Perhaps I shouldn’t call them arguments. Maybe “excuses” would be a better word.
As you may have guessed by reading this blog, I am somewhat conservative with my money. I don’t purchase frivolous items and I haven’t been inside a mall in a very, very long time. I just don’t do it. When I want to buy something, I write the item down on my “to-do” list. I let it sit for a few days at which point I delete it. I rarely end up buying what I wanted. I do this day in and day out. It’s called being patient and resisting the impulse.
I am writing this post to display two of the more severely horrible choices someone can make financially. I have friends who have tried to slip these by me. Fortunately for them, I kept my mouth shut. Unfortunately for them, they are losing money and are really feeling the pinch.
Argument #1 – “Yeah, but you have to live too.”
I get this one the most. It’s usually during the course of me educating someone as to why they are poor. Have you ever noticed that the people who complain about money the most are the ones who spend the most. I know a few people like this. They are always going out to dinner, going to get ice cream for the kids, vacations, have cell phones, two cars, etc…You get the picture.
So let me ask you a question. Who says you have to live? By “live” I mean live the good life. Live with comforts. Live like you have always lived. Somewhere along the path, we fell victim to believing that we actually “deserve” something. I am not sure when this happened. All I know is that our grandparents would be ashamed at what’s going on. I don’t remember them saying, “Yeah, but you have to live too.” It was something more along the lines of “Don’t be a fool. Save your money.”
Pain? What’s that? Sacrifice? Never heard of it. This is the world we live in. Not having a bowl of ice cream to eat while watching your favorite show on your big screen TV? No way man. Can’t do it. Having your cell phone ring while you are sitting next to your home phone? Dude, you’re broke.
Unfortunately, people have no idea that they are setting themselves up for some serious damage. I think Joe Q. Public is used to the government helping at every turn. I am not sure they have heard that things aren’t so rosy out there and that help ain’t going to be ’round for very long. Moving back in with momma is a hard hit to the ego. Especially when it’s with your wife/husband and two kids.
Which brings me to my next point.
Argument #2 – “When are we really ever ready to have kids?”
Oh this one burns me up. When I ask someone why they decided to have children so young, when they aren’t established in any area of their life, when they hardly have a job, when they really have no money, when they barely have any education, they reply to me, “C’mon, when are we really ever ready to have kids?”
I’ll tell you when you are ready. When you have a house and own more then 50% of it. When you have had a steady job at a healthy company for more than three years. When you have the support of a family. When you have a three year reserve fund in the bank or credit union. When you are maxing out your retirement contributions. When you have no automobile loans. Need I go on?
What are these things called? I like to call them “standards.” (You know, standards. Something the banks should have been using a few years back. Hmmm…) These are the things you need to have before you have children. Trust me, I have seen more than my share of young couples who are struggling because of their children. It’s not as fun as they thought it would be. Their children didn’t fix the situation like they thought they would. It’s a real shame, because now these kids have to live with that.
Telling people this is not very popular and doesn’t win any friends. That’s why I keep it to myself and let people live their lives. I get frustrated at times when I have to listen to the sob stories of people’s lives when all the while I know that the “sobber” caused every last ounce of their own pain. Frustrated is an understatement.
So what’s the difference? Our parents didn’t have any money when they had us. We can do the same thing, right? Well, that’s kind of like comparing the financial situation of the U.S. and the financial situation of Japan. Search for “Deflation U.S. vs. Japan.” Both are experiencing forms of deflation, but the economic picture is very different. Search those terms and read a few articles. You’ll start seeing what’s happening.
How are we different from our parents? Well, for one thing, our parents knew how to work. Some of us don’t. Many of us sit in a cubicle all day and complain about it. A second job mowing lawns on the weekends? Heck no. Painting houses? Nope. Cutting down trees? Never heard of it. I just described the neighborhood I grew up in. About 90% of the people I lived next to worked side jobs after their full time jobs during the week and on weekends. It’s one of the reasons why our parents used to fight so much.
Let’s talk about cars. Do you have a new car? What type of car did your parents drive when they were your age? Did they have one or two? My parents drove a Volkswagen Rabbit diesel and a Chevy Chevette. I used to call it the “Vette.” Both cars were bought used and paid for in full at the time of purchase. My parents used to fix their own cars. Why? Because mechanics used to charge $18 per hour. Now it’s over $100, but still, $18 was a lot back then. It’s called working hard and not getting what you want all the time.
Now let’s compare houses. How big was the average house in the 70s? How big is the average house today? These days, 22 year olds are getting brand new kitchens with granite counter tops. They have hot tubs in their bathrooms. What has happened to the world? Actually, I should say the U.S. because the rest of the world probably isn’t pulling the same load of garbage as we are.
Okay, I got a little off track with this post, but that is because it’s way too easy to do that when I talk about this kind of stuff. My point is, and this is what I try to preach but no one ever listens, live like your parents did when they were your age. That’s it. Do it and your financial situation will improve greatly. Get out of debt. Close your credit card accounts. Buy used cars, not new. Live in a small house. Use your fireplace. Stop buying cookies and junk food. Put half the miles on your car as you are right now. The list goes on and on. Basically, turn over a new leaf and start thinking of where you waste money.
Want some really easy tips on how to do this? Here they are…straight out of “The Richest Man in Babylon.” It’s just not that hard.
1) Start thy purse to fattening – Save and invest.
2) Control thy expenditures – Watch out for self serving brokers and people who offer to “help” you.
3) Make thy gold mutiply – Use powerful investments.
4) Guard thy treasures from loss – Watch out for people with their hot tips.
5) Make of thy dwelling a profitable investment – Rental properties, your own home, but stay within your means.
6) Insure a future income – Do work that you love to do. Become excellent at it.
7) Increase thy ability to earn – Education never stops. Keep reading good financial and economics books.
Better yet, go down to your local library right now and get the book. Read it and return it. You’ll learn a lot. I promise.
Incoming search terms
- citibank stock prediction
You might want to check out these related posts:
