20 of the Most Powerful Things Ever Said About Saving Money

Wise people throughout the ages have come up with some pretty pithy and thought-provoking statements about money, how to save it, and how to spend it. After all, even if money doesn’t make the world go round, it certainly oils the gears that make your personal universe function. Let’s take an in depth look at some of the money-saving secrets these wise words impart.

John Poole was a famous military strategist, but he also had a simple strategy for wealth creation. Debt comes at a cost, and he saw the key to prosperity as avoiding debt. Admittedly, most of us have to get into debt to buy a house or a car, but spending real money that you saved is still the best way to go.

Did you think that this quote was just a folk idiom with an unclear origin? It turns out that it was first written in Benjamin Franklin’s book “Poor Richard’s Almanack”. This work contained many handy household hints and tips for daily living, including this classic. If you want money in your pockets, controlling your spending is the best way to achieve it! 

A simple lifestyle (living as a poor man), means that we’re far more likely to have lots of money than if we were to try to live the stereotypical rich lifestyle. If we do a bit of investigating, we will find that many of the world’s richest people live modest lifestyles. That’s how they got rich!

Back in 1811, Thomas Jefferson wrote a letter with 12 rules for living life well to his granddaughter. This one was rule three, and even though the credit card hadn’t been invented yet, it is still relevant today.

Nobody knows who said this first, and there are two ways you could interpret it, but we can use both. First of all, stay safe. Secondly, insure your assets because sometimes, the unexpected happens.

This is a tip that we can apply in many contexts. Instead of creating complexity, we should aim for simplicity in our personal lives, our businesses, and our financial management. Simple living is more carefree, because the less you have, the less you have to worry about, and the less there is to go wrong.

For most of us, our education budget is well and truly used up by the time we leave college. But that doesn’t mean we must stop learning. Drew Houston may have studied Computer Science at college, but he attributes his success to listening and learning. It costs nothing, let’s try it!

Leadership expert and author of several books on leadership John C Maxwell gave us these wise words. There are so many areas in our lives where we can apply them, from our relationships to our spending habits. If we want the best, we need to let go of the things that are just “good.” So, if we really want the big things like that dream house, those sporty wheels, or the holiday of the lifetime, we need to make a few little sacrifices.

Lobbyist Jack Abramoff was accused of ripping off his Native American clients when representing their interests, and this quote comes from his interview with Time Magazine. Sometimes, it makes sense to pay a professional to get things done for you, because in the end, it’s an investment that pays off.

Sometimes, we persuade ourselves that we need things that really aren’t necessities. At others, we spend on luxuries only to find that we’re short on cash when we need it most. Yes, we should treat ourselves a little now and then, but we should be aware of the difference between “need to have” and “nice to have.”

It seems that money saving guru Dave Ramsey may have borrowed this quote from John C Maxwell, but whoever said it first, it’s powerful stuff. Budgeting is the only way that most of us can make ends meet. Otherwise, we just end up wondering why our money goes so fast!

There’s much more to this iconic actor, director, and singer than just Star Trek, but stardom hasn’t turned him into a spendthrift. He says people shouldn’t be mean with money, but he also believes that saving is the right way to go. So when our friends try to tempt us with needless extravagances, we can always fall back on this quote.

Benjamin Franklin began life with nothing, and lived a relatively modest life despite his fame in latter years. This man knew how to keep a household going on a shoestring budget, and he knew how small expenses add up to large amounts of money. As one of the cleverest people ever to have lived, we should think carefully about his advice. Small expense quickly mount up, becoming large amounts of money.

Yes! It’s Ben Franklin again! This phrase, which we casually use in everyday speech was initially part of his published work “Advice to Young Tradesmen”.  The full quote reads: “Remember that time is money. He that idly loses five shillings’ worth of time loses five shillings, and might as prudently throw five shillings into the sea.” Let’s use our time productively on the things that matter to us – and yes, some things are worth more than money. Let’s remember those too!

Warren Buffet first started investing and making money as a child. Imagine turning the money you made as a paperboy into your first investment venture! Of course, he could have been like other kids who spend everything they have, but saving was in his blood from an early age. Today, he’s the 2^nd richest man in the world. Alas, life isn’t always this simple, but it’s a good motto all the same.

So many people have used this phrase that it’s hard to work out who first said it. Whoever it was, they realized that doing something you love to do is the best way to approach you career. After all, we spend most of our lives at work, and enjoying the money-making process is important to our happiness.

Philip Johnson was a renowned architect, and what he was trying to say here is that you can’t have it all. If you want extravagance, you will end up spending money. The logic is simple and reasonable. When we make decisions, we should always think the consequences through carefully.

Oscar Wilde was a literary genius with a strong sense of humor. This quote makes us smile, but it’s perfectly true in one sense: if you lend money, it’s probably wisest to only lend out what you can afford and to be pleasantly surprised if you ever get repaid. Another humourist suggested that lending money is a great way to get rid of people you never want to see or hear from again!

When times are good, we need to salt money away. When we really need it, it will be there for us. Folk wisdom has nailed this one perfectly! This Jamaican proverb should become part of our money-saving philosophy.

If you’ve never heard of Carlos Alberto Sicupira, you’ll certainly have heard of companies like Burger King and Heinz in which he is an important shareholder. He’s found that he needs to revisit costs frequently to see how they can be reduced, and that’s true of household budgets too.