business days
  • Cost: Starting at $4.50 and increases with weight and distance (zones)
  • Description: Can be used for general shipments of gifts, merchandise, etc.
• Priority Mail
  • Time: 2-3 business days
  • Cost: Starting at $4.60 and increases with weight and distance (zone)
  • Description: Can be used for general shipments of gifts, merchandise, etc.

Note: The 1 lb. Parcel Post rate being only $0.10 less than the 1 lb. rate for Priority Mail which only takes 2-3 days, you might find it worth the extra $0.10 to upgrade to Priority Mail, as I feel, the less time spent in transit, the less chances for loss or damage to the parcel.

A few tips for saving on shipping:

• When you buy things online, save the nicer boxes and packing material. There is no need to spend $2.00-$3.00 to buy new shipping boxes when you can re-use older ones as long as they don’t have dents or tears.
• When packing your shipments, make sure you pad excess space with packing material to prevent damage from jostling. Newspapers are a good, inexpensive filler, but if you use a lot, they can end up costing you more if you exceed the lb. threshold.
• Don’t be stingy with tape. It is a good idea to tape all the open seams. Insured packages must be completely sealed in order to qualify for claims.
• Always include a packing slip clearly displaying the destination. Listing the package contents won’t hurt either. In the event that the package is damaged or torn, USPS will still be able to direct it on to its intended recipient rather than to the lost and unclaimed items auction.
• If you do a lot of shipping, a reliable postal scale can save you time, money and trips to the post office, because you will know exactly how much each package weighs and not have any surprises when you get to the post office.
• Another way to save time and money is to use online shipping options, which will be the topic of my next post “Save Money & Time with Online Shipping”.

Related posts:

• Shipping via USPS? Mail Your Packages Before May 12th
• Pecuniarities (Our Fourpence Worth) 1 Year Anniversary
• Pay Bills Online and Save
• May 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals
• Pay Bills Online and Save (Re-Post)

Originally posted 2008-02-21 19:32:52.

I have been wanting to get around to this topic for some time, and was reminded by Penelope’s recent mentions of speeding violations. Traffic tickets cost money and the resentment for that loss is often directed at the police officer who prescribed it. There are many instances when you may feel that you have been unfairly singled out while millions of speeders go unpunished. But your feelings, when  they are expressed, may get the the opposite result from that which you desire and compound the damage you incur financially and otherwise.

Once, when I was 20 years old, I unintentionally let my car go way too fast while coasting downhill. Because I was on a new, smooth, and wide stretch of highway with no other vehicles in sight, I had no sense of danger or unlawfulness until I approached an intersection and saw a police car half concealed behind some very bushy roadside plants.

This was the first and only time I had ever been pulled over by a policeman, and although I absolutely deserved to be ticketed and fined (because I acknowledge that my behavior was both reckless and inattentive) my encounter with the officer concluded with him giving me a benevolent warning to slow down and wishing me a nice day.

Because I have always been adept at dealing with people in authority, I want to share some tips on how to behave when confronted by someone who is superior to you in age, legal station, or position in a school or business. Even in instances when you feel that a so-called superior is morally and/or intellectually unworthy of that position, it does not benefit yourself to always show it.

But I want to emphasize the fact that submitting to authority does not mean being a pushover. Showing deliberate disrespect will only gratify a person’s desire to punish you and make you feel a disadvantage. By being respectful, you are acting in a manner which promotes the other person’s desire to benefit you and make you happy. This involuntary response to your (hopefully sincere) politeness can have a significant impact on the severity of your punishment or whether you are punished at all.

Some of the factors which persuaded the police officer against giving me a speeding ticket are as follows (in the order encountered).

One: I looked clean and neat

How you look is the first impression you make when someone approaches you. Its effect may last only until you open your mouth or forever. For example, if you first see someone in a stunning outfit and flawlessly groomed, you will still think he or she is good-looking when encountered later in grubby sweat suits, unshaven, or in the middle of a bad hair day. We can’t all look our best 24×7, but having a general habit of being clean and neatly dressed increases your curb appeal (and reduces society’s impulse to demolish you).

A clean appearance shows consideration for the health and comfort of people around you. Clothing that does not stray too far from convention shows you have respect for the ideals and customs of society. These two factors will contribute to persuade someone you are not in the habit of offending others, and do not intentionally do wrong.

On the day of my offense, I was wearing a buttoned up blouse, knee-length skirt and light makeup consisting of pale powder and pink lipstick. I think my benign appearance made the policeman reluctant to be unpleasant towards me. I also saw him glance repeatedly at my dog who was riding with me, and noted the power of a pet (like children) to influence someone for or against you. He saw that my dog was clean, well-mannered, and his breed and appearance (border collie with traditional markings) suggested that I had a conservative personality.

“When constabulary duty’s to be done, to be done, A policeman’s lot is not a happy one, happy one.”– from the  Pirates of Penzance by Gilbert & Sullivan

Two: I said Hello

When you know that someone is coming to give you a fine, it might not come naturally to offer a greeting as if you were pleased to see him. But saying nothing makes you look resentful. Think of the sulky silence of a teenager when being scolded by a parent or teacher. By saying hello, you turn a punitive affair into a social engagement.

