I’ve often heard: you need to spend money to make money; and in turn you make money so you can spend it, right? But, as these financial times get tougher, the more you spend the more irresponsible you become. I realize that nothing is forever, and no one can guarantee your job/income will remain stable. But, if you’re in your twenties and the only person for whom you are financially responsible is yourself, then why would you save the grand majority of your earnings, instead of enjoying (in moderation of course) your hard earned dollars, plus the limited understanding of being young and having fun. You worked hard to get through college; you managed to get a job. And if most of us work out of necessity, doesn’t that kind of, sort of, maybe, make it OK to try to enjoy life outside those office walls?
People my age are supposedly saving for the future? If I want to have a certain lifestyle then I have to start saving as of yesterday, they say. I get that, but what about right now? These precious moments are passing by at warp speed, next thing you know you saved up a whole bunch of cash to finally not feel guilty of enjoying a night out with your friends, going to a concert, or dancing the night away. Good for you, um but did I mention that all this is most likely now going to take place when you're in your 40’s?? Hmm. Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that splurging and wasting your money on outings, clothes, and trips is essential in order to have fun. But, you can’t be too stingy either, unless of course you want to wake up middle aged and bitter in knowing that your kid is able to enjoy their youth and you never could because you didn’t want to spend your hard earned money and now your kids are spending it for you.
At this point in our lives I think (hope) it’s safe to say that most of us have learned how to budget one’s income. First come the majors: rent and food, then there’s gas for your car, the monthly bills, coffee (yes, for most of us it has become an essential dietary staple consumed daily), etc… and then you take what’s left over and you put some of it into your savings account and the rest goes to you. This would be the ideal way of managing one’s money, right? Well, couldn't it be?
I’ve had to re-type an entire film budget and I’ve noticed that for every major player there is a category that relates to “entertainment” for the producers, director, etc… If accountants and financial analysts can leave room and account for money to be spent specifically for the entertainment of these people, then why can’t we?
Save for stability in your future, but don’t forget that this is also your time for fun – by the time you think you’ve saved enough to splurge every once in a while, might be a tad too late to enjoy the festivities of your 20’s – that cute short skirt you always wanted might not be appropriate after.
Be sure to prioritize, but manage to make room for some random elements that might take you by surprise. As we all learned in math (even though some of us were sleeping, take a second look at your notes, you might be surprised you actually wrote it down) – always account for variables. And another thing numbers has taught us, especially when applied to expiration dates, enjoy it while you can.
People my age are supposedly saving for the future? If I want to have a certain lifestyle then I have to start saving as of yesterday, they say. I get that, but what about right now? These precious moments are passing by at warp speed, next thing you know you saved up a whole bunch of cash to finally not feel guilty of enjoying a night out with your friends, going to a concert, or dancing the night away. Good for you, um but did I mention that all this is most likely now going to take place when you're in your 40’s?? Hmm. Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that splurging and wasting your money on outings, clothes, and trips is essential in order to have fun. But, you can’t be too stingy either, unless of course you want to wake up middle aged and bitter in knowing that your kid is able to enjoy their youth and you never could because you didn’t want to spend your hard earned money and now your kids are spending it for you.
At this point in our lives I think (hope) it’s safe to say that most of us have learned how to budget one’s income. First come the majors: rent and food, then there’s gas for your car, the monthly bills, coffee (yes, for most of us it has become an essential dietary staple consumed daily), etc… and then you take what’s left over and you put some of it into your savings account and the rest goes to you. This would be the ideal way of managing one’s money, right? Well, couldn't it be?
I’ve had to re-type an entire film budget and I’ve noticed that for every major player there is a category that relates to “entertainment” for the producers, director, etc… If accountants and financial analysts can leave room and account for money to be spent specifically for the entertainment of these people, then why can’t we?
Save for stability in your future, but don’t forget that this is also your time for fun – by the time you think you’ve saved enough to splurge every once in a while, might be a tad too late to enjoy the festivities of your 20’s – that cute short skirt you always wanted might not be appropriate after.
Be sure to prioritize, but manage to make room for some random elements that might take you by surprise. As we all learned in math (even though some of us were sleeping, take a second look at your notes, you might be surprised you actually wrote it down) – always account for variables. And another thing numbers has taught us, especially when applied to expiration dates, enjoy it while you can.
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