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Some simple things I've done recently (some not necessarily by my doing, IE girlfriend) are listed below.
- No Girlfriend - I'm working on a new one, but it really is A LOT cheaper without one. The only thing is...it's kind of lonely. I'm the kind of person who loves companionship so I try to compensate by finding ones that don't care so much about what you buy them and care more about what you do for them. The kind of actions speak louder then money types of girls...so far so good in the past.
- Hypermile - I've gone from using a tank a week normal driving to just over 1 tank per month since I've started hypermiling...figuring it takes me $60 per tank roughly, that's about $180 a month in my pocket for a little extra time getting somewhere.
- Cook your own food - I know it's been said already at least once that I saw, it really is true. I used to eat out a bunch, and I was always broke. I then started buying some of the frozen dinners or things that I could just heat up like frozen lasagna or pizza...but that was still more expensive. Now I'm actually shopping at a place that is higher priced, but has organic only foods and I'm still spending less then before, not to mention cooking is fun.
Turn lights off when you're not using them - Every time I leave a room, I turn off the lights and shut off any other electronic devices. Even if I'm only going to be out of there for a few minutes, it's all turned off. I also switched to florescent bulbs, and I immediately noticed a $30 drop in my electricity bill the next quarter.
Minimize electricity use by appliances - Get a fridge thermometer and set the fridge to keep the temperature just above the line for "food" (I'll see if I can find a picture for better description). Turn down the temp of the water heater to what you use, like has been said already. Air dry and then just soften clothes up in the dryer. Let dishes air dry, or heck even hand wash your dishes after every meal, that's what I usually do since I usually eat by myself, it's not that many dishes.
Cut the phone services - If you have both a cell phone and land line, consider cutting the land line off and just use the cell phone. I've been doing that for years. Also, consider exactly the NEEDS of your cellphone and get a plan that only has that.
Buy used - I have a 42" HDTV, I payed $300 for it off craigslist.com. I have a Carbon Fiber and Aluminum race bike, I got it for $500 off ebay. If you watch the auctions and for sale items on websites, you will generally find what you want MUCH cheaper then you could new. I also buy a lot of stuff at second hand shops like thrift stores and flee markets.
I'm sure bunches of those have been mentioned already, but that's mainly what I do and so far I've managed to live very reasonably on a budget of just over $1000 per month.
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