
What you choose to do with your money directly effects how you will be spending your time. There are several ways we inhibit our ability to “get ahead”, and some of those ways are more obvious than others. We like to believe that we are in control of what we want, and have some idea of what we need. How do we distinguish between what adds lasting value to our lives, what is just a short term fix, and what is just a waste all together? Keeping your money moving in the right direction to set yourself up for success is easier said than done, but that’s why the phrase “practice makes perfect” is still relevant today. I have acquired my fair share of bad debt throughout the years, but I have also learned many priceless lessons. Through those hard learned lessons, which I’m sure some of you have learned as well, I have analyzed some common traits that are inhibiting what most of us truly want to achieve.
Slave Spenders
A slave spender is someone who fails to utilize disposable income, and falls into debt slave traps. They are the type to see excess cash flow as an opportunity to acquire a new loan payment for financing a new gizmo, gadget, toy, vehicle, home, etc. They haven’t created any new asset to cover the cost of the new expense. So in essence they are a slave to their debt, because if they stop working then their debt payments will also come to a halt.
You may work side by side with a slave spender on a daily basis. They find out that everyone at the office is getting a one dollar raise. This is how a slave spender processes that information:
· $1 raise x 40hrs/week = $160/month
· Qualifies me for a new car loan payment: $120/month
· $40 left over to put towards full coverage insurance
· Currently paying $60 a month for just liability insurance
· Full coverage will cost me $80 a month.
· I will come out of this with a nice new ride and an extra $20 a month!
As you can see the slave spender really desires a nice new ride. So much so, they are willing to almost completely nullify their new raise. One point this slave spender should add to their thought process is how much they make an hour. Say our coworker above makes $10 an hour now, including their new raise. Before taxes, they are now guaranteeing to the banker who gave them the loan that they are willing to work at least twelve hours a month at their job to make those payments on time, because that is the only listed means of income on their agreement. Twelve hours of our coworker friend’s time now belongs to their employer so they can make good on their loan with the banker. Understanding how to gain momentum from your employment stream, is the best way to avoid the classic debt slave trap.
Masochist Money Savers
Unless you have direct access to someone’s bank account and understand that individual’s lifestyle, a masochist money hoarder can be hard to pick out of a crowd. Inside, they know who they are though. A masochist money hoarder is someone who saves money just for the sake of saving. The thought of excess money in their bank account excites them. Just to see the numbers in their savings increase well past what they would ever really need or have any use for. They are the type that would buy a generic brand food in order to save fifty cents when they know they would much rather have the name brand. Do they have a plan for those fifty cents?
This is a highly debatable characteristic some of us may have. I mean, experts tell you that one should have at least three months of expenses saved in their bank account in case one loses their job. So do you think any more than that, and someone should be considered a money glorifying hoarder? How many people do you know that have generated wealth, but are always frugal with their money and would rather live cheap like a masochist money saver? Where is the line drawn between creating a living to have a life or having a life to create a living, where the word “living” in this context can be replaced with “savings account”, by the masochist money savers.
A slave spender is someone who fails to utilize disposable income, and falls into debt slave traps. They are the type to see excess cash flow as an opportunity to acquire a new loan payment for financing a new gizmo, gadget, toy, vehicle, home, etc. They haven’t created any new asset to cover the cost of the new expense. So in essence they are a slave to their debt, because if they stop working then their debt payments will also come to a halt.
You may work side by side with a slave spender on a daily basis. They find out that everyone at the office is getting a one dollar raise. This is how a slave spender processes that information:
· $1 raise x 40hrs/week = $160/month
· Qualifies me for a new car loan payment: $120/month
· $40 left over to put towards full coverage insurance
· Currently paying $60 a month for just liability insurance
· Full coverage will cost me $80 a month.
· I will come out of this with a nice new ride and an extra $20 a month!
As you can see the slave spender really desires a nice new ride. So much so, they are willing to almost completely nullify their new raise. One point this slave spender should add to their thought process is how much they make an hour. Say our coworker above makes $10 an hour now, including their new raise. Before taxes, they are now guaranteeing to the banker who gave them the loan that they are willing to work at least twelve hours a month at their job to make those payments on time, because that is the only listed means of income on their agreement. Twelve hours of our coworker friend’s time now belongs to their employer so they can make good on their loan with the banker. Understanding how to gain momentum from your employment stream, is the best way to avoid the classic debt slave trap.
Masochist Money Savers
Unless you have direct access to someone’s bank account and understand that individual’s lifestyle, a masochist money hoarder can be hard to pick out of a crowd. Inside, they know who they are though. A masochist money hoarder is someone who saves money just for the sake of saving. The thought of excess money in their bank account excites them. Just to see the numbers in their savings increase well past what they would ever really need or have any use for. They are the type that would buy a generic brand food in order to save fifty cents when they know they would much rather have the name brand. Do they have a plan for those fifty cents?
This is a highly debatable characteristic some of us may have. I mean, experts tell you that one should have at least three months of expenses saved in their bank account in case one loses their job. So do you think any more than that, and someone should be considered a money glorifying hoarder? How many people do you know that have generated wealth, but are always frugal with their money and would rather live cheap like a masochist money saver? Where is the line drawn between creating a living to have a life or having a life to create a living, where the word “living” in this context can be replaced with “savings account”, by the masochist money savers.
“Without a goal, discipline is nothing but self-punishment.”