The Ultimate Cheapskate!

Am I the Ultimate Cheapskate? I'm confident my wife and other family members would confirm that "yes" I am the ultimate cheapskate according to them. In fact, I would bet most people that know me would feel comfortable labeling me the cheapest person they know. I don't know whether to be proud of that or not.

On my drive up to Washington last week I listened to a book on CD "The Ultimate Cheapskate's Roadmap to True Riches" by Jeff Yeager, dubbed "The Ultimate Cheapskate" by Matt Lauer on the Today Show. I guess he appears on the show all the time to offer his "cheapskate-isms". Obviously I have some inclination of "cheapness" if I'm even picking this up to listen to it in the first place.

So what makes me a cheapskate? The fact that I drive a '99 Civic that has Sharpie scribbled all over the car (thanks to my sweet son!)? It's got 185K miles on it and I hope to eventually hit 300K! Is it the fact that I don't spend a ton of money on clothes? I am admittedly a poor dresser who even after 2 years of working in a business environment is uncomfortable all day every day in business clothes and can't wait to get into a t-shirt and jeans the second I can. That will definitely be a consideration for future jobs. Is it the fact that I save up to purchase things with cash, do research on the product to find out what a true competitive price is, and wait it out until it goes on sale to get it? Nothing (and literally I mean nothing) makes me laugh harder in life than people telling me they got a "deal" on whatever it is they purchased. 99.9% of the time I know they got the same "deal" that every other schmuck in the world could get. Usually it's because they "knew a guy" or something like that. I first noticed it back in the early post-mission days when the whole world was getting engaged (this is primarily BYU students I was dealing with). When asking a dude about a ring, it was "I got a sweet hookup because I knew a guy". Nobody ever responds "I got totally raped on the deal". This sense of "getting a deal" has proliferated amongst any and every purchase possible from a whole slew of people. The sense of getting a "deal" usually results in people making stupid purchases for things they either don't need or are far out of their price range for what they are looking for but they buy it anyways. Is that what makes me a cheapskate? (Yes, indeed that was quite a rant).

Well folks, upon reading above said cheapskate book, I am here to proclaim that it could be MUCH, MUCH WORSE! Allow me to identify some items that make me a non-cheapskate! I own and use a cell-phone, something abhorred by a true "Ultimate Cheapskate"; I pay for TV services (currently Direct TV, which completely sucks by the way and I will be cancelling the DAY my contract is up to turn promptly back to Comcast and never go back, but that's another story); I go on vacations without staying in Hostels. An entire chapter is dedicated to traveling cheap, which I realized I do not do. While I would consider a stay in a Hostel for the experience I have already received confirmation from my wife that it is not an option. I don't buy food on the "less than $1 per pound" method although I do think it's ingenious and may try it out sometime. In fact, I spend quite a lot of money at restaurants, something I enjoy doing with my wife, and something definitely not cheapskate-style.

One thing I did like that may make me a cheapskate is the approach to life of setting a certain goal of income to live on and being comfortable with. Now, the real "Ultimate Cheapskate"'s life goal was to make $40K a year and he'd be comfortable, and is comfortable, with that amount the rest of his life. While my goal is slightly higher, I do think it's wise to learn to live within your means and set a reasonable, achievable "target" income level at which you could live comfortably for the rest of your life. All increases beyond that point would lead to increased investing, savings, etc. The Ultimate Cheapskate points out, and I agree, that too often people increase their expenses dollar-for-dollar, or even beyond, when they experience increases in their income. "I just got a raise! That means I should spend ALL the extra money on a bigger house, car, toy, etc.!" Not the case for Mr. Ball, even if it is to the aversion of Mrs. Ball.

So what is the truth? Well, I may be the cheapest person you know, but thanks to reading this book, and even though I don't know Jeff Yeager personally, I can feel confident saying I'm not the cheapest person I know. And that's good enough for me!