|
|
Living Within Your Means & Liking It: The Latte' Factor
When I was a younger man, and finally able to afford, at least some of the things I wanted and/or needed, I became a big fan of frivolous spending. I had to have that new issue of Esquire, that personal trainer at the gym (not just the gym), an office in a better location, a more trendy breed of dog or cat, live in a nicer neighborhood, and, of course, later, "My morning Starbuck's". I "had arrived". The "American Dream", or so I so wanted it to be so. It would not be the case.
I do not gloat at having been a male version of Madonna's "Material Girl", but I was young, in my thirties and early forties, and was naive enough to believe that peer pressure at least ended after high school, and certainly after college. Not so. It became a disaster. If my friends bought a better house, I sure better call my Realtor immediately. They got a BMW, I needed a Mercedes. The "game" went on and on. It all seemed like fun and games and, in fact that is all it was. We were now playing "Adult show and tell".
Then came the 1994 Northridge Earthquake. Within twenty minutes, all that I had acquired as a material consumer was gone. And insurance didn't come close to covering my collectibles, antique furniture, family albums/videos, memorabilia from as far back as kindergarten, etc. I was left with my car, and a few boxes of clothes, and a one year old golden retriever puppy named Otis who saved my life (barked wildly before the earthquake), I thought to go out to do his business, but to alert me at 5 a.m to get out of harm's way.
Nearly two decades has now passed and I learned something I never had before, and never thought I might learn. It is called "humility". Please do not confuse humility with sainthood, it doesn't even resemble it closely. I still have my "quirks". Rebuilding one's life from scratch midlife, after "having it all" teaches a few lessons, and, I am certain I am not unique in this situation. When I say "having it all'; I don't mean the Forbes 400. I mean whatever I wanted to buy something, I usually didn't think twice.
Health was important to me, still is, and I had managed to keep a semblance of that...at least for the time being. But then my health deteriorated as well for a number of years. This was a motivating factor in my going back to college as an adult, and reading voraciously when not studying for my online classes. The library, used book stores, and Amazon.com and I became intimate.
Maybe the most fascinating book I read was not within the genre of books I usually consume. The book is titled "Start Late, Finish Rich" by David Bach. In it, he talks at length about something called "The Latte' Factor". Strange name I know, but it describes how the American consumer is taught from birth to consume all he/she can in this material world, that life is short, winner takes all, the one who dies with the most toys wins, etc. and more.
David Bach gives us ways to counteract that. Do we really need that magazine subscription, must we have a latte' and bagel each morning at our favorite coffee chain? Do we have to even buy his own book if its available at the library. Must we have a vehicle that is made to "show off" when a used Toyota or Nissan takes us safely where to our destination? I have a wonderful eight year old 4-door Saturn now and it performs better in every way than my "show off" Mercedes ever did.
Do the math. Nix small non-necessities, that we don't need, or, in the case of Starbuck's could make java at home with flavored creamer for pennies and a bagel for a quarter, nix the magazines, etc. We are talking saving anywhere from $800-2000 or more a month. If that is put into an IRA, even if you are in your fifties now, you will be wealthy by the time you are ready to throw in the employment towel.
A gift should be nice, but not expensive.I highly recommend personalized gifts that people see daily and enjoy and think of you when they see or use them. Gift-giving need not be removed from your spending agenda; gifts bond us and show people we care. Just more affordable ones, or even cards, as long as it is something memorable.
Bach recommends "plastic surgery' on your credit cards and paying as you go, cash, check and/or debit card. I began doing that, and noticed a huge difference in my extra cash at the end of the month. Forget about budgeting. That is a thing of the past. Simply spend and invest wisely.
Bach's book goes into more depth, but the bottom line is that The Latte' Factor need no longer be a part of our daily routine. Monitoring oneself, at first, is a bit boring, but one gains an extra sense of pride and self-satisfaction at the end of the month seeing a credit to one's investment portfolio rather than a debit. And we are happier and oh what an anxiety-reducer not to have those kinds of worries all the time.
|
 |
Please Rate: |
|
Rating: |
 Processing ... |
(Average: Not rated) |
| Views: | 122 | |
|
| More Articles from Non-Fiction | | |
| Top Articles in Non-Fiction | | |
|
