Hair in my sushi, the debit company stuff up and a humbling revelation 24 Feb 2010 by Greg Ellis in Founders Blog

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A few weeks back, I went to my local Sushi Train restaurant.

I was starving.

The delicately assembled sushi on dainty little plates was driving my hunger crazy.

I grabbed the best plate of sushi I could see.

But then I saw it. A hair belonging to someone other than me sticking out of one of the nori rolls.

Not good.

"Just put it back on and choose another one", said the mate I was with.

That option was tempting. It would mean no embarrassing "see, there it is right there " finger pointing when telling the waiter, I'd choose another plate of hopefully hair-free food and I wouldn't have to leave hungry.

But...

I'm a decent enough person to realise if I did, some other less-tolerant diner would probably cop it in the throat.

Things could get nasty. All because of one aimlessly wandering hair.

Then I started to think.

What do you choose to do if the initial excitement of getting a Cash Doctors cash advance turns to disappointment?

Do you leave?... Read More »

My Worst Christmas Ever 09 Dec 2009 by Greg Ellis in Founders Blog

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Christmas 2005 sucked a lot for Sean and I.

It sucked because we had no money. We didn't have much time either. But sometimes you have to make sacrifices.

In this case it was a place to live and a new girlfriend.

Let me explain...

We're super organised now, but, we made some rookie errors at the start - and under -budgeted for the start up.

One of us had to mow lawns in Brisbane a couple of days a week to make ends meet. We were behind in rent and bills in our place in Brisbane.

We scraped but we believed in what we were doing and sometimes that's all you need.

On top of it all we'd both just met new girls and we didn't have a lot of time or money to sweep them off their feet - just like we do these days.

On Christmas Eve, it all came to a head.

That day, I mowed 14 lawns. People like their places looking good for Christmas.

One fussy client had made me get down on my knees and scoop blades of grass off her driveway with my bare hands.

What a day.

After having a cold outdoor shower... Read More »

Become a fan of the Tight Arts Appreciation Society and you might win $600 04 Dec 2009 by Greg Ellis in Tips & Resources Blog

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Want to have lots of cash and hang loose? And not be a tight artist? Then become a fan of the Tight Arts Appreciation Society and you might win $600. Go on. Do it.

Nail your Christmas shopping from your couch 02 Dec 2009 by Greg Ellis in Tips & Resources Blog

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I'm not talking about watching late night infomercials - and ordering 50 of those food processors Mr. T is promoting these days - one for everyone on your Christmas shopping list.

It's not a bad idea though the more I think about it. Mr T is persuasive no matter what he's doing. If you don't buy one he'll break your head (or 'haid' - as he says).

Anyway, here's the rub...

My Christmas shopping is done. It took 90 minutes and I never left home.

For years I've been talking it up and saying I'd roll my Christmas shopping online and do it in early December. This year, I've done it.

In a frenzy of anal retentive behaviour in late November, I researched and looked for websites. I wanted some specific sites plus some catch all ones where I could buy a few things.

Here they are...

http://www.zazz.com.au/ -Every day these guys have a different offer and you have to pounce on it if you like it. From remote control ... Read More »

Tight Arts Tip #104 Save $100's off your mobile phone plan 09 Nov 2009 by Greg Ellis in Tight Arts Blog

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Our simplest Tight Arts tip yet. This time, the weapon of choice for our Master Tight Artist is arousing a friend's curiosity. He's worked out a way to stay on a cheap $10 monthly mobile phone plan but still talk to his friends as many times as he likes. It's a simple idea that saves $100's. You may not be able to get away with it all the time, but if you do as the Master does (even just three times a day), you'll save hundreds...

Tight Arts Tip #103 How To Create Gourmet Food On A Tight Arts Budget 21 Oct 2009 by Greg Ellis in Tight Arts Blog

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Bulk cheese. Calculating menu choices. Master Tight Artistry. Depending on your fast food habits, this Tight Arts Tip could save you $62.05 per year. A huge money savings idea that still affords a little slice of luxury.

Watch... and learn from the Master...

Introducing Catie Cash – Our "Best Deals Diva" 12 Oct 2009 by Greg Ellis in Tight Arts Blog

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Introducing "Catie Cash" - Our Best Deals Diva. We've employed her to find (and fight for) the best deals in Australia for our members.

Travel. Fashion. Food. Concert Tickets. Free Stuff. If it's a great deal...the best around…she'll find it. She's a diva after all.

Every week she'll be posting her findings here in the Tight Arts Appreciation Society blog. It may be a link to a cool savings site, an unusual way of making money or a really sweet deal from a company that has contacted us to push their best deals for free.

Know of a great deal? Or maybe you're a business who wants to offer something exclusive to our members? Share the best deals love and tell us about it.