When I rolled down the window with a little hello and a half smile, I saw a halt in the stern speech I was about to receive. The officer seemed a little surprised, returned the greeting, and then proceeded in a friendlier fashion.

Remember that cops are human too, and that they may be tense when approaching you because they are used to being met with resentment while doing their job. When you offer a polite greeting, the other party feels obliged to return it. Courtesy creates an obligation of return. But do not appear sycophantic, because authority figures who think you are trying to manipulate them will want to teach you a lesson.

Three: I did not argue

This may have been a little sly, but I gave no indication that I knew why I had been pulled over. I just looked at the officer as if I were curious what he wanted. This allowed him to choose how to bring up the subject and feel in control of the conversation. When he informed me how fast I had been driving, I said “Oh, sorry.” And I did not contradict him or argue on my own behalf. I just indicated that I accepted his ruling and casually apologized for having misbehaved.

The surest way to make a policeman angry is to deny that you were doing what he said you were doing, because you are calling him a liar and that would make anyone angry. If you say that the verdict is unfair (because everyone speeds), you are saying that he is unethical, which is equally offensive. By acknowledging that you were in the wrong, however slight the offense, and though you may have had good reason, you demonstrate that you do not think yourself above the law and the need for discipline is diminished.

I do not mean that we should be dumb sheep in the hands of the law. I am all for standing upon my rights when there is true injustice. But accepting the consequences when you have erred can reduce the cost of present and future incidents.

The Snowball Effect of Good Behavior

The same principles apply in school or work. My classmates in high school had a tendency to regard teachers as the enemy. This made the teachers eager to punish them, escalating the resentment on both sides over time. In college as well, students who make excuses for late homework or missing classes persuade teachers that they are more than usually deserving of penalties.

On the other hand, by showing respect to authority figures (so long as they retain my good opinion), I have often been pleasantly surprised by receiving sympathy or assistance when I expected to be scolded. I couldn’t help but notice that quite a few teachers could not bring themselves to lower my grades on the rare occasions that I missed classes or turned in homework late. I am aware that any such bias in my favor is not entirely fair and so am careful not to abuse it.

When you respond politely to people in authority, you are more likely to get a positive result from the encounter or at least avoid a disagreeable conflict. This will affect how you feel and behave when dealing with other authority figures you meet afterwards. Now I have met my share of bad authority in persons such as my legal guardian and a few bosses and teachers. In these cases, insubordination is perfectly acceptable so long as it is carried out in a practical manner and does not negatively affect your dealings with honest and respectable persons.

When people think you are a nice and generally responsible person, they feel guilty about doling out fines and punishment. This applies in relationships of five minutes or five years. The key to getting good treatment is having no expectations. Expectations give rise to resentment, whereas people are usually happy to do something nice when they may freely chose to.

Returning to the subject of my traffic violation and pecuniary considerations, the obvious benefit of being polite to a policeman was that I was spared the expense of a fine and increased car insurance rates. But perhaps the lesson learned was more valuable, for I was rewarded for good behavior and inclined to continue in that way.

Related posts:

• It Saves to Be Nice Part 2: How to Be a Nice Customer
• Prune Your Spending and Watch the Savings Grow
• It Saves to Be Nice Part 4: How to Save Money by Helping Businesses Keep Operating Costs Down
• 20 Minutes Can Save $180 & Tips for Receiving Better Customer Service
• Under the Weather – Recommended Reading

free adj. \ˈfrē\ Costing nothing.

There’s been a lot of “Free” promotions going on lately – Free Denny’s breakfast, Free Quizno’s Sub, Free Arby’s burger, and I’m sure there have been others – but I haven’t gone for any of them because it wasn’t worth the time nor cost.

If they’re free, how do they cost money?

If …

1. you have to go out of your way to get it, especially drive.
   Unless the location is right on the way to and from your daily activity, consider every extra mile you drive out of your way as a cost of $0.55, the IRS mileage rate for business use which includes gas and associated costs of wear & tear/maintenance.
2. you have to buy something, i.e. a drink, to get your free item.
   Even if it’s only $1.39 for the drink and you get a $4.00 burger for free, you’re still spending money.
3. there is a limit to how many free items you can get.
   You have family at home, and it wouldn’t be right to just pick up a sandwich for yourself. But you’re limited one free item per customer, so you have to buy the rest of the sandwiches.
4. you dine in (i.e. Denny’s).
   You have to tip. Or feel really funny for dining and dashing without tipping.
5. you arrive to find the store isn’t participating in the promotion.
   You’ve wasted a trip. And because you’ve gone all the way there, you might end up buying something anyway because now you’re starving.
6. you could be making money in the time it takes to wait in line.
   Especially if you’re self-employed, make money blogging, etc.

Living where I do (in a fairly isolated part of the Mojave Desert), and working where I do (at home), the prospect of going out espeically for a free sandwich or breakfast just isn’t worth my time and money.

The closest Denny’s from my house is a 15.3-mile drive, so a 30.6-mile round trip could count as an expenditure of $8.42, which I believe is more than the face value of the free breakfast. Even if I were going grocery shopping a mile down the road, being a dine-in only breakfast, I would’ve at least had to spend money on tip. It just all seemed like too much of a hassle.

