Photo by Rohit Sharma
I’m back! For now at least. I had an incredibly stressful week and woke up in the middle of the night thinking about a blog post. Figured I should push this out before the next crazy week at work.
Personal finance is one of my favorite topics to talk about. I’ve mentioned this before but I’m in heavy debt-payoff mode. I’m also in the mode where I’m wanting to fix up my condo since I may or may not want to sell soon, and I want to travel. These three priorities are battling it out in my budget.
This leads me to thinking about what I’m willing to spend money on and what I’m not. It also made me curious about other people’s priorities with their finances so I quizzed my boys at breakfast last week. I had a pretty good idea what they would say but I wanted to confirm.
Items I Choose To Spend Money On
- Bedding
Non-negotiables for me now is my Purple pillow ($200-but ask me how to get one cheaper!), my memory foam body pillow, and bamboo sheets. I also have a memory foam mattress and will hopefully one day be in a position to buy a Purple mattress!
- Fancy chai lattes
This includes at least two bought from Starbucks or 7 Brews and then my chai latte pods at home. They’re my guilty pleasure.
- Shoes
I used to skimp on shoes but I have terrible feet and knees so now I wear Hokas or Clark sandals and that’s about it. I try to wear dressy shoes or Tretorns and my feet generally protest after one day
- Travel
I’ve taken 3 cruises in 3 years time. Trying to be strong and spread the next one out to two years but I don’t think it’s going to happen. I like comfort so when I need to book a hotel, it’s not going to be a cheapy one. I do try to find good deals though.
Things I don’t care about money-wise
- Luxury brand purses and clothes
I don’t need a Louis Vuitton or Gucci bag or shoes. I’m just not that fancy.
- The newest technology
I buy a new iPhone when mine is almost dead and only then do I start shopping for a deal. I buy decent laptops and replace it also when I absolutely have to. Fun story (for you, not me), I spilled one of those fancy lattes on my laptop about a month ago and now I have to really punch about 7 of the keys to make them work, lol.
- New Cars
Disclaimer: I’m on my second vehicle in a little over two years but that’s only because I was hit last year and that car was totaled. I drove my car before that until it literally died. I used to have a horrible leasing habit and I’m happy to say I’m perfectly happy now to drive a car until it’s paid off and then dies a happy death.
Nick’s spending choices
Nick spends money on his hobbies (running, disc golf, and bowling).
He has the same car he bought in high school and has no plans to buy a new one until it dies. He’ll pick up food when it’s a matter of convenience (food trucks at work or if he gets home late from work) but primarily eats a few simple meals at home.
Michael’s spending choices
Michael is also going to spend money on his hobbies (gaming/technology). He’s more likely to spend money on eating out (get’s that from his momma). His latest budget line item is a new dog that’s costing quite a bit so far, lol.
Michael doesn’t care about name brand clothing or shoes. He’s had more vehicles then Nick but I think since buying his townhome, that he’s also decided to keep his current vehicle instead of upgrading.
The Personal in Personal Finance
Like just about everything else in the world right now, people seem quick to judge others about their spending habits. I will admit that I used to be just as guilty of this at times. I’ve mentioned Ramit Sethi before but I’m going to do it again, I love his quote:
“Spend extravagantly on the things you love and cut costs mercilessly on the things you don’t.”
And here’s the thing…what you love is very likely to be different than what I love and that’s okay. I have friends that are foodies. Some friends like buying expensive furniture for their home. My parents have a huge book collection. Others take multiple vacations throughout the year. All of these things make those individual friends happy and that’s what they should spend their money on.
Obviously, there are things you have to spend money on that you don’t necessarily love or want to spend money on. My oldest son has diabetes and his medical costs every year are ridiculous. You have to pay your bills: mortgage/rent, transportation, utilities, food, etc. And if you have debt, please focus on paying that down, it will make life so much less stressful.
Once you have that discretionary money though, follow my friend Ramit’s advice. Figure out what’s important to you and spend your hard-earned money on that. Here’s an example from my life:
I used to eat out much more than I do now. Like everything else though, eating out has gotten much more expensive. I do have a line item in my budget for restaurants and I’ve figured out that if I have $200 a month budgeted for restaurants then I would prefer to eat breakfast and lunch at home and fix something at home for dinner most nights. That leaves my restaurant money for nice dinners out with friends or my boys a couple times a month. Spending more money on fewer meals is better that wasting my dollars on greasy McDonalds.
Another example: As I mentioned earlier, I’ve taken three cruises in the last 3 years. They’ve definitely gotten more expensive since the first one I took (like everything else) but I’m hooked now. I love the fact that I can pay it off over time. I get to experience a couple different exotic locations. And once you make it on the ship, everything is basically paid for. You pick a different restaurant for each meal, pick and choose your entertainment, lay out at the pool or sit on your balcony and enjoy the beautiful ocean view.
Knowing I’m paying off a cruise, it’s easy for me to be happy cutting costs the rest of the year on my entertainment. I’m fairly simple anyway. I’m happy browsing my favorite bookstore or library or spending time there writing, watching tv shows at home (usually HGTV or Hallmark channel or a good streaming series), hanging out with friends at their houses, enjoying my monthly book club, or just staying home and reading a good book. These are very low-cost activities that make me happy.
What Do You Love To Spend Money On?
What do you spend your money on? Home renovations? Gardening supplies? Travel? Fine wines or expensive Bourbons? And if you’re not spending your money on things you love, then what expenses can you cut back on that are less important to you so that you can spend more on things you love?
