Short term satisfaction vs. long term dreams/wishes...

[Jill in Chicago]

I was re-reading The Tightwad Gazette, a monthly newsletter dealing with thrift. (I believe you can find this at your library in book form.) The author, Amy I believe, was sometimes "over the top," but she had great ideas that made you think.

In one of her first newsletter she talks about letting the little purchases get in the way of your big wants/dreams/goals. I think about this all the time when I read this budget board. We all spend money on so many "little" things that when it comes time for the Disney trip, or the other big splurge there isn't any money left.

I'm not talking about spending money on unexpected medical bills, or unexpected car issues, or your stove dies......, but the spending we do on gifts, Christmas, food that goes bad, $50.00 at the local festival, the little knick knack we buy to cheer us up....

I always smile at the no buy months. I think I'm on a no buy for the next 15 years! LOL!!

Of course you can say that these smaller outings/purchases are important, or gosh darn I want that dinner out..... My point is that are we giving up long term wishes for short term satisfaction?

Later on I added this additional post.....

I completely understand that everyone has different needs and goals. I do believe in living in the here and now and appreciating the moment. I gave examples so people could understand my line of thinking, not to discuss the specific merits of concerts, festivals, dinner out....

Everyone has different things that are "musts" in their lives, that are not particular musts in someone else's life. I get all that. We are all different and that is a good thing.

One of my points is that there is so much to do in life that is free: libraries, forest preserves, free concerts, museums, church events, making a doll house out of a cardboard box with bits and pieces of stuff, or just sitting around talking....

My second point is to be aware of where your money is going now, so that later you can do what you want to do. (And I do get that we might not be around later.)

Lastly, to really think about how much pleasure purchasing/paying for something gives you. A week from now will you still think, "That was great, fun, or a wonderful experience?" How about a month from now? A year fr

 

[wdwfan16]

I was re-reading The Tightwad Gazette, a monthly newsletter dealing with thrift. (I believe you can find this at your library in book form.) The author, Amy I believe, was sometimes "over the top," but she had great ideas that made you think.

In one of her first newsletter she talks about letting the little purchases get in the way of your big wants/dreams/goals. I think about this all the time when I read this budget board. We all spend money on so many "little" things that when it comes time for the Disney trip, or the other big splurge there isn't any money left.

I'm not talking about spending money on unexpected medical bills, or unexpected car issues, or your stove dies......, but the spending we do on gifts, Christmas, food that goes bad, $50.00 at the local festival, the little knick knack we buy to cheer us up....

I always smile at the no buy months. I think I'm on a no buy for the next 15 years! LOL!!

Of course you can say that these smaller outings/purchases are important, or gosh darn I want that dinner out..... My point is that are we giving up long term wishes for short term satisfaction?

That Disney vacation a purchase that gets in your way of the bigger goals such as owning a home, retirement, the kids college and the like. A Disney vacation comes in after all of them.

 

[Mouse House Mama]

No I don't think so. I don't believe that you should do nothing just so you can go on one vacation etc. There has to be a balance. I want my kids to experience more in life than that. Heck I want to experience more in life than that. Going to a carnival, the zoo, out to dinner, etc. these are all life experiences. I am not willing to give those up just for one thing. I personally think that is ridiculous and short sighted. There are other things though that we are more careful about spending money on. I think life is meant to be lived. There are 52 weeks in a year. I am not going to spend my whole life living for only one of those weeks. Of course that is my perspective. YMMV.

 

[Sunbeamblue2002]

I do get your point but my mom tells of a story of a Great Aunt that loved to travel so much that she would save up all her money just for the next trip and wouldn't even spend so much as to buy a candy bar. I'm sure that there has to be a happy middle somewhere.

 

[LuLuO]

I think I remember reading on this message board, or maybe another one, that someone put a photo of their dream vacation destination in their wallet so that every time they went to make a purchase they were reminded of their big goal and it made them think about whether or not they really needed whatever it was they were going to purchase.

I do think that we can let frivolous purchases get in the way of our larger goals. But sometimes the little things are worth the price and not all smaller purchases are frivolous. A dinner out with your spouse every now and then may be the time you need to reconnect. A local festival can offer great fun for the family and long lasting memories. A night at the symphony or a trip to an art museum can offer valuable education. I don't equate those types of things with being wasteful. I think those types of things are life-enhancing as long as you are not going into debt to do them.

Now, letting food go bad. Yes, that is a waste of money for sure. Buying another pair of black shoes when you already have 4 pairs is wasteful IMO. Having a closet full of clothes that you never wear is also wasteful.

As for gifts, I think a lot of us tend to go overboard. Most people would rather have our time than a bunch of junk sitting or a shelf or put away in a closet. We spend less on gifts now than we did a few years ago. We do more handmade gifts and things like art classes or tickets to shows and such.