There is actually a Quizno’s in our town, but chances of it participating in the promotion were nil to nil, because we’re somewhat isolated. Subways here don’t participate in the Subway Card program, so I didn’t want to go down to Quizno’s and find I’ve wasted my time and gas.

Free things are great. Just make sure they really are by defintion “free” before you jump.

Related posts:

• Why I Will Not Change My Mindset, Plus the Difference Between Justifying and Being Optimistic About Spending
• Giveaways Ending Soon! And Hosting 2 Blog Carnivals Next Week
• Freebies: Printable Paper Toy Soldiers Ornaments
• Free Printable Templates: Christmas Candy Stripe and Plaid Carrier Gift Bags
• Free Printable Templates: Gingham Mini Gift Boxes

One day after grocery shopping, when I was returning my shopping cart to the collection area at the front of the parking lot, an older gentleman who was parked next to me happened to be doing the same thing. As we returned our carts together, he made a comment about how we were being good citizens and it occurred to me then that we were being more than good citizens but also good customers, and more importantly, smart customers.

By returning our shopping carts to the collection area, we can help the store save money because their employees won’t have to spend hours chasing down shopping carts around the large parking lot. By reducing the need for employees to do this, they can better spend their time inside cleaning the store, organizing merchandise and helping customers  — all things that can only contribute to a pleasanter shopping experience for us customers because:

• Store cleanliness = healthier, more comfortable shopping
• Store organization = we can quickly/easily find what we need
• Efficient customer service = we save time and are happy

But returning carts isn’t the only way to help the store, and therefore you, save money.

Help Businesses Keep Costs Down to Save You Money

Business don’t enjoy raising prices because they know it makes customers unhappy and they can potentially lose business to competitors. But they also cannot operate if they lose money. These days, businesses are raising prices left and right; almost every time I go to the supermarket, it seems the prices are a little higher than before.

So, in order to slow down or prevent ever-rising prices, we as consumers should do all we can to help businesses keep costs down to avoid the need for them to raise prices.

Grocery Stores

1. Browse refrigerated items with the doors closed and only open the doors if/when you need to read the back of packages or to take what you need.
2. Take only as many produce bags and ties as needed for the amount of produce you’re buying. I sometimes don’t take twist ties and just tie knots on the bags if I can.
3. Return items to the shelf where you got them if you change your mind.
4. Put refrigerated items back in a refrigerator if you change your mind so they don’t spoil and have to be thrown out.
5. Take care with produce. Take fruits and vegetables out of piles carefully so you don’t spill or bruise surrounding items.
6. Don’t set shopping baskets on top of produce. (I’ve actually seen someone do this on a pile of apples which horrified me because, not only did it bruise the apples, but the basket had previously been set on the floor.)

Restaurants

Take only what you need. This goes for:

1. Paper goods – napkins, utensils, cups, lids, straws, etc.
2. Condiments – ketchup, salt, pepper, sauces, etc.
3. Soft drink refills

General

1. Handle merchandise with respect so you don’t damage it and make it unsaleable. Treat items as you would if it were yours and set or hang things back where you took them.
2. Pick it up merchandise fallen on the floor and set it some place where it can’t be kicked, trodden and damaged.
3. Stand away from doorways to talk to someone or to look for or put things in your purse so you don’t let air-conditioned air out.

Doing theses things only take a few seconds, but can make a significant difference in a business’s operating costs if every consumer took the time and consideration. Not only should we be rewarded with better service (remember, employees are human and will treat you better if you’re respectful), but hopefully less or slower inflation of prices.

Previous “It Saves to Be Nice” articles:

• It Saves to Be Nice Part 1: It’s Business But It’s Also Personal
• It Saves to Be Nice Part 2: How to Be a Nice Customer
• It Saves to Be Nice Part 3: How Being Nice Pays Off

Related posts:

• Giveaways Ending Soon! And Hosting 2 Blog Carnivals Next Week
• It Saves to Be Nice Part 2: How to Be a Nice Customer
• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #10
• It Saves to Be Nice Part 3: How Being Nice Pays Off
• It Saves to Be Nice Part 1: It’s Business But It’s Also Personal

Bible Money Matters wrote yesterday on how credit card companies act like they’re your friends when they really just want your money. This is true, of course, but frankly it neither surprises nor bothers me. Credit card companies and banks are businesses – just like your health insurance carrier, supermarket and baby sitter.

The Business of Business

No one starts a business for the purpose of making friends. “Making friends” by providing cheerful service and offering “helpful” advice  is merely a means to an end. When a business advertisement says “Your satisfaction is our #1 priority,” the word “satisfaction” is really a metaphor and euphemism for “money.” Otherwise the business’s existence would be pointless.

So when a credit card company offers you “advice” to put all your purchases on your card to maximize your cash back or rewards earnings, they are in fact helping themselves. We all know that. There is nothing you can do about what they say to try to get you to wrack up a large debt. But just because they hope you’ll do it doesn’t mean that you have to.

