There
is a lot of talk about saving money. If you
look at your grocery receipt they even print at the bottom how much you
"saved" on your purchases.
But, did we really save anything?
No. In all actually you saved
absolutely nothing. In fact, you're in
the hole because you spent money.
What is true savings?
Saved
dollars is money set aside in a safe place.
Whether that means money stashed under your mattress, buried in a coffee
can in the backyard, dropped in your piggy bank or deposited in your savings
account at the bank it is saved and not to be spent. That is what true savings is.
What is spending?
I place
little importance to the amount of money I save when making purchases because
of the reality behind that notion.
Instead I focus on the amount of money I am spending whenever I make a
purchase. Then I do whatever I can,
within reason, to spend less of it.
It is
important to have the proper prospective when it comes to the true meaning of
saving money versus spending money. Once that has been established you will
find it much easier to meet your financial goals and stay within your budget.
When
you focus on saving money on purchases you automatically assume that it means
you have additional money to spend. You
saved $5.00 on a blouse therefore you have an additional $5.00 to put toward another
one. This type of thinking,
unfortunately, leads to two things - overspending and overconsumption.
If you
only needed one blouse to begin with then purchase only one blouse. The $5.00 you "saved" on it becomes
true savings if you then leave the store and head to the bank and deposit a
$5.00 bill.
When it
comes to making purchases it isn't about the savings at all. It is all
about the spending. So spend less and
put more into your savings account.
I think I have to agree on this. I look at what I saved on something as extra money to spend on more stuff I don't need. Hmmmm.
ReplyDeleteK
I love it when people say, "look at this **** I bought!!! I saved $54!!!!" When they just put out $200 on a whim... haha! Great post! :)
ReplyDeleteAmen!
ReplyDelete