The Importance Of Organization To The Frugal Lifestyle By Tightwad Tammy At Isnare.com Ezine Articles

First, you go to the grocery and buy 10 items you already have at home because you didn't know what was in your pantry. Then you get home and discover you have forgotten a very much needed item (like, say, toilet paper). In desperation, and because you are so tired, you march right back to your car and head to the corner market where the toilet paper is twice as expensive. All of a sudden that one trip to the grocery store has cost you money and gas (which in itself is quite expensive)!

Does the above scenario sound familiar? It sure does to me! I don't know how many times I've played this same scene out, and I don't know how many times I never learned from it! The solution is so simple, but yet I kept trying to make it more complicated than it was. The solution: getting organized.

Using the above drama as an example, the very best thing that could be done is to plan out the grocery trip. I have found what has worked for me is to keep a pad on the refrigerator door, and when I run out of something, I write it down. Then the day before my shopping day, I complete the list while making sure I don't buy anything I already have. Of course, I had to straighten up my pantry, cupboards, and refrigerator to make it a much easier job!

On the day of my shopping trip, I recheck my list and inventory to make sure I haven't forgotten anything important. I also have a snack or light meal so that I'm not hungry, to decrease the risk of impulse buying. Then I head to the grocery, making sure I only buy what is on the list. Not to say that I never forget anything, but it helps immensely and I usually never forget anything so important that it can't wait until I'm out and about again or until the next shopping trip. Plus, I save money on the gas I would have wasted making two (or three or four) extra trips to the grocery store.

As I said, the solution is so simple, but yet can seem so complicated to try to implement. Some of us are born organized and some of us, well, are just not. I fall into the latter category. If you are like me in this respect, I would like to recommend the following to help get you on the organizational track:

1. Sidetracked Home Executives(TM): From Pigpen to Paradise This was written by the Slob Sisters, Pam Young and Peggy Jones, who were able to change their life from a messy to organized one. They have helped thousands (including me!) to increase their quality of life.

2. I also highly recommend going to FlyLady's website at http://www.flylady.net and joining her mailing list. She sends out several emails a day with goals, inspiration, and specifics on how to reach a better, more organized life. The amount of emails can be overwhelming sometimes, but they do work!

3. Don't try to change alone! There are many message boards and email lists out there that can offer both support and answers.

Once you can better organize your life, you will find that you will be able to live a more happy, peaceful, and frugal lifestyle!

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