Contact Catie Cash via email @ catiecash@cashdoctors.com.au. We'll choose the Best Deal of the week and post it here PLUS we'll let our friends on Facebook and Twitter know. Great online exposure all for FREE in return for the best deals exclusively for our valued members. Everyone benefits.

And Oh….We'd like to give a big plug... Read More »

How A Tight Artist Has A Fun But Frugal Night Out 06 Oct 2009 by Greg Ellis in Tight Arts Blog

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Practical. Clever. Totally unthinkable. The Tight Artist does it again. Watch as he prepares for a fun but frugal night out using something that resembles a colostomy bag. Buying a woman a drink has never been so cheap... or easy.

The Origins Of The Tight Arts – Part 8 28 Sep 2009 by Greg Ellis in Tight Arts Blog

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A lot of the info I've shared has been practical. You could easily apply it.

Probably not this. But it is a funny story that's in keeping with the Tight Arts movement - living sensibly but stylishly.

Every good Tight Artist knows that home cooking is essential to keeping within a budget. It's fun and if you're a guest, it's a great way to express gratitude and show people how well brought up you are. Cooking with local ingredients is a trip too.

Perched in Sophie's kitchen, I spotted a proudly displayed, but never used Jewish Pie Master Cookbook (The Jews are also Tight Artists but I'll tell you more about that later). Sophie had bought this book on a whim while holidaying in New York. It's a bad mistake to buy a heavy book while travelling plus it hadn't been used, so it was time to justify the purchase.

Pies are a novelty in Denmark. All they eat is Danishes. So we thought we'd buck the trend and master it - perhaps creating a reputation in Denmark and get invited to peoples' houses for dinner so we'd bring our famous pies.

I lea... Read More »

The Origins Of The Tight Arts – Part 7 24 Sep 2009 by Greg Ellis in Tight Arts Blog

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With accommodation and transport taken care of, now I just needed some food and feel for the basics - groceries, coffee, beer, a standard lunch.

Because of my amazing luck with accomodation, I was only living 100m from a grocery shop - so off I went. Initially I was a bit scared, having heard tales of $10 loaves of bread in Northern Europe. Here's what I found...

Firstly, this isn't some sort of holiday where you just eat out and order room service. No. No. I'm living it the full Euro way - checking out the local delights but staying on a budget.

So let's check out this milk. 1 litre for 5.95 DKK (Danish Kroner). That's $1.36. In Australia it costs $2.40. Not bad for the Scandos.

Milk is cheaper in Norther Europe at $1.36 a litre

How about Mars Bars? 9.99DKK = That's $2.28. It's only $1.80 for us. Again, it's not out of this world.

Mars bars are a little dearer in ... Read More »

The Origins Of The Tight Arts – Part 6 21 Sep 2009 by Greg Ellis in Tight Arts Blog

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On several occasions during my Tight Arts International Tour I've re-iterated the difference between Tight Artistry and just being mean, nasty and selfish. They're totally different.

The Tight Arts is all about being smart and well organised and resourceful, not stingy.

You're about to see an excellent example of resourcefulness, as I endeavour to sort out transport for my 2 weeks in Copenhagen. This is what it's all about. Watch and learn.

Now that I was living among Scandos, I wanted to get around like one - on a bicycle.

When in Copenhagen...

It's dead flat here and you can get anywhere in 20-30 minutes max, so they all ride bikes. You wouldn't believe it until you see it. Check these images out...

I was super keen to participate in this action, so I asked Sophie about bike options. You could buy a crap one for 1000DKK ($230AUD), rent one for 2 weeks for 800DKK ($180AUD). There are also free council ones, but yo... Read More »

The Origins Of The Tight Arts – Part 5 18 Sep 2009 by Greg Ellis in Tight Arts Blog

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A lot of people will sit around in hostels doing nothing much. There's a lot of talk about money saving in hostels, but not a lot of action at times. I believe you can live cheaper and better than in a hostel and get a full feel of the culture - as long as you're staying for a couple of weeks or so.

I woke up to a bit of pressure and immediately hit http://craigslist.com for some options. People all over the world do everything from find flat mates to trumpet lessons.

My strategy was to find people who were looking for flatmates and act as bridging rental income. That way you just pay normal rent or a little more, and you get to live with locals. Two weeks of rent at that rate is cheaper than hostels. For example a pretty nice room right in central Copenhagen was 2000 to 3000DKK/month = $500 to $700AUD/month. That's pretty reasonable really.

So I drafted this email and hit the flatmate wanted section...

