Question: Help – we need to get on the right financial path before it is too late! My husband and I are in our early 60s and find ourselves wrestling with a host of financial issues, including elder care and estate planning as well as retirement planning. Can you provide us with some financial tips?
Answer: I think that we all could use the reminder that our human flaws show up very clearly in our family finances. The fact is that we ALL lie to ourselves, from time to time, about what’s really happening with our wallet.
This habit of lying to ourselves threatens our financial stability. Instead of spending $10, we spend $30. Instead of recognizing that we *want* that new shirt, car, or fine dinner at a restaurant, we lie to ourselves until we are convinced that, for one reason or another, we *need* that new shirt, car, or fine dinner. The credit crunch of 2008-09 can partly be blamed on a nation full of people who convinced themselves that a $800,000 home was necessary — even though a $350,000 home was more than sufficient. We must learn to live within our income … and this sometimes means that we must stop lying.
So, I’ve compiled a short list of ideas on how to stop lying to ourselves, and to instead face the truth when making purchase decisions.
- Have (and stick to) a budget. Is this purchase in my budget? For example, your family budgets a certain amount each month to spend on clothing. You’ve agreed that this amount is sufficient to meet your needs. So you set this amount before facing a purchase decision. If during the month you want to exceed the budget because Kohl’s is having a fantastic sale, then you are now lying to yourselves. You aren’t saving money by exceeding your budget during a sale. In fact, now you have to dip into savings to pay for your overspending.
- Set a per-purchase spending limit. A wise man said, “The four most caring words for those we love are, ‘We can’t afford it.’” Take some time with your spouse to set what I call a “What I can spend without having to ask my spouse if it’s okay” spending limit. Some spouses have decided that neither one of them is allowed to spend more than $100 at any given time without calling and asking the other one if it’s okay (this does not apply to groceries). Let me tell you right now, these limits have stopped many from making a lot of unnecessary purchases.
- Replace bad habits with enjoyable, inexpensive activities. Shopping or overspending is a habit that we have likely formed over years. Since our brains are programmed to react in a certain way in specific situations, any change is met by resistance. The existing habit is simply more comfortable and natural. To help change your behavior, replace the bad habit with another activity.
- For example, instead of going to the mall to pass time, go to a local park with a soccer ball and spend some time with family or friends. Start or re-start a hobby. Your new hobby might even be a low-cost home business where you make money!
- Make sure that the reason you tell yourself you are making the purchase and the *actual* reason you are making the purchase are the same. Ask yourself, “Why am I really making this purchase?” Am I buying this dress for my wife because I love her and want to show my appreciation, or am I trying to prove to her and the world that I am a good provider? We lie to ourselves to cover our true motives. If the real reason you are making a purchase isn’t in line with your principles and budget, then don’t buy it.
- Take stock of, and enjoy, everything that you already have! Develop gratitude for what you already have in your life. Purchasing new things is often a sign of ingratitude for what life has already afforded us … or a sign that we feel deficient in some area.
Overcoming bad habits and addictions is a process that requires concerted effort. Face each day one at a time, and stop lying to yourself! Don’t believe the story you’ve created in your mind that justifies unnecessary and financially harmful purchases.
E. Dennis Bridges, CPA
Atlanta, Georgia