Everything you have done and continue to do with regard to your credit card has been, and continues to be, 100% up to you.

• Can the credit card company strong-arm you into swiping your card at every store you see or enter?
• Can the credit card company force you to spend beyond your means?
• Can the credit card company make you not pay your balance in full every month?

A Grain of Salt and a Pinch of Brain

Just remember that any “advice” coming from someone whose goal is to make money from you should be taken with a grain of salt. Example —

Car salesman: That car looks great on you.

But neither do you need to be bitter about their attempt to sway you into debt. Laugh it off. Congratulate yourself on your ability to see through their ruse. Then take that grain of salt, add a pinch of noggin and think about how you can benefit from what they do offer.

(Talking points from Money Matters’ post in green with my added 2 cents in normal color.)

1. Use Your Card Wherever You Go
   Only on the things you need — groceries, gas and necessities.
   
2. Make Chase Rewards Plus Your Favorite Place To Shop
   Treat it as you would the mall. Only go there if you need something in particular. If their prices are competitive and you get 10% cash back, you just might save money. But remember to comparison shop.
   
3. Pay Bills Using Your Card
   This is something I actually do whenever I can. Automatic payments charged to the card means I can keep money in my savings longer, then transfer the total amount to checking when it’s time for the credit card payment. We received $75 in Amazon Gift Certificates last month thanks to the 10x points promotion on bills.
4. Add An Authorized User… At No Extra Cost!
   Madoline and I have been sharing credit card accounts for 5 years now because we share all our money. Together, we were able to earn over $500 in cash back on our on our AMEX Blue Cash Credit Card in the last 2 years, something we couldn’t have done with separate accounts because of the $6,500 threshold for the higher cash back percentage. Read more about how we Maximize Cash Back and Interest Earnings by sharing accounts.
5. Feel Secure With Your Upgraded Benefits
   We usually choose our cards for the cash back or other rewards and not for the added benefits. But we actually have saved money by using the rental car insurance from AMEX, and if you think about it, some identity protection, however narrow the policy, is better than none.

Now, I’m not saying everyone should use credit cards. They have their pros and cons. They work for some people but not others. If/when you apply for and use credit cards, be aware of the risks and take responsibility for them and for your actions. If you get ripped off by fine print you didn’t read, you’re not entirely blameless because you could have canceled the card immediately upon receiving and reading the terms. Yes, credit card companies are tricky, but so are many other businesses.

You Control Your Spending, Not the Other Way Around

Psychology aside and whether or not credit cards cause higher spending, it all still boils down to one thing: choice.

• Whether or not you are paying by cash or credit, you are still making an active, conscious choice to spend.
• You are the one in control of how much you spend.
• If you are in control, you can choose not to spend.

If you can’t control your impulse to spend, then you should cut up your credit card and keep your cash in a time-lock vault that releases set amounts of money at set times like those automatic pet feeders that release one compartment of food at a time when pet owners work late or go out of town.

Related posts:

• Introducing Pecuniary Associates & Interesting Reads From Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #17
• Interesting Reads From Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #12
• Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals: Week of Unexpected Delays
• Car Trouble: Watch Out for Those Pesky Wabbits
• March 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals

Favors for Nice Customers

Here are some examples of our experience in dealing with customers in our business where we, as a business, decided to do one of our customers a favor in return for niceness on their part.

Example #1

We have a customer who has ordered costumes from us for her Great Dane twice before. She is always very friendly and polite in her emails, always saying “please” and “thank you,” never demanding or expecting special treatment, and we often exchange little personal updates on ourselves and our dogs. For this Halloween, she decided to dress her dog up as “Lipstick on a Pig” and asked us to make her a set of custom pig ears and tail. We invoiced her for the ears and tail, and after she paid, she realized that she had forgotten about feet. Because she is a good customer and we have a friendly relationship with her, we decided to throw in some matching pig’s feet for free. This made her really happy (we received an enthusiastically grateful email) which made us happy as well.

Example #2

We have another customer who orders very elaborate costumes from us every year. She competes in dog costume contests and always emails us to tell us when she wins and sends us pictures of her dogs wearing our costumes, which we never tire of seeing. She always asks how we are and sends us holiday greetings, and even mails us custom Christmas cards of her dogs wearing our costumes. Because she is such a nice customer, we often charge her a little less for her custom items than we otherwise might.

Good Consumer Experiences

Here are a few anecdotes from our past where businesses were particularly nice to us for having developed some sort of rapport with them. We didn’t do anything but be friendly to them – saying hello, saying thank you, etc. and they did us little favors and gave us savings in return.

Example #1

One year when we went to visit relatives in Taiwan, our cousins took us shopping at the night-market. In Taiwan, people aren’t as open and friendly toward strangers as many people are in the States. For example, it is common for us here to say “hello” to someone whom we don’t know but whose eyes we happen to meet at the supermarket. People don’t do this in Taiwan. We were browsing a stand run by a Middle-Eastern man. Because we are in the habit of doing so, we said “hello” to him and spoke to him as we normally do here in the States. He ended up giving us a discount without our even asking (haggling is a common practice at the Taiwanese night markets), saying we were all foreigners and should be nice to each other.

