The writers of Wise Bread have put together a small budget book with large ideas and great tips to make your life in a downward economy a bit easier to live with. 10,001 Ways To Live Large On A Small Budget covers a variety of topics to save you money on great wines varieties that are excellent values to travel tips, healthy eating and entertainment.
10,001 Ways is a great resource book for those looking for wise ways to cut costs in their home life, travel and other social activities. The book is broken into smaller segments, bite sized chunks of reading material, making it easy to digest. You’ll find the book has two major chapters, Frugal Living and Personal Finance, which break out into sub-sections so readers can flip to the pages of interest and pickup some of the valuable tips. The back of the book covers invaluable websites and resources to put the lessons to practice.
The variety in this book will assist all styles of human being with varying habits and lifestyles. For instance, if you’re currently interested in saving money while shopping for products, you can jump to that specific topic while others can head over to the travel section to prepare for a trip. Of course, as an “everyday drinker” and cocktail enthusiast I was wondering what the book covered in the realm of drinking.
While the book sheds a bit of light on wine buying techniques it does go into detail on tips for beer drinkers and ways to extend your beer to new levels, including making chili, bread (recipes included) and methods to killing some insects with your golden beverages to save on pesticides or other dangerous remedies. Of all the uses of beer suggested in the book, making “beersicles” was something creative and crazy; a use I’ve never heard of before.
Before reading the 10,001 Ways I was a bit skeptical on its use in my lifestyle because I thought I was pretty good with our budget and selecting the right products when making informed purchase decisions. However, this book doesn’t just give you common sense tips like “buying generic saves money,” it gives you strategies to saving money without sacrificing all the brands you love. For instance, I like my specific type of spaghetti sauce and wouldn’t think of changing it up, but buying the sauces in bulk and freezing it in ice cube trays to store in Ziploc bags never crossed my mind. Imagine that, ice cube trays hold a consistent measured amount of product which can be dumped into a pan and reheated as needed. Not only does it save me money buying in bulk but it saves waste on extra sauce and keeps the life in the sauce longer than in my refrigerator!
Time is money, this is one of the biggest takeaways in the 10,001 Ways archive of knowledge. My time is valuable! If my family is spending half the night cooking there is less family time and other fun activities. It becomes apparently, especially in the cooking techniques, that the writers focus on working smarter and not harder. Buying a generic brand of pasta doesn’t get dinner prepared any sooner but a little thinking ahead and the use of a crock pot is a great way to prepare tomorrows dinner ahead of time so you can get home, eat and head out to the kids baseball game or play at the park. In addition, crock pots do a great job on lower grade products and bring them to life.
Not every idea on the book is going to be utilized in my family but I’ve got 10,001 selections to choose from so it’s not like I’m losing out. For a book that can be purchased on Amazon for under USD $12.00, there is at least a dozen techniques that will peak your interest or make you think different. 10,001 Ways To Live Large on a Small Budget isn’t just about saving money, it’s about thinking outside the box and coming up with a game plan to wise spending.
No Comments