Unless you can count yourself among the elite, or you’ve been running the wilds of Africa the last six months to a year, you know the economy has been pretty shaky. If you’re like me and working in the financial industry, then you know things can be a little scary. While my company isn’t hurting financially, the fear is still there that layoffs could happen. And competition in this industry is pretty fierce right now.

So, I thought I’d share some of the things that I’ve sacrificed to try and put money away. I share this mostly because if I put it on paper, it solidifies the goals I have in mind. But, I also share it to point out that if you’re going the frugal route, you’re not alone. I will say this, sacrificing some of your favorite things is hard to do!

1.) Cable

I have finally given up my cable. It was pretty hard to do, too. I liked being able to record shows and watch them at my leisure. I liked channel surfing after a long, hard day at work. And I liked having access to all of the content on the Sci-Fi channel. But, most importantly, my big comfy leather chair and ottoman are far more comfortable than my desk chair!

I get that I can watch my shows online, and I’m even ok with the fact that the quality of the picture is grainy at best – even on my HD monitor. But, the one thing that does bug me is that my desk chair is somewhat uncomfortable to sit in for long periods of time. Obviously I’m not going to spend money on a new chair and I can’t exactly lug my desk top over to the TV to hook it up and watch it in the living room. Still, even though it was hard to give up, I’m saving $80 a month.

2.) Netflix

I’ve told you guys about my love of movies. As a way to curtail the amount of money I was spending on buying DVDs, I decided to try and rent them instead. I was on the plan for $18 a month – 3 DVDs at one time, unlimited exchanges. The thing is, I’m still buying DVDs…albeit only the ones I REALLY want. So, I’m wasting $18 a month on DVDs I don’t watch because I’m watching the ones I buy – or trying to keep up with my shows in between a busy schedule. It was turning into a waste of money.

Honestly, I’m not too sad to see this one go. It was more hassle then it was worth because it’s all by mail and I have to remember to drop them in the mailbox. I’ve had the same DVDs for at least four months. I figure this $18 could be put to better use in my savings account.

3.) Eating Out

I spend a lot of money eating out because it’s just me and cooking for one is a lot of effort. At the end of the day, I’m tired and don’t really feel like cooking. But, it’s costing me too much money and wasted food to do that. So, I’ve given up eating out for the most part. I will occasionally go to dinner with friends on a weekend, but I strive to keep that to no more than twice a month, inviting them over for dinner instead.

This one is tough because it’s easy to talk oneself into believing that once isn’t going to break the bank. But, I tend you use that rationale so much that it does get pretty close to breaking the bank. Perhaps I need to pull out my jar again. As I talked about in my article on sneaky ways to save money, every time I would eat out, I’d put money in a jar. Along with being a great way to trick myself into saving, it was a good way to watch what I was spending eating out. I had a visual of how much I was spending and how quickly by the amount of money in that jar.

4.) Happy Hours

Drinking out can cost a fortune! I put happy hour as the heading to this section, but nine times out of ten, by the time I get out of work, I’ve missed happy hour. My beers cost roughly $3 a bottle. Let’s say I have two to three beers three times a week (I belong to a networking group). That’s, on the high side, $27 a week or $108 a month. Mind you, this isn’t an every month expense because I just don’t drink that much, but even if this happens a total of six months out of the year, that’s still $648…I can think of a better use of that money.

As most of the members in my networking group are in the financial industry, they can understand the need to give that up. So, we’ve started meeting at club houses and brining our own beer. Buying at the store in bulk is far cheaper than drinking out. Most of us prefer beer, so there’s nothing too expensive on the list. We save money, and still have the opportunity to socialize.

5.) Air Conditioning

This has been one of the hardest things for me to give up! First of all, I totally live in the wrong state. I DO NOT like to be hot, so living in Texas isn’t the smartest place to be. But, having an AC has made it tolerable. It also costs a fortune to run the thing. So, I’ve turned it off, and had it off for the last two months or so. In Texas, we don’t really see colder weather until December or January, so conceivably, I could run my AC until then, and then I turn it off for the winter months and open the windows. But, in an effort to cut back, I’ve turned it off. All I can say is keep your fingers crossed for me on this one. I really don’t like it hot!

There have been other changes I’ve made, mostly small stuff like unplugging things or walking more instead of driving, but overall I’m pretty simple anyway.

These are some of the big things I’ve given up. What are some of the things you’ve given up and how hard were they to let go of?

Related posts:

1. Six Ways I Don’t Set an Example
2. The Sunk-Cost Fallacy
3. Do You Consider Your “Collection” An Investment?
4. 8 Signs Your Money Hates You
5. Dying to Shop? How to Spot an Addiction to Plastic