Get money into your child’s hands and help them learn some valuable money lessons with the Earn Your First $50 Challenge. The #1 thing I hear parents say they want their child to learn to do with money: Learn how to save it. But here’s the thing: you can’t save what you don’t have. A child who has no money to begin with (or who has an inconsistent money source, like through a duct-taped Kid […]

[Good morning, friends! Got a fantastic guest post for you today that’s got me reconsidering all kinds of habits over here! It comes from Amanda Grossman over at Frugal Confessions, and hopefully it gets you rethinking some of your routines too Take it away, Amanda!] ******* I’m about to introduce you to a frugal living rule I started using almost a decade ago. It’s saved me untold amounts of money. And to be honest, it’s without much sacrifice at all (none, in some circumstances). It’s called The Half Rule. I only wish I’d discovered it back in my early 20s when I could’ve really used it! It’ll help you fight inflation. It’ll cut your grocery bill down without having to stop buying the products that you like. And you’ll start to have some money left at the end of the month. While it can’t be used on everything, it can be used in more cases than you think. Ready for it? What is the Half Rule? The Half Rule means cutting the amount of product you use in half, and seeing what happens. Does it still perform like it should? Then keep it at the new, half-level. Do you need to add a bit more to it? Go ahead and do it. You’ll likely always end up using less than you were before, causing you to have to buy a replacement product less (and saving you money). I started playing around with this over a decade ago. and I can’t tell you how much money it’s saved me (without having to buy generics or go without). You see, I’m going out on a limb here, but I think we all use too much product. And there are three main reasons for that: Manufacturer Recommendations are Inflated: Manufacturer recommendations are often asking us to use more of the product than necessary. Habits are Hard to Break: We have developed a habit of using a certain amount of a product, and it’s hard to change habits. (J$: This is me!! I need to work on this!) Product Inflation is a Real Thing: We’re experiencing product inflation, where we think to get the same amount of pleasure out of something, we need to use more of it (has anyone increased their Starbucks size to grande, for example, to get the same degree of pleasure they used to get from a tall?). I tested this rule out by cutting in half my use of: Shampoo Laundry detergent Dryer sheets (I’ve cut them in half to no bad effect for decades now) Cooking oil (started using an oil mister instead of pouring it) Restaurant meals (I typically take 1/3 to ½ home for lunch) Bagels for breakfast (I started eating half a bagel at home, instead of a whole one) Starbucks order size Glass stovetop cleaner Tape (when wrapping gifts) And those are just the easy ones you can start with. [TIP: to save even more money, pair