How are you reducing, reusing and reclaiming your life?

One StepThe documentary ‘œAn Inconvenient Truth‘ helped me understand my impact on the world around me, the documentary ‘œAffluenza‘ helped me understand the amount of waste I have in my life, and the many documentaries I have seen about the poor conditions people live through in other countries helped me understand how incredibly rich I am in comparison.

Over the last few years I have tried to make it a purposeful attitude to want less and use less and find contentment in that. What a better way to prepare for any trouble times ahead.

Reducing

  • Using Central Air minimally and making good use of fans that use less electricity.
  • Using cloth bags for grocery shopping and minimizing plastic bags.
  • Wearing clothes longer, airing them out, to reduce wear and tear and washing time.
  • Reducing waste by making more food from scratch and fewer prepackaged meals.

Re-using

  • Buying fewer ‘˜new’ items and picking up 2nd hand items at goodwill and yard sales.
  • Emptying containers and finding ways to use them for storing left-over food or for organizing household items.
  • Getting the items I can’t re-use together and offering to someone who can on craigslist for free or through freecycle.
  • Attempting to fix items before considering them a ‘˜loss’.

Re-claiming

  • Understanding my rich life in relation to others.
  • Helping others out in anyway possible through giving food, clothes, or money.
  • Getting an attitude that commercials do not have the answers to life and know what makes me happy or content.
  • Taking responsibility for my financial mistakes and WORKING to correct them, so I don’t make them again.

I hope this has rattled your brain’s cage to realize that we are taking things one small step at a time and yet over time, those small steps are moving us across life with a better end result.

———
Dawn C. is site owner of Frugalforlife.com and is residing in Colorado with her spouse, Teri, of 11 years. Dawn can be reached at Frugalforlife@gmail.com