Example #2

In Madoline’s senior year in college and my first year working, we would sometimes eat at a small Chinese restaurant at the shopping center near our house. The restaurant owner was a nice, friendly guy and I would often chat with him when paying our bill. One time, because we were on a diet and trying to cut calories, we ordered one item to share. The restaurant owner, perhaps thinking we weren’t eating enough or maybe thinking we couldn’t afford more food (but we really were on a diet), brought us a free plate of won ton, telling us to take a break from our diet for the night and continue it tomorrow.

* * *

Now, we’re not saying you should butter up business people in the hopes of getting free things or discounts, but being friendly doesn’t cost anything and people who appreciate your courtesy will be more apt to be courteous and generous to you in return.

Related posts:

• It Saves to Be Nice Part 4: How to Save Money by Helping Businesses Keep Operating Costs Down
• It Saves to Be Nice Part 2: How to Be a Nice Customer
• It Saves to Be Nice Part 1: It’s Business But It’s Also Personal
• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #10
• Giveaways Ending Soon! And Hosting 2 Blog Carnivals Next Week

This week’s edition was particularly challenging for me to put together, because to tell the truth, of all the submissions received only 60% made the final cut. Decisions to include and exclude were based on many factors: readability, presentation, relevance, value of information and more. So, a job well done to those who made this week’s edition.

Today’s theme is the poem “Devote Your Life to Money!” by David Kessel. I hope you find it amusing as I did.

Devote Your Life to Money!

Editor’s Picks

• Blueprint for Financial Prosperity presents How To Include A Baby In Your Financial Plans.
• Brunette on a Budget presents Don’t fall for rebate bait.
• Broke Grad Student presents 10 Stupid Ways College Students Waste Money.
• Master Your Card presents Mega Guide: How to Get Out (and stay out) of Credit Card Debt

Oh, money, the life-giving juice of society!
It brings us its blessings of every variety,
It softens the blows that lifetime delivers,
It favors the brave and it crowns achievers.

Saving Methods

• No Debt Plan presents Sticking Our Toes into the CD Laddering Pool.
• The Smarter Wallet presents Ways To Save on Seasonal Purchases: Time To Shop For Halloween!
• Silicon Valley Blogger presents Upromise Survey: Saving For College, Getting Tougher?

It renders us free from oppression by jerks,
From mockings, and putdowns, and scoldings, and smirks.
It lets us buy tickets and travel away
From where we’re not welcome but are forced to just stay.

Debt and Credit

• Money Blue Book presents What Is My Credit Score and How Is My FICO Calculated?
• LAL presents After Debt?
• Ask Mr. Credit Card presents Will Creating A Repayment Plan With Your Credit Card Company Hurt Your Credit Score?

From creditors’ letters and big ugly urbs,
From all that don’t matter, from stuff that disturbs,
To wide sandy beaches and azure blue waters,
Away from the smoke of ten million motors.

Careers

• The Shark Investor presents The Alternatives Of 9 To 5.
• Your Finish Rich Plan presents What To Do If You Think You Can Lose Your Job.

With money it all starts to fall into place-
No longer respect is what you have to chase.
It follows you like an afternoon shadow
Thank money, it makes you a prince from a padow.

Consumerism

• Can I Get Rich on a Salary presents Man Bites Dog — Beats Airline in Dispute Over Canceled Flight!
• Personal Finance Analyst presents Expedia Coupons & Travel Deals.

With money, all people will treat you much better,
As you are no longer society’s debtor.
Sweet smiles on you they will now bestow,
Obsequious looks in their eyes then will glow.

Economics

• The Sun’s Financial Diary presents A Picture Is Worth a Thousand Words.
• The Iconoclast Investor presents Fannie, Freddie and America’s Debt.
• Mr. Tough Money Love presents Spenders Get the Gold Mine, Savers Got the Shaft.

And women forgetting your age and your weight,
Your looks and your height and your bald, shining pate,
Will wink and remark how handsome you are
For, in their minds, you are now a star.

Investing

• Sam presents Choosing a Stockbroker.
• Small Business Blog presents Real Estate Investing Startpoints: Negotiation, Legality, and Referrals.
• Green Technology Investor presents Hot Rock – Steady Progress Towards a New Source of Renewable Energy.

Oh, how pathetic society is!
A “Miss” is now where there used to be “Ms.”
For quickly they learned that you’ve got all this dough,
And then they appear from above and below.

Other

• Budgets are Sexy presents Is it bad that i haven’t donated any money in like 5 months?
• The Part-Time Life presents Financial Fitness Group.
• Geezeo presents Money Matters Key to Wedded Bliss? 5 Tips for Happily Ever After.

As long as you’re here on our green Earth,
And want to be living in freedom and mirth,
Devote your existence to dollar and pound
For cash makes the world go smoothly around.

This concludes the 16th Edition of the Finance Fiesta. Next week’s edition will be hosted by Mighty Bargain Hunter. Visit the Finance Fiesta website for submission guidelines.

