Focus On Habits, Not Hypotheticals, To Save More Money

Focus On Habits, Not Hypotheticals, To Save More Money

If you want to save more money, it’s helpful to focus on your actual spending habits. Personal finance blog Afford Anything points out that many people believe they’re saving money on things they would never buy in the first place.

Photo by Barry Solow

Consider how you think about savings, the site suggests. Are you saving money by changing your habits, or are your savings based on something you wouldn’t do anyway?

Don’t listen to people who say you’re saving money by NOT doing something that society considers ‘normal,’ like driving an awesome car, sleeping in posh hotels or dining at fancy restaurants. If that was true, people should also say, ‘Think of all the money you’re saving by NOT skydiving twice a week!’

Afford Anything brings up an interesting thought process that many of us (including myself) are guilty of, even if it’s not as extreme as the skydiving example.

The author uses a personal example of camping during a holiday. “When we told friends that we were camping, they remarked, ‘Think of all the money you saved by not staying at a hotel!’” But this isn’t actually money saved, the author notes, as they never considered the expense of a hotel in the first place.

The blog points out that true savings “happens when we deviate from our habits”. For more info, read the post in full.

You Saved $US128 Million by NOT Buying a Picasso! [Afford Anything]


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