Mine are walking around the house in the dark because we had either run out or couldn’t afford to top up the electricity. Another is not wanting to waste food. Another is having to have clean, fresh smelling clothes because we didn’t have a washing machine for years.

40 comments

  1. I leave bowls of food on the kitchen counter. When I can’t finish it I leave it just in case I need it later that day.

  2. Definitely never waste food. Always clear your plate and eat the most expensive part of the meal first just in case

  4. Spending money as soon as you get it because growing up you’d never know when you’d next have any disposable income.

  5. I didn’t grow up especially poor (parents were teachers, but we didn’t live in expensive areas).

    But still not wasting food.

    Always looking for reduced things first.

    Buying second hand if at all possible.

    Fixing and mending before replacing.

    Said fixing and mending ‘DIY’ if at all possible.

    Cycling over driving whenever possible.

    Not paying for parking, even if it means a while finding somewhere free.

    Always making full use of a free lunch.

    Keeping sachets of condiments for later use.

    Charity shops for clothes first.

    All of the above and other factors does mean that I actually have very respectable disposable income for a not *that* much above averagely paid job; and a wide selection of big boy-toys, with many bikes, drones, 3d printers and a lot of other play-things.

  6. I didn’t grow up breadline poor (that i know of) but we only went out for meals for very special occasions and we were only ever allowed 1 drink so it had to last the whole meal.

    Likewise I always chose the cheapest thing on the menu. It drives my partner mad as there’s dishes that sound lovely but I won’t get them because there’s at least 7 things cheaper.

  7. leftovers, i will Tupperware even the smallest amount, in the knowledge that its ‘free’ food for another day.

  8. I always eat every last piece of food on the plate, go round turning unnecessary things off to save electricity, buying che cheap range of food.

  9. Shopping around and going to different supermarkets for the cheapest deals. Meal plan by what’s on offer. Stock pile offer foods (freezer or non-perishable).

    My husband tries to help and sometimes I can switch off from it but it’s very difficult for me to.

  10. I plan my meals religiously and buy what I need. My fiance just buys stuff in the shops because he fancies something different from what is planned that night, or he picks up some veg just because looks nice even if it isn’t for a specific meal. It drives me mad because so much food gets wasted.
    Thanks to my granny I also always make breadcrumbs from stale bread instead of throwing it out.

  11. Second hand clothing, especially Oxfam. When I was at school it was a bullyable offence to have seconds, huh. Now it’s trendy. I still buy and love to find a bargain.

    I have never had a credit card and only got a store card to improve my credit rating, because I didn’t have one!

    Warmth. We didn’t have central heating, lived in a draughty house, with damp, thin glass windows, no insulation, and mum used to warm our clothes on the oven door.

  12. I used to find it fascinating that no matter how much food I put on my mrs plate she would finish it all. To the point where you can see she is visibly full but refuses to waste food. Now I ask when dishing!

  14. We weren’t poor poor but we were not as well-off as those around us. And as a result I deny myself nothing. I work hard and I will damn well enjoy my money as I see fit.

  15. I sort of have the opposite problem. I grew up pretty rich but now as an adult I’m quite poor. Good tips though!

  16. Most of it just eventually becomes habitual

    Like drawing up a budget each year or when there is any significant change
    Being on the ball with meal prep so you aren’t chucking food out
    No impulse shopping

  17. Never waste food. Use clothes until they’re full of clothes. Always repair never throw out. I got good at fixing things.

  18. Only buying clothes in sale, I will see what I like and only purchase it if it goes on sale.

  20. I didn’t grow up in poverty but I’m certain my Mum must’ve gone without so I didn’t have to – she never let on at the time and still doesn’t but I can make the assumption looking back as an adult and doing the maths.

    There are two big things that I don’t do these days that lots of people don’t understand : going out to eat, and holidays.

    We almost never went out to eat when I was young and the only takeaways we would have were a chipper or very occasionally a pizza. Takeaways still don’t factor in my head very often and whenever I do get one it feels very special and fancy (other than McDonalds etc which has become normal to me now).

    We didn’t go on many holidays, the furthest we went was to caravans for a week, and one caravan was split between my Nan & Granda, my Uncle and then Mum and I – so the costs were shared out, with the biggest chunk paid by my Grandparents. Going on foreign holidays was an alien concept to me as a child.

    Of course I could get takeaways and go on holidays abroad if I wanted to now but it’s just not something that ‘exists’ in my brain much – the idea often doesn’t even occur to me!

  21. I constantly go over my incomings and outgoings. I study my expenditure beyond the regular monthly bills critically and I won’t buy anything unless I can really convince myself I need it and even then if I do believe I need it I will try to either delay the purchase so I can have a bit more money behind me and/or I will try to find it elsewhere.