Technorati tags: finance fiesta, blog carnival

Related posts:

• Hosting the 3rd Edition of the Finance Fiesta Blog Carnival
• Hosting the 16th Finance Fiesta Blog Carnival
• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #8
• August 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals
• June 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals

I can’t believe it’s September already. I woke up today with that feeling of fall in the air, which is really nice. While I learned long ago to never wish life away by wanting a future day hurry up and come, I can’t say that I don’t look forward to the cooler weather and lower electric bills (till winter comes when we have to decide whether we should get our heater fixed or try to go without and save about $1,000 dollars in propane gas bills over the winter.)

Fall also means that Halloween is just around the corner and we’re [hopefully] going to get super busy in our pet clothing and costuming business. I’m sure you’ve noticed that I still haven’t been able to start posting more frequently and we’re still averaging 3 times a week. This is because I am working hard to get our new Franga Designs store up and running as soon as possible for the Halloween sales season. But enough about me and our other sites, lets get on with news about Our Fourpence Worth.

Our Fourpence Worth News

6-Month Anniversary!

First of all, Our Fourpence Worth passed our 6-month anniversary at the end of August. We’ve had 26,879 unique visitors in these 6 months and received a Google page rank of 4, which I am quite happy about. Thank you to all our readers who have been with us since the beginning and joined us along the way. We appreciate each of you and your comments and feedback.

9rules

Next, I am pleased to announce that Our Fourpence Worth has just been accepted today to the 9rules community. For those of you who don’t know what 9rules is, here is an excerpt from their about page:

9rules is a place where members and readers can connect, build relationships, and learn new things. 9rules started in 2003 with a set of 9 rules:

1. Love what you do.
2. Never stop learning.
3. Form works with function.
4. Simple is beautiful.
5. Work hard, play hard.
6. You get what you pay for.
7. When you talk, we listen.
8. Must constantly improve.
9. Respect your inspiration.

This is very exciting for us and we would like to thank Scrivs, Tyme and Mike (The Triad) at 9rules for accepting us. We hope to be able to both contribute and learn from being a part of the 9rules community.

Now on with our roundup for this month.

Personal Finance Roundup and Blog Carnivals

PF Bloggers

• Get Rich or Die Trying opines that Parents Who Don’t Fund The Kids’ College Are Selfish.
• No Debt Plan shares A Six Step Guide to Asking for Fee Forgiveness from his recent experience in making and correcting a simple error in his credit card payment.
• Living Almost Large asks Why Aren’t We Honest when it comes to talking about our finances?
• Wide Open Wallet shares an interesting way of life in A New Car Every Year.
• Master Your Card tells How to use the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act to Your Advantage.

Elsewhere in the Personal Finance Blogosphere

• My Dollar Plan gives students (and parents) a heads up on 10 College Money Myths.
• Saving Advice gives us 10 Things Money Can’t Buy.
• Blueprint for Financial Prosperity warns of The 7 Deadly Sins of Personal Finance.

Festival of Frugality

The 141st Festival of Frugality was hosted by Kelly at Almost Frugal. We would like to thank her for including our Fast and Frugal Recipe: Mediterranean Pizza Toast in this week’s edition. Kelly is an American living in France, so she chose to share some fun frugal French vocabulary in this edition. Ever wondered how to say “miser” in French? Well, head on over to Festival of Frugality No. 141 and find out! Allons-y!

Well, this wraps this month’s very long roundup. I hadn’t planned on it being this long, but I hope you enjoy the links.

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Related posts:

• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers
• Interesting Reads From Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #12
• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #2
• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #3
• Early to Bed and Early to Rise Makes a Man [or Woman] Healthy, Wealthy and Wise

While browsing the WiseBread Forums today, I came across an interesting thread in which a member asks: Is “Simple Living” Just Another Term for “Giving Up”?

Several members responded with various opinions:

• There is a difference between simple living and forced poverty.
• Not everyone enjoys the rat race.
• It’s a choice.
• It’s a form of retirement.
• Some live the frugal life because they have no other choice.
• Frugal does not mean “easy,” but instead takes work and ambition.
• It’s the means to an end.

I thought I’d add my own opinion to this and go more into why we live the way we do – sort of a continuation/elaboration on Our Family Financial History which tells how we came to be where we are today. The answer to this question, as evidenced above, is different for everyone depending on your station in life – age, personal goals and lifestyle preferences.

For us, the last answer, “It’s the means to an end,” is closest to our view of “simple living” or “frugal living.” For me, simple living is not just another terms for “giving up.” I like to think of it as “saving up” and making it possible to “live it up” in future years.

Though, I think this has much to do with where we are agewise in our lives. Madoline and I are in our late twenties and we have many years ahead of us. But for someone at midlife, retirement or late-life, it would probably be different.

Our Reasons for Frugal Living are:

• To pay off our house as soon as possible
• To save up to attend graduate school
• To save up for a replacement car when the time comes
• To make sure we and our pets have enough (or more) to live on in later life
• To be able to live as comfortably and healthily as possible in later life
• To be able to help extended family who may need assistance
• To be able to travel and see the all the places we’ve been wanting to see
• To own a small farm on which to keep horses, sheep and dogs
• To be free of debt and worry
• To be able to have the things we want be they large or small
• To be able to pay our taxes – sad, but true

Frugal Living as a Choice

At this time in our lives, we cannot really afford to not live frugally. Our business is still in its development stages, and we are still considering other career paths. Because we prefer to avoid debt and our business is small, we have been using our cash to invest in sewing machines and materials for the business.

