For Jeff Yeager, an author who makes his living helping people find innovative ways to pinch their pennies and save a buck, business is booming.
The global recession and accompanying economic uncertainty has people trying to save money anywhere and everywhere they can, and Yeager has made it his life's purpose to show them not just how, but also why, they should spend less.
The author of "The Ultimate Cheapskate's Road Map to True Riches" told CTV's Canada AM his philosophy is about simplicity, first and foremost.
"I think in this economy it's the time to simplify your life, not really focus on trying to get more for less but maybe coming to appreciate that less can often be more," Yeager said.
Admittedly, the eccentric Yeager takes his tight-wad techniques further than most people would be comfortable with. From funnelling cheap box wine into expensive bottles, to soft-boiling eggs in the dishwasher to save time and money, he's worked hard to earn the "ultimate cheapskate" title.
Yeager isn't suggesting that everyone should take such extreme measures, but he is a firm believer that most people can live with less without making any major sacrifices to their quality of life.
In fact, he's laid out five simple steps that people can take, to save money.
1. Give up your cellphone:
While many of us seem permanently attached at the ear to our phones, Yeager suggests it's a big financial drain we may be able to do without.
The average phone plan costs about $100 per month in the U.S., and when all the costs are added up, it's roughly $3 per minute for airtime.
"With all due respect, I'm a fairly accomplished author and TV guy and I've never owned a cellphone in my life and nothing awful has ever happened," he said.
2. Get rid of your car:
In Canada and the U.S., the average household has 2.5 cars, Yeager says. Removing one of those vehicles from the expense list can result in huge annual savings when fuel, maintenance costs and repairs are added up.
"My challenge is this," Yeager says. "Can you give up a second or third automobile, if your family ownes it, by relying on public transportation or sharing the car that you have? That could easily be a savings of $5,000 to $10,000 net, per family."
3. Don't eat out so much:
This one's kind of a no-brainer for the money-crunched, but it's still a hard habit to break for the take-out connoiseur. Yeager says 42 per cent of the average person's food budget goes towards eating out. If you're looking to reduce costs, this is an obvious place to start.
"Can you at least cut back on that?" he asks. "It costs about 80 per cent less to prepare those same meals at home. And here's why it's not about sacrifice: Maybe by making that fundamental decision to simplify your life, we regain some time with the family around the dinner table."
4. Spend less on clothes:
On average, Yeager says, we spend $1,600 per year on new clothing. And of the clothes we replace, less than two per cent are actually worn out. Quite simply, we can spent a lot less on fashion.
"Certainly all of us have enough stuff in our closets that we could go six months or a year without buying anything," he says. If you must shop for clothes, thrift shops are a less-expensive option, he says.
5. Go on a 'fiscal fast':
Yeager likens this to going through a "spending detox" process. The challenge is to go an entire week without spending any money -- to simply "get money out of your life" for seven days.
As a result, Yeager says, you will use up the food in the pantry and the freezer, find forms of free entertainment such as boardgames or outdoor activities, and even use up those annoying little bottles of shampoo that have accumulated over the years.
"It will save you some money, it will show you how you waste money during the week, and best of all it reminds you that there's a lot of things in life that don't involve spending a single nickle."