"Hi, I'm in Copenhagen right now. Your room looks cool, I'm staying for 14 days and c... Read More »

The Origins Of The Tight Arts – Part 4 15 Sep 2009 by Greg Ellis in Tight Arts Blog

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A good Tight Artist always prepares ahead of time to minimise the risk of unforeseen spends. When travelling that means having cheap accommodation sussed in advance and knowing how to get there in the cheaply on public transport.

When I arrived in Copenhagen at 5pm I broke both of these rules. I was lucky not to get blown away on my first day of the trip.

I also got off the train having zero idea of the exchange rate. That's 3 rookie errors.

All I had was the phone number of a friend of our Online Marketing Manager, Johan. He'd texted saying his place was too small, but that he'd sort something out with a friend of his. He'd get in touch with an update at 6pm or so.

If you're poorly prepared you either rely on luck or expense. I've learnt this the hard way before.

I decided to roll the dice and relax in the town square as the sun set. 15 minutes after it was got darkand not so fun anymore, Nick got in touch. I was relieved.

He said his friend Sophie could put me up a day or two, but she would... Read More »

The Origins Of The Tight Arts – Part 3 14 Sep 2009 by Greg Ellis in Tight Arts Blog

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So far it's been a successful mission.

I've opened your eyes to these important bits of information...

• The Scottish origins of the Tight Arts - Calvinism and Adam Smith, the father of modern economics.
• How appreciating the value of your money makes the world a better place and warms your heart.
• How some Scottish folks view their 'grippy' reputation.
• The difference between being a Tight Artist and just a selfish tight arsehole.

With a solid understanding of where the Tight Arts comes from, it's now time to apply what we've learned.

A Hostile Environment For The Tight Artist

We're heading to a place that has no mercy for your savings and cares not about how broke you are. It's the most unforgiving environment possible for someone who doesn't want to spend - Northern Europe.

That's like sending a man who's scared of he... Read More »

Fact: Flatmates Prefer To Wipe With Yours 10 Sep 2009 by Greg Ellis in Tight Arts Blog

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TIGHT ARTS TIP #101

Freeloading flatmates beware. Watch as the Tight Artist skillfully traps his toilet paper thieving flatmate. After a heated dispute, he nets a tidy little saving. Watch…and learn from the Master.

Ha! Yes... we're having a little fun. But seriously, there's merit in what the Tight Artist has achieved here... Some people, especially flatmates, are a little wasteful and disrespectful…and won't have any shame when it comes to using your stuff. In these economic times, can you really... Read More »

The Origins Of The Tight Arts – Part 2 28 Aug 2009 by Greg Ellis in Tight Arts Blog

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Finally. The search comes to and end. The origins of the Tight Arts revealed.

The Scots built this castle to keep people away from their money. True.

The last time I was talking to Scottish folkin an effort to understand their thrifty reputation, I was getting nowhere - until I met this guy in a Scottish café. He hit it on the head.

Check out the castle.

Listen to him and learn what few people know.

Having problems playing? Click here to Download

I dug deeper..... Read More »

The Origins Of The Tight Arts – Part 1 27 Aug 2009 by Greg Ellis in Tight Arts Blog

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You need to know your roots.

So having just founded the Tight Arts Appreciation Society, I went to Scotland on a fact finding mission. I was burning to discover who the movement's forefathers were and where the Tight Arts originated.

Though I'd consider myself quite generous these days (don't mind sharing my loo paper with my flatmates for example), I've had to be frugal at times in the past and I can really appreciate a good Tight Artist.

I'm not one to blow my own horn, but I consider myself well qualified for founding this new Society.

• I've lived in Scotland before and fittingly worked as a pricing analyst for Statestreet. (Analyst - topical term.)
• I've done a double economics major - so I know how to economise
• I've been exposed to some of the greats throughout my life - I'll introduce you to these guys in weeks to come.

The trip started well. I hobbled off the plane in Edinburgh dreary from sleeping pills to be met by my former work colleague Ian. There was no sign of him waiting... Read More »

Rush247 Inflates A Jumping Castle In An Instant 19 Aug 2009 by Greg Ellis in Founders Blog

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Help In The Short Term Leads To Long Term Benefit. A Perfect Example Of How An Instant Cash Advance Can Help You In The Long Run.

Backyard Blues. Boredom. They're jumping on your bed and it's driving you a little crazy.

How to entertain the kids?

Take advice from our new friend, Adam. We never imagined that our service would be used to make a man into a Super Dad.

But it has.

Adam has a few kids. And like all parents he's hit with requests for the latest Wii game, Hot Wheels track and "Please Dad, this'll be the happiest McMeal of my life".

As a parent, Adam has to curb that inner need to give it all.

But sometimes, giving in...and lashing out... if done strategically, can offer priceless peace.... for years.

Below is Adam's story. A cliché... but yes, this picture tells a thousand words.

Listen to what he has to say here