So for us, frugal or simple living is a choice because our present lifestyle is also a choice. At this time, we’d like to have a shot at making our business work because we prefer to work for ourselves and be able to work from home so we can be with our dogs who are our closest family. This is the reason we bought our house where the closest city is 40 miles away. We could move to a large city and get full-time jobs if we really wanted or needed to, but for now, we want to try to make our business work.

Frugal Living as a Means to an End

One of the ways in which we hope to make our fortunes is by investing. This also requires some capital other than regular savings and and emergency fund. So that is another reason we live frugally – to save as much money as possible to invest.

How about you? Do you live frugally? If yes, what are your reasons? And if no, why not?

Related posts:

• August 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals
• Pecuniary Links ~ August 2009 #1
• Short Term vs. Long Term Savings with Bulk Buying
• Resisting the Urge to Splurge
• No-Air Conditioning Summer Part 2 – How We Stayed Cool Without A/C

A few days ago, I came across a thread on a forum where a member wrote about something dishonest she had done in order to save money. This individual was cleaning out her kitchen pantry and came across some jars of pasta sauce that she had gotten in a Buy One Get One Free sale some time ago and forgotten to use. She had exactly ½ the number of jars left as she originally came home with, so technically these could be regarded as the free jars she had gotten in the BOGO sale.

She saw that these jars of sauce were coming up on the expiration date (a week away) and since she didn’t have time to use them by the printed date and didn’t want them to “go to waste”, took them back to the store to return them. She told the cashier that she had lost the receipt and ended up receiving a $10.00 store credit for these items that she had gotten for free in the first place. She knew that what she had done was dishonest but said that she thought it had been worth it.

Now, I am all for frugality (which is defined as “prudence in avoiding waste,” see Language Lesson: Frugality is a Virtue) and saving money, but there has to come a point where one draws a moral line and takes responsibility for one’s own mistakes. This person had herself neglected to use a product she had received for free and taken it back to the store under false pretenses and made a financial gain.

Besides, as my sister Madoline often says, the bacteria in that carton of milk (or package of food) doesn’t look at the expiration date and think, “I’d better go bad now.” It is most likely that those jars of sauce would still have been usable for a little while. If “avoiding waste” was her sole concern, she could have had pasta for the next few days, made a lasagne, calzone, ravioli, or even donated them to a food bank or charity. She could also have put the sauce in a bag or container and frozen it to use over time at her leisure.

Instead she took them back to the store where they most certainly would have been wasted. The likelihood of the store being able to re-sell those jars of sauce so close to the expiration date is slim, and they most likely would have to throw these close-to-expired products away if operating under business and food services policies.

I have heard people reason and rationalize about taking advantage of businesses saying, “Well, they can afford the loss.” It may be true, but it doesn’t make it right. It is true that the wholesale cost of a jar of pasta sauce might be small, but the retail price the store charges the consumer takes into account other costs associated with selling that jar of sauce – lease, tax, business fees, storage space and equipment, employee wages (to organize and clean the store and products, run the cash register, bag the items), and all other expenses of making that jar of sauce available to you. Of course the business makes a profit, for that is the primary and accepted purpose of a business.

So, in actuality, one could say that this dishonest customer really cost this business $20.00 – $10.00 for initially getting the products free of charge, and then $10.00 of store credit she received for returning them later. In my opinion, taking advantage of a businesses’ desire to provide good customer service in this way is no less than stealing.

Yes, it was only $20.00, but it was still $20.00 dishonestly earned. $20.00 is 3 hours of work for some minimum wage workers. $20.00 is capital for a business to turn into a much higher profit. If $20.00 is worth stealing, it’s worth keeping to the rightful owner.

Money is a wonderful thing. It may not be able to literally buy happiness, but it can buy a lot of things that contribute to happiness. However, as someone once said, “The love of money is the root of all evil,” and a high percentage of crimes is committed in the name of money.

I know there are many levels of wrongdoings and everyone has their own standards in their moral code, but there has to come a time when one draws a line between what is right and what is wrong in order to save, or make, money.

Related posts:

• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #2
• April 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals
• Interesting Reads From Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #19
• Blog Carnivals
• Pecuniarities (Our Fourpence Worth) 1 Year Anniversary

Every Little Bit Adds Up

First I will remind you, as I mentioned in my first official post “,” that every little bit adds up and makes difference in the long run. While one small action seems insignificant in the long scheme of things, if frequently repeated, it will have a long-term impact whether good or bad.

I will use smoking as an example: smoking a single cigarette may not harm you, but smoking cigarettes on a regular basis over the course of many years will significantly impact your health (even if not visible to the eye, there is a consequence.) Likewise, all things we do, no matter how small, will have a consequence of some sort. So now to my point.

As I said above, staying home is one of the best and easiest ways to save money. And again, as mentioned above, this is not about going out for special activities, but rather everyday activities and the importance of consolidating errands and activities because every single time you leave your house, whether or not you physically “spend” money, you are in fact spending money. I will start with the most obvious.

