Thread: Are You Good With Money?

"I spent a lot of money on booze, birds and fast cars, the rest I just squandered"

George Best

I am good at spending it, not so much for saving, but I dont spend what I dont have. I have learned that 0 debt makes for a far more enjoyable life, even if you dont get everything that you want. I am getting close to about a year without working, if I had debt I couldnt have done that, without out it I have had an enjoyable mini retirement. My uncle told me long ago that it is not about what you make, it is about how much you spend. It took me years to believe him but I think it does boil down to just that. I also got sick of paying bank fees, so I dont use them anymore. I just collect paychecks till I get 10 or so saved, then I take time off to enjoy them when I get down to one or two paychecks left I go back to work. I dont understand the draw of working your a** off all your life just to wait to slow down and enjoy it when we're old and decrepid, because of that I take time off every year or two. Of course I will probably be working till the day I die, but I enjoy work when its not something I have to do, like it is when your in debt. It seems to me in our day and age a few people have the wrong idea of what freedom is, they think you get freedom through your purchases when that is exactly what is taking away their freedom.

As stupid as this sounds, I usually just split my paychecks fifty-fifty. Half goes into the savings, the other half goes to pay bills and if I have anything left over I use that for spending. It seems to work so far.

I am absolutely spectacular with money! Why, just the other day I was able to max out my credit card in less than 2 minutes... Marriage, on the other hand, I am not so spectacular at. (anyone got a spare couch I can sleep on for a few weeks? - I'll pay you, handsomely)

James.

I was doing quite well at saving. I even saved enough to pay for a modest wedding. But now I have a wife and I'm poor. My wife is expensive.

Originally Posted by ndw76

I was doing quite well at saving. I even saved enough to pay for a modest wedding. But now I have a wife and I'm poor. My wife is expensive.

Arent they all, wait until she wants to gift you with children!LOL

Ya, just wait until they grow bigger and get even more expensive, especially the female ones.

Nice post Jim, you too David, and everyone else.

It's pretty much basic common sense and self discipline. I've heard Dave Ramsey, he is good, I got his book and checked it out just for good measure, he and his program are just plain old fashion common sense - live within your means, if you want more then work and earn more - I like it when after someone goes through the details of their situation and he says "Ok, so is what you are saying is that you got a bunch of stuff that you couldn't afford." (Duh!) or when he says "You only have one job? Why?", he has gotten rich from giving basic advise, good for him, I'm sure that he has helped many.

Here in America the problem is 'SALE!SALE!SALE!' "Save 50% this week only ..... blah blah blah." SAVE? SAVE 50%? - you will never get ahead by getting 'Good Deals'.
Plus the ever popular and obsessive American past time of "Keep Up With The Jones's" - 'Well so and so has it so I better get one too.', a terrible mental trap that lures in and enslaves people to debt and creditors.
Regretably a society built too much on greed and covetousness and materialism.
I know people here who remember the days before the dreaded evil 'Credit Card' and back then if you couldn't afford something then you just didn't get it, you wanted something then you work and save and when you save enough then you can get it if you still want to. And saving, many learn, can also be addictive - better than wanting more and more.
Like one old fella put it, that here in America "We buy junk that we don't need with money that we don't have to impress a lot of people many of who we don't even like." - well said.

I have been fairly fortunate, I'm a debt-aphobe, the Lord has and continues to bless me enough to have enough, and enough is plenty, I don't have any debt, I don't have much but I don't have any debt either.

Yea, I'd say I'm good with money. I am this way because of the way I was brought up. I grew up comfortable but by no means extravagantly, so that's what I'm comfortable with now. I have low standards and I'm totally happy with them. I save because I don't have any inclination to spend. No debt at all (never use my credit card), and I have a nice padding saved away.

I should add that the only real debt I could have is from college/grad school, but my mom paid for that. I worked as much as I could in college (RA for two years, TA for three years, research for 3 years), but my mom made it clear I was not allowed to work a full time job because she wanted me to worry about learning instead of money. For that I am very grateful.

Im terrible with money, mostly because I get a joy from spending, and feel empowered buying things, this is all sad but true. I got it from my folks.

It's not that I don't understand numbers, I do very much so I did my undergrad work for 2 years in astronomy and passed with great grades to Calculus 3 vectors and the like. Anyways, I just don't think logically when it comes to money, always emotionally and try as I do, it's hard for me to not tie the two together.

I'm in a good amount of debt between students loans, and 2 credit cards. I'm trying to pay them off but it's hard not because I'm spending money but because I'm broke from being unemployed.

I work in real-estate in insurance. What's sad is I do a technical job of reading legal documents, something that takes a very anal retentive person to do properly, but I can't seem to get my shit together money wise.

My problem is I didnt grow up with a lot, but I grew up watching people spend when they didn't have and well it rubbed off. I guess it's good I'm aware of it, but Im 35 I got a lot of debt, and I don't own a thing of value.

I'm very logical human being, but I don't have much control over this aspect of my life, but what sucks is it effects every other aspect of my life.

I guess the first part for me is obtaining a stable job, so in my attempt to do that I'm finishing my masters in education to be a teacher. Then once I'm done and find a good job, I'm going to work on my debt and savings situation.

I should also add I wasn't give shit in life, nothing was paid for, first car, any of my education,books, nada, I have been working since I was 13, I forged my birth certificate to get a job back then, and yet here I stand a hard working man with no job right now, and no money.

In the words of Grand Master Flash "It's jungle sometimes, I wonder how I keep from going under"

btw this is not a "whambulance moment" many people got it a lot harder then me, I live in a good country and have a roof over my head, so I'm lucky I'm married to a great woman have a beautiful daughter and a son on the way.



Anyone have any books to recommend?

Cheers
David

Google:

Dave Ramsey
Larry Burkett
Crown Financial Ministries

(Don't let "ministries" scare you...everything on that site can help Christians, Muslims, Atheists, and Deists alike.)

I respond like that because I don't have a specific book to point you to. However, those 3 are regularly on a radio station I listen to daily and any of those 3 will put you smack dab in the middle of "right". I know there are books put out by each and I believe CFM will even send out some of their "Money Map" literature if you ask for it.