    Honestly it feels like you never stop being poor. You can be wealthy sure, but for some reason you’re still poor in your head.

  22. I keep a very detailed record of my spending and commitments. I’ve done really well for myself in the last 20 years and have more than I need each month but I still do my numbers every Friday like I did when every penny counted.

  23. I just can’t have an expensive car, my partner works miles away so has a reliable honda, I drive about 3000 miles a year so I have a 20 year old clio.

    I had an expensive car for like 6 months then I sold it and went back to a bangernomics car I just can’t justify an expensive car even though it wouldn’t really affect my lifestyle.

    I saw a lot of stuff go wrong growing up and saw my parents truly struggle so I save a lot more of my money keep my direct debits low and constantly think “if I lost my job would I be ok”

  24. Not sure if it fits but I have to constantly work on my spending guilt.

    Grew up with no money, but now as an adult I earn well but rarely spend anything on myself because it makes me feel guilty to waste money on stuff I just want. I feel guilty even spending £20-£30 on some headphones or buying myself a new mattress etc.

    Not sure if it’s an actual thing or not but it’s pretty shitty when i realise I’m doing it.

  25. Watered down soup. Can of tomato soup. Half a can of water. Cook on hob. Have a slice of bread and eat.

    I’ll be honest when I first moved in with my wife I was sure I fucked up cooking the soup as it tasted wierd. Perhaps it’s because it was heinz. Tried the economy stuff (we called it no frills back in the day) and it was still wierd. In the end asked my mum what soup we used to have.

    Me and my 3 siblings would have 2 cans of soup and a can full of water between us. Few slices of bread each and that was us.

    Second always have a big bag of potatoes somewhere in the kitchen. Can eat potatoes with every single meal.

  26. Buying second hand. Nothing wrong with second hand clothes and shoes in good condition.

  28. Cook and eat corned beef hash even though it’s not even that cheap anymore

  29. I think of the people on my street as posh people and as though they are judging me, though there is absolutely no reason for them to. I still also feel completely out of place going out for dinner. Also sales, my mum only ever bought in sales and it must have rubbed off.
    Waste absolutely nothing.

  31. It seems like lots of people think the wealthy just regularly chuck food away? I can assure you all that even the wealthy middle classes save food because it was drilled into all of them from their parents who went through rationing

  32. Latest tech. I think when I was younger, i’d always get something like a games console/tv in my room like 2/3 years after the rest of the class. Whenever I did finally get something new, it was like the only thing in my life that made me happy, essentially having a new toy.

    Now at 30 i feel the need to get the latest tech all the time, even though there are no classmates to compete with. Its definitely something I find myself buying when I feel down, its a good distraction to get excited about something like that.

  33. Eating a meal leaving minimal trace on the plate. When I couldn’t afford washing-up liquid + metered water, every meal was a game of soaking up the juice with the more absorbent items, the aim was a perfectly clean plate.

    I have a dishwasher now but I still do this, even when I eat out.

  35. My GF, when taking the silver seal off the top of the plastic milk botle, places it up inside the bottle top. It makes the milk last longer…

    I will put on more layers of clothing before I will put the heating on. I was doing this well before the energy crisis.

  36. Refusing to have a credit card.

    I know that it’s illogical and I can control my money just fine without getting into debt, and I can get air miles or whatever, but it just doesn’t sit right.

  37. I over excessively buy things I really do not need (but will actually use) because I didn’t have the money to do so previously. I have a wardrobe full of clothes (some that don’t fit yet but eventually will), I just buy myself what I want and I cannot actually help it. I went through a phase of buying over £100 worth of clothes every month, and I shop at H&M so £100 can get you a lot

  38. I’m a bit of a hoarder, not like keeping rubbish and stuff, but anything I think I may be able to reuse in the future. I’ve got a shed full of offcuts of wood, pipes, steel bars. Boxes full of old motors, gears, cogs and pulleys. Anything that I scrap gets stripped of anything remotely useful first.

    I do like to tinker with making things though, so it’s been quite a useful trait and it’s saved me a few quid on buying spares.

  39. Keeping everything. I’m not into hoarder territory but I still have a ton of my childhood toys and books. My mum saved all year to make Christmases special, it was the only time we got new stuff. I was super careful about damaging/losing things so I have most things still boxed and/or in good nick. The upside is that, when I can bear to part with things, they sell for good money!

  40. I’ve only just realised I do this but if I am buying clothes, shoes, bags, etc., I will normally get it in black or white. I will look at the coloured items, think how nice they are, umm and ahh about something red or green or purple, and go for black or white on the justification that I will probably be able to wear whatever it is with more things, rather than having to buy multiple items.

    These days it’s apparently a ‘capsule wardrobe’…

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