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Money Woes

Money has been a concern of mine since I was around 6 or 7 years old. I remember my Dad, indignant of the way that the large faceless insurance groups treat people, decided to start an insurance company of his own. Though well intended, this plan did not sail. Actually quite the opposite...we ended up in some pretty bad financial trouble. My Dad could not go back to the companies he had challenged so he became a free agent and soon landed in the world of Catastrophe Claims which promised more money and trips to more exotic places than Calgary. It did deliver on its promise, but there was a heavy price to pay. This kind of work meant a lifestyle of almost certain bouncing between feast and famine (especially if one could not resist the feast and was not wise enough to save for the famine). Also this meant he spent a lot of time away from home, often months. I grew up in this unstable financial environment and learned some rather bad habits. I have developed this addiction to the warmth and security that buying promises, into the consumerist trend. It has been furthered by the anxiety I felt during the famine periods in my young life when the prospect of being forced to live on the street hung over my head and I could not offer any help or advise to my family to make things better.
Now I have control of my financial situation but my old impulses still win the battle against my critical thinking too often. I want to challenge myself to find comfort in healthier ways. As Christmas approaches I'm hoping to find ways to grow in this area and spend smarter this year. My parents have recently started taking interest in paying off debts and preparing for their future and I want to be supportive and make Christmas less expensive for them. I will admit that gifts, though not the most important on the list, is one of the ways that I both give and receive love. It still seems important to have that be a part of Christmas, but maybe in a lesser way.
I really want to be able to save for both short term expenses (vacations, education, etc) and long term expenses (a house, retirement, and an emergency fund), but I currently live in my overdraft so that seems unlikely. I know I need to make changes in my life to solve this problem, so that is one of the things I'm going to be thinking about over for the next little while.   

Comments

  1. ~mDecember 1, 2009 at 2:54 PM

    i'm really terrible with money, which is terrifying because i have about $45,000 of (mostly student loan) debt right now. and i'm heading to law school, which i hear is really cheap. i'm hoping to start working in the new year, and chip away at that debt. at the same time, i know that good financial habits aren't something you simply wander into. and hoping for the best doesn't seem to work, either.

    so... how do we learn to save?

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  2. MichelleDecember 1, 2009 at 9:25 PM

    I've been lucky... I've always had enough. My job pays me pretty well, and I tend not to want expensive things. For instance, I'm satisfied with my TV from the 90's, hand-me-down couches from my parents that are as old as I am, the bed that I got when I was twelve.
    My current savings plan involves having my paycheque automatically split between two accounts - one for savings and rent and bills, and the other for spending. It seems to help when your money is automatically put aside and a little less accessible. And it's surprising how quickly you can get used to little changes.

    ReplyDelete
  3. AmandaDecember 4, 2009 at 8:07 AM

    That's my question too Mara. A big problem for me right now is that monthly bills are eating up the majority of my pay which doesn't leave a lot for variable spending (like gas and groceries) and pretty much nothing for savings. It's really hard to change your fixed spending situation, but variable spending isn't too hard to work with. Automatic withdrawl from your chequing to your savings account can be good too as Michelle mentioned. I think the biggest thing though is educating yourself on how personal finances work and so that is what I am currently trying to do.

    ReplyDelete

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