 

[lisaross]

I think u need to plan/save for future goals, but at the same time plan/save for day to day things..weekends, eating out etc.

 

[Jen_in_NH]

I think there has to be a happy medium. I certainly understand saving up and not buying every impulse pruchase you want. But, never spending anything in pursuit of a splurge makes no sense to me. I would rather spend a bit here and there, than to save like a madman and make everyone miserable doing it.

A night out for dinner, a trip to the fair, a weekend camping should not be budget busters. If they are, I need to re-evaluate my budget

 

[Jill in Chicago]

I completely understand that everyone has different needs and goals. I do believe in living in the here and now and appreciating the moment. I gave examples so people could understand my line of thinking, not to discuss the specific merits of concerts, festivals, dinner out....

Everyone has different things that are "musts" in their lives, that are not particular musts in someone else's life. I get all that. We are all different and that is a good thing.

One of my points is that there is so much to do in life that is free: libraries, forest preserves, free concerts, museums, church events, making a doll house out of a cardboard box with bits and pieces of stuff, or just sitting around talking....

My second point is to be aware of where your money is going now, so that later you can do what you want to do. (And I do get that we might not be around later.)

Lastly, to really think about how much pleasure purchasing/paying for something gives you. A week from now will you still think, "That was great, fun, or a wonderful experience?" How about a month from now? A year from now?

 

[Soben]

You can't really say that something is frivolous. It could be to you, but it could be something very "worth it" to me. Many people would say that any WDW vacation is frivolous. What I get from Amy Dacyzyn is that your choices should be made deliberately, not unconsciously. If you're a boat person and you know that buying that boat is going to mean that you can't go out to eat, and you can live with that, then buy the boat. If you're a gourmet and you want to eat at all the best restraunts, then you know that you are not going to be able to do something else. I think where the problem comes in is when you buy the boat b/c it looks like fun and you go out to eat out of habit b/c you forgot to defrost the chicken and you don't save for retirement and you get yourself a Starbucks every morning w/o thinking. Spend every dollar with your eyes open and knowing that you are making your choices.

I stay home and we go to WDW every few years. But we eat out rarely and I drive a 10 yo van because those are my choices and I own them,

 

[MissBritt]

Many people would say that any WDW vacation is frivolous.

I agree! People look at me like I have 3 heads when I say I am going to Disney (again)... but I am a Florida resident with a seasonal pass, living 2 hours from the Mouse, and cut back in other areas so that I can have some fun money when I go. My parents had 5 kids and had to save for a few years to be able to afford to take all of us to one park for one day, and even then we had to share meals and never bought souviners.

 

[NancyIL]

I love The Tightwad Gazette books, and bought them when they were published in 3 volumes. (I just pulled them off the bookshelf. ) Now you can buy all 3 books in one volume: http://www.amazon.com/Complete-Tigh...=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1275506391&sr=8-1. The emphasis is on saving money and living more simply, but the goal isn't deprivation. Whether your big goals are to buy your first house, put your kids through college, take a great vacation - many of them can be achieved by paying attention to the small expenditures that add up to a lot of money over time. Some people are tightwads out of economic necessity. Others, like me, enjoy getting a lot of bang for the buck.

**By the way, I love to travel - whether it's to WDW, a cruise, Europe. I'm doing all of the above this year.

 

[bored]

I'm all for planning for the future and I invest, 401-K etc. Manageable mortgage and no car payments. With that being said my DD is only small once so am I saving as much as I could vs. vacationing in places I never got to go as a child, NOPE! But all the trips are paid in cash so we go!

 

[MrsPete]

A phrase I like:

Never trade what you want most for what you want most right now.


Without giving extreme examples like never buying any small pleasures EVER, what this means is that you should PLAN your purchases. Seemingly small expenses -- perhaps like buying a fast-food biscuit and soda on the way to work several times a week -- add up to big totals. Don't allow those small things, which mean little to you in the long run, prevent you from reaching your larger, more important goals.

Your priorities may well be very different from someone else's. Maybe you really, really value being able to go out for dinner and a movie every week, while to someone else that's something they'd give up without a whole lot of thought. Maybe you wouldn't care if you never had another bottle of wine for the rest of your life, while someone else would gladly put off buying a new car so that he could indulge in a special vintage a couple times a week. Maybe you just can't put your precious new baby into hand-me-down clothes, even if it does mean that you can't save for her college education. Maybe you'd rather have a nice vacation every summer, even though you know it means you're not going to be able to retire as young as you'd like. Your priorities aren't my priorities.

The point is that you should CHOOSE the things that are your splurges . . . rather than just spending here and there and letting things fall where they may.

By the way, I loved Amy D's books. I like the way she approaches financial matters; for example, figuring out how many hours it takes to earn a new coat or a dinner out. Or comparing the cost of various choices. I can't say that I'd use all her ideas (many don't apply to my life at all), but it's her mindset towards saving that appeals to me.