Yogi Berra once said, "Baseball is 90% mental, and the other half's physical." The same thing is true about saving money and frugality.

Its possible for anyone to run around to different stores and find cheap stuff online, but we rarely do it unless we understand WHY we're doing it. Saving money is 90% mental and to save more money, you have to begin with some thought.

You Can't Have Everything

First thing you have to do is get the idea out of your head that you can have everything. You can't buy new cars every year while spending more than what you earn while putting nothing into your 401(k) and hope to retire at 40 unless you win the lottery. (And Financial Plans that include winning the lottery need to be rethought.)

Sacrifices must be made. The only thing you get to choose is what to sacrifice. Short-term sacrifices are required for long-term success and prosperity. So, it means living with less so you can save for retirement or for a child's education. On the other hand, long-term sacrifices are required for many short-term pleasures. You can have the best of everything without saving, but if you do that, you may be stuck working longer and unable to provide for your children's education.

The greatest thing you can do for yourself financially is ask two questions:

1) What do I want out of life?
2) What am I willing to do to get it?

If you want to retire at 45, its going to take doing without some luxuries, putting aside large amounts to save. It may also mean working overtime or second jobs to save and hasten that day of retirement.

If you want to retire at 75, its going to require less effort and sacrifice, because you're working an additional 30 years, but you'll still want to plan for providing for your children's education.

Also, think of how little things can impact your ability to save and your financial health. If you buy 2 lottery tickets a week at $1 each and you give that up to save, by the end of the year, you've saved $104. Even if you can't quit smoking, if you go from being a 2 pack a day Smoker to a 1 pack a day Smoker, if you're paying $2.50 a pack for Cigarettes, that's going to save you $912.50 a year.

Begin to look at your life, scrutinize your spending, and find the money you need to achieve your financial success. However, it all starts with thinking about your finances and dedicating yourself to getting where you want to go. Until you do that, any other advice you'll read will be moot trivia.