About This site
The reason for this site is to talk about just 2 of my passions: Saving Money and Investing.
I am frugal. I have always been frugal - some would say cheap - ever since I can remember. I don't know how I got that way but I can tell you this. Being frugal is an excellent trait, some would say required, for attaining financial independence. It has put me in a financial position that few people my age get to enjoy.
I still remember when I was 14, putting 4 quarters into a claw vending machine to get a prize. I ended up with noting. Boy was I ever upset. I kept thinking...I lost a dollar and had nothing to show for it. I told my parents about it that evening and never have fallen for that trick again. I became even tighter with my cash after that. Talk about a great learning experience, and it only cost me $1.
My tight-fisted money ways continued through high-school, into college and beyond.
I am 38 and some of the highlights of my frugal life are:
Some recent frugal highlights include:
Building wealth ultimately comes down to 2 actions. 1) spend less than you earn (ie. save money) and 2) invest the money in locations that provide good rates of return.
There are many good websites sites that talk about saving money and stretching your dollar. However, that is only 1/2 of what it takes to build wealth. The other half is that you have to know where to put those savings so it can be working for you.
Can you become wealthy by just saving money and putting it into CDs? You bet. Many people have done it. But with altering your mindset about other places to put money that offer decent rates of return, you can watch the amazing power of compounding do the work for you.
This site talked about wealth, vs. getting rich, because getting rich implies just obtaining money. Building wealth, for me, is more all encompassing of a happy and fulfilling lifestyle, which includes appreciation for family, good health, respect in social circles in addition to having plenty of securities.
However to ultimately enjoy life, you have to learn to really appreciate what you already have. It requires a shift in your worldview. Once you can attain a life of spending less, you will be able to attain a very impressive financial picture for yourself.
After we have saved some money, we need to invest it to build wealth. Wealth building is really a state of mind, but we will be talking about increasing our net worth as it relates to dollars. The Investing Section on the site talks about my approach. It is not for everyone, but it has worked for me. I want to share it with others and in the process receive critical feedback to help me improve as an investor and business owner.
The site name? I am mostly dutch and, as you probably know, the dutch are known for being frugal or cheap. However, I am also Norwegian so I thought it would be a good name for site since most people don't expect Norwegians to be frugal.
And also, I don't swear on this site so don't worry - the language is clean.
So if you are ready to become a FN (Frugal Norwegian), then let's go.
I am frugal. I have always been frugal - some would say cheap - ever since I can remember. I don't know how I got that way but I can tell you this. Being frugal is an excellent trait, some would say required, for attaining financial independence. It has put me in a financial position that few people my age get to enjoy.
I still remember when I was 14, putting 4 quarters into a claw vending machine to get a prize. I ended up with noting. Boy was I ever upset. I kept thinking...I lost a dollar and had nothing to show for it. I told my parents about it that evening and never have fallen for that trick again. I became even tighter with my cash after that. Talk about a great learning experience, and it only cost me $1.
My tight-fisted money ways continued through high-school, into college and beyond.
I am 38 and some of the highlights of my frugal life are:
- I have only owned 2 vehicles. The one I have right now is a '97 Blazer with 211,000 miles. I plan on driving it until the wheels fall off (well not quite, but you get the idea)
- I paid $50,000 for my house 9 years ago (a good deal but it needed a lot of work, which I provided)
- I have zero consumer debt and no mortgage (I shouldn't have a mortgage with only paying $50,000 for my house)
- I avoid taking on more debt like the plague (actually the idea of debt scares me...it really does)
Some recent frugal highlights include:
- buying a "new" convection oven for my wife. This particular oven was returned to a sears store with a very small scratch on it. This scratch reduced the price by $350. I also signed up for a Sears CC which saved me another $80 right on the spot. Don't worry - the Sears CC was canceled after receiving the 1st statement. The previous owner scratch now matches the new scratch that our 3 yr old put on within the 1st week of being in our house. When you have small kids, the idea of new has little value inside a house. Therefore why pay so much extra for something that is new?
- avoiding the purchase of a brand new dishwasher. Our 8-yr old unit was not cleaning the top rack very well and a few of our friends had replaced theirs after the same amount of time. I feared ours was coming to the end of its life. However after searching Google for a description of the problem, I found a video that highlighted a perfect fix! I was more excited than my wife once the dishes were coming out spotless again.
- my wife acquired 50 lbs of potatoes for free at the local farmers market (they were starting to sprout). Hey, it all adds up. My wife is an excellent cook so she will make those boring 'ol potatoes taste like they came out of a gourmet kitchen.
Building wealth ultimately comes down to 2 actions. 1) spend less than you earn (ie. save money) and 2) invest the money in locations that provide good rates of return.
There are many good websites sites that talk about saving money and stretching your dollar. However, that is only 1/2 of what it takes to build wealth. The other half is that you have to know where to put those savings so it can be working for you.
Can you become wealthy by just saving money and putting it into CDs? You bet. Many people have done it. But with altering your mindset about other places to put money that offer decent rates of return, you can watch the amazing power of compounding do the work for you.
This site talked about wealth, vs. getting rich, because getting rich implies just obtaining money. Building wealth, for me, is more all encompassing of a happy and fulfilling lifestyle, which includes appreciation for family, good health, respect in social circles in addition to having plenty of securities.
However to ultimately enjoy life, you have to learn to really appreciate what you already have. It requires a shift in your worldview. Once you can attain a life of spending less, you will be able to attain a very impressive financial picture for yourself.
After we have saved some money, we need to invest it to build wealth. Wealth building is really a state of mind, but we will be talking about increasing our net worth as it relates to dollars. The Investing Section on the site talks about my approach. It is not for everyone, but it has worked for me. I want to share it with others and in the process receive critical feedback to help me improve as an investor and business owner.
The site name? I am mostly dutch and, as you probably know, the dutch are known for being frugal or cheap. However, I am also Norwegian so I thought it would be a good name for site since most people don't expect Norwegians to be frugal.
And also, I don't swear on this site so don't worry - the language is clean.
So if you are ready to become a FN (Frugal Norwegian), then let's go.