Driving is More than Gas

When you drive, you’re spending more than the cost of gas by putting wear and tear on your car. The IRS (for our foreign readers, this is the Internal Revenue Service, the United States government’s department of taxation) has determined a mileage allowance rate of 48.5¢ per mile for business purposes for the 2007 tax year. While tax-wise, this allowance only applies to business owners who use their vehicles in the course of business, it takes into account the cost of gas, wear and tear and maintenance on the vehicle. So a simple 1-mile one way trip (2-mile round trip) to the store has a cost value of $0.97.

Cost Begins with Use

There are many other ways you spend money by going out. These are in the number of things we need and use in order to go out. Everything costs money; just because you’ve already paid for something doesn’t mean that it is now “free” or “without cost.” A good example of this concept is, once again, the IRS. When a business purchases inventory or supplies, it cannot deduct the cost of those items until after those items have been sold or used.

For example, a business owner purchases a case of paper clips in May 2006. He only uses half the case of paper clips by the end of his tax year in December 2006. When he files his 2006 taxes, he can only deduct the cost of the half case of paper clips that he used in 2006. Only after he has used up the 2nd half of his case of paper clips in 2007 can he deduct the cost of those clips. This is an example of the theory that actual expenditure does not end with the purchase of an item, but with the use of it.

Being Presentable

Every time you go out, you must put on clothing that are presentable in public. These clothes are often nicer and more valuable than your regular home clothes. Though it is not always immediately visible, each time you wear your nice clothes, they get some … well … wear. That’s why they call it “wearing” clothes, is it not? Each wearing decreases the value and shortens the life of the garment, taking you that much closer to having to buy (or make) a replacement. This especially includes shoes, which suffer the most wear and tear.

After you wear your clothes, they will need to be washed. Not only does washing cause additional wear on the clothes, but it is accompanied by further expenditures in water use, detergent, and for many, electricity or gas for drying, anti-static dryer sheets, fabric softeners, etc.

Being presentable also often entails use of cosmetics (for women) and hair products – hair spray, mousse, gel, etc (men and women). For women who use make-up before going out, there is the cost of the make-up and all the other products used along with the make-up (toners, lotions, etc.). Every time you use these things, you are in theory, spending or “using” money.

Time is Money

It may be trite, but it is true, especially if you are self-employed or simply make a little extra money blogging. Think of the time spent in traffic or standing in line at the store for the purpose of buying a few items. You could have done some work or written an article that could potentially make money.

Unexpected Expenditures

Oftentimes when we go out for one purpose, we are often sidetracked and end up at originally unplanned places (perhaps attracted by a “ONE DAY SALE” sign at a favorite store) and making unplanned purchases (“Buy One Get One Free” even though you hadn’t even planned on buying One at all). It is true that had you never gone out that day, you might have missed out on a great bargain, but had you not ventured out of doors at all, you would be none-the-wiser and the richer for it. If you go out 3 times a week as opposed to once a week, the possibility (and probability) of unplanned expenditures is multiplied by 3.

I am not saying that you should never go out and starve to death when you run out of groceries. The point I hope I have made is that every outing costs money and that one of the easiest ways to save money is by consolidating all your errands into one outing. This requires some planning and organizing, but is by no means difficult. Following are a few tips to get you started.

Tips for Saving Time and Money by Consolidating

• Groceries
  It is not necessary to shop for groceries every few days or even every week. Try to cut back to every 2-3 weeks, or even better, once a month. This requires some planning and adjustment to get the quantities right, but can save you a lot of time and money. (Check back soon for tips on shopping for groceries once a month.)
• Banking
  Yes, the sooner you deposit that paycheck in the bank, the sooner you begin earning interest. But, if the cost of making a special run to the bank (driving & time) exceeds the amount of interest you will earn, might it not be better to wait a few days until you have more reasons for going out?
• Post Office
  Save trips to the post office by keeping some stamps on hand. I like the Forever stamps that can still be used when postage rates go up. Consider using online shipping for mailing parcels. (Check back soon for information on how you can save time and money by using online shipping options.) Also, refer to my article “” and learn how you can possibly save $60 a year by not mailing your bills.
• Returning Library Books
  If you have a library book due on a day when you don’t have any other errands scheduled, you can renew the book by calling the library or logging onto the library website, and delay the trip to the library until you have another reason to go out.
• Shop Online
  Consider buying more online (from reputable and established businesses, of course). Online prices are often lower than in-store prices even including shipping, so you save time, money, and gas.

Again, it can take time and planning to get used to this idea, but you will soon begin to see how much money and time you save by waiting a few days to take care of all your business at once. This does not mean you should become a hermit and never leave the house. It is important to still go out for practical and social reasons (and work), but hopefully you will now be more aware of the cost behind every activity and therefore be even more successful in your frugal lifestyle.

Related posts:

• Thank you!
• Save Money, Make Money 30-Day Challenge @ iVillage
• Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals: Week of Unexpected Delays
• Make Your January 1, 2009 Home Mortgage Payment Today to Cut Your 2008 Taxes
• Basics for the Young, Single and Frugal