I’ll admit it: I am a spender. I cringe at the thought of money lazing in a savings account day after day. Bank crashes may actually be an illogical fear of mine (don’t judge). At the same time, though, I don’t consider myself an impulse-buyer, either. I research my decisions and I read reviews and subscribe to Consumer Reports. I watch for sales and coupons and pay attention to the season when I make important purchases. With almost every purchase, I shop around and base my decisions on a combination of factors including quality, price, customer service, and company ethics. But, alas, I am still a spender, and I have felt guilty about my spending nature for most of my life. Can a spender be a spender and still succeed financially? Yes!
My Aunt Norene was amazing at saving money. She and her husband had saved tons of money during their working lifetime and were able to retire in their fifties and move to Florida, never to worry about finding a job again. She was a real penny-pincher, though, and when I was a girl, her thriftiness seemed almost unbearable to me. Now that I am an adult, I can’t help but admire her incredible self-discipline.
As I have journeyed over the course of the past year and a half, learning as much as I can about personal (and family) finance, I have come to learn two life-changing concepts that are good for this spender’s soul. They have really helped me shift my mindset without completely rewiring my brain. If you, too, are a natural-born spender, or know someone who is, I hope these two concepts help you like they’ve helped me.
1-Spending money isn’t inherently bad.
We have grown up thinking that spending money is the antithesis of saving. Nope. Failure to have a plan (as in budget) is the real antithesis of saving. If you are flying by the seat of your pants and spending money (even sparingly) without a plan, you are slowing down your ability to save. Why? Because expenses will always arise. If you do not already have a plan in place and money allocated to cover those expenses, as well as money you intentionally allocate towards future expenses (as in savings), you will thwart your savings goals. If I want to spend money, that is OK, as long as I stay within the bounds I have set for myself. When I intentionally set aside $1000 for a small 3-day trip to San Diego, I am doing that on purpose and I can continue to responsibly allocate money to my other expenses, including future expenses. When I am intentional with my money, I don’t have to feel guilty for making purchases I have planned on that align with my priorities.
2-Saving is actually future spending.
You may have picked up on it already, but I had to state it anyway. Instead of thinking of my money as fresh fruits rotting away in an unknown place, I can recognize that I am allocating my money into categories that I may not need today, but I will need in the future and when that future date comes, I will be so glad to have that money! When I give my money specific jobs, even if those jobs will be completed in the future, I feel satisfied that my money has been “spent” and is not merely sitting there “rotting.” I know this sounds illogical to you savers out there who relish the idea of saving money and stockpiling it for those rainy days, but I am who I am. Sorry if it doesn’t make sense to you!
You Can Control Your Money, Not Everything
Could the bank still potentially crash and keep all my money? Maybe, but I try not to focus on that (FDIC anybody?)! Instead, I revel in the peace of mind that comes daily from being in control of my money. I can tell my money what to do instead of feeling tossed to and fro by the winds and storms of everyday life. Bank hacks happen. Cars break down. Furniture needs to be replaced. Foods get eaten. But if we plan for those expenses, we will be OK. Actually, OK is an understatement. Sometimes people make comments like, “I don’t have time or energy to budget.” Friends, let me assure you that the time and energy you are wasting on trying to fumble through life without a financial plan is infinitely more than the amount of time and energy it takes to maintain a budget.
If you haven’t tried maintaining a budget (which includes some forecasting, allocating, and accounting), try it! If you don’t enjoy the peace of mind that comes with it, you can always quit and go back.
What about paying down debt? How does that work for a spender?
Undisciplined spenders accrue debt. It is easy to do, trust me. I know. But once I recognized what a huge chunk of our income was going toward old spending, limiting the amount of spending we could do with our current money, it didn’t take me long to want to rush our way out of debt. Think about it: if you are paying a car payment and multiple credit card payments and student loan payments and store credit payments, a HUGE chunk of your spending power is tied up in spending you did in the past. This makes it nearly impossible to spend your money on the things that really matter to you, now and in the future. Even if your interest rate is super low, the payment still exists. Knock it out! Make a plan and power through your debt as fast as you can. Basically, you feel like you are buying freedom. You will love the freedom you feel and the options–oh the options!
A Spender on a Budget
There you have it. I am a spender. I will probably always be a spender. But if I can give myself spending limits (Lauren Greutman compares them to a backyard fence that gives limits to keep you and your family securely within the boundaries of your own yard), and plan for future spending, I will have the money I need when I need it–and isn’t that the whole point?
