What Do You Want?
Monday July 14, 2008
Wants are sneaky little things. You're going about life trying to spend responsibly; putting a little money aside; and generally doing all the things that you should, when suddenly some little bauble or gadget catches your eye, and you just have to have it.
Can you afford it? Is it a good deal? Do you need it? Doesn't matter because you want it, and you want it now!
It's not easy to fight the I-want-it urges; but it is important, if you want to live without financial stress. So spill it . . . what are you craving right now, and what are you doing about it?
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Comments
I think that creating financial priorities are very important in the world where we buy things and stuff that we don’t need for low prices! If I spend one dollar for the product that I don’t need… I loss one dollar! Problem is that commercials for those products are created to make an addiction by people…..but that is a different story!
I know the feeling but what i do is to think about it for a week. If i still really want whatever it is then if i can afford it i will buy it then. the secret is not to buy straight away.
The hardest purchases to discern for me are those “quality of life” items or services. I finally broke down and hired a lawn service this year after an agonizing prior year of trying to keep my property looking good despite being on the road 80% of the time. I hate spending the money, but can easily rationalize it via the massively improved look of the lawn and the time I can spend with my family when I am home. My son sure enjoys the grass! I just made sure that I had room in the budget - or I would have just planted rocks…
One of the things that I do is if I really want something is I will sell items that I no longer want. I will then use the money to purchase the item. I use craiglist or Ebay. Or I will ask for it for birthday or Christmas.
I think half the fun of making a purchase is thinking about it for awhile; dreaming about what it will be like to own it; picture myself using it. If I lose interest in those little exercises, then how much did I really want it in the first place? If I enjoy thinking ahead to owning it, then I’m more likely to get it. I’m not talking about $5 items, but bigger things. The problem comes when we start rationalizing why we need something and making up reasons that aren’t really valid. Gotta watch out for that, too.
I have a big want right now. I am just finishing up re-flooring my house wood and tile. My next project is a new screened in deck and patio. It’s a big want for our family, BUT we have to save the money first. It’s so tempting to buy on “credit”, but not our style! Having a huge project done and enjoyable without the worry ofpaying for it is the BEST!
I just bought a new car and it has an auxilary plug in for my ipod. I have an ipod shuffle, which doesn’t have a screen to show your songs, so I just have to scroll through until I find what I want. While I’ve loved it for years, now I want a new ipod with a screen so that I can use it in the car and ditch my CDs. I won’t upgrade anytime soon, but isn’t it funny how spending can sometimes spur more spending?
We’ve been desiring a Garmin 360 GPS for the looongest time! Whar we’re doing about it is, instead of buying individual gifts for each other this Christmas, DH and I are buying one as a “couple gift”. And fingers are crossed that they’ll be cheaper by then, too!
We follow the envelope method on a larger scale. Christmas presents, gifts, and vaction money are all direct deposited into one account. We purposely have no ATM for this account so when we need the money, it is there!
We also have an account for big home expenditures, like furniture or repairs.
An emergency / big item account exisits. We bought our last car with cash. A year later, my husband was downsized for 6 months. What a great feeling to not have a car payment.
All of these extra accounts are direct deposited out of our paycheck, so we are used to living without it but it is there when we need it. I can’t just go out and buy a new rug for the hallway until there is enough money in that account. Works for us.
I get the wants when I’m stressed. I’ve been doing pretty well with controlling it. We can’t really afford anything at this point in time, as we are trying to pay things off. But my dad had a heart attack on July 4 and he is living with us for right now. He is near 80 and has Alzheimers. He’s just angry most of the time. My 11 year old hides and I get so tense! Shopping makes me feel better, but I know I shouldn’t use the plastic. HELP!! The doctor said today TWO MORE WEEKS. I love him, but I’m online, window shopping and all my goals are going out the window!!!
I want air conditioning! But really, we do ok without it, and not having the extra electricity bill is nice. But when it’s 90 degrees in the house, I’ll probably answer differently.
It makes it hard to save these days with all the prices of everything going up, We Want a house, but we Need to save for a downpayment. I can’t see us getting a mortage, until this is accomplished, But we have the mindset, and that is what matters!
What I really want is to pay off my credit card. My husband was with no income for two years. We didn’t do well on my $8 an hour. I’d love to wave a wand and have that be zero now. We love simplicity and don’t have many wants otherwise.
I’m not fund of buying extensively. I want to achieve financial freedom. Even though I was a phone fanatic, I see to it that I buy a cheap one compared to the market price. Usually, I buy second hand for as long as the quality and condition is still good.
The education fund for the kids is at the top of the ‘want’ list. Everything else takes second seat. If i want something, I write it on a list. If I still want it a month later, it stays on the list. After 3 months, I start shopping for prices. Amazing how much never makes it to the third month. I spend at least an hour a week reviewing expenses and managing finances. Surprising the unnecessary extras and overages (i.e insurance)which creap up if your not paying attention. Happy to say, the mortgage was paid off after only 7 yrs and I’m debt free. The next major purchase is a furnace to replace the 50+ yr old oil burner…the contractor already said he’ll give me a discount if I pay in cash. Cash in hand is always a strong negotiating position.
Being bipolar, sometimes I lose control and go on spending sprees, though I’m fortunate that they aren’t the MAD sprees some bipolar people have that put them deep into debt. Last year Art.com sent me a 20% off sale email and I wound up buying five pictures - four of which are still in their boxes today.
Aside from those episodes, I often use the “reward” technique. “If I get task X done, I can buy that china cat.” Not only does this give me time to see whether I still want the china cat later, but it gives me incentive to get the task done. (The designated task is never a quick job!)
Right now, wants don’t matter - I *have* to buy a new house, so every penny is going into the bank toward future mortgage payments.
Marcia Purse
About.com Guide to Bipolar Disorder
Erin, I want a Vespa!!
I want a cute, bubbly Vespa scooter, or maybe a Honda…those are cute, too! The prices are higher lately because the demand is going up for gas-efficient transportation.
My dream Vespa would have fluffly clouds on it or Hello Kitty plastered on there somewhere! It would be so disgustingly girly that everyone would become sick to their stomachs just watching me cruise down the street.
Maybe one day. Until then, i also do the direct deposit…set up since I started working here. That account has accumulated enough for us to do the Disney World trip in 57 days. Yes, there is a countdown!
Hey Rain,
I just read that Vespa is looking into the possibility of incorporating an hybrid motor into their design. Can you imagine the mileage that puppy would get?
we crave books. we HAVE books. HUNDREDS of them. i’d estimate we’ve read about 30%-35% of them. we rationalize buying thus: books of any title are not available indefinitely. if there’s one we want, we need to buy it relatively soon (within 6 months or a year). already there are many books we’ve wanted to buy which are out-of-print, and we’ve not been able to find them online anywhere except at an exhorbitant price. question: will we ever reach the point of having read all the books we own? right! therein lies the problem! where do we draw the line?
I’m such a makeup whore. I’ve loved it since I was a little girl and had a huge bag that I carried around with me with all my treasures. I was in 6th grade. I still love makeup, but don’t buy nearly all the products that I want. Sometimes I buy on ebay, other times on Sephora.com depending upon which deal is better. The freebies you get at Sephora sometimes make it really worthwhile.
So, yesterday I bought some Smashbox makeup. It was over $150.00 worth of products for $59.00, and I got a great lipgloss sample and a full-size blush for free. Some of the products were ones I already use frequently which I’ll need to replace anyway and some are new to me. I can’t wait to try them out. Overall, I think it was a savings.
Making most of what we eat from scratch over the last couple of months has really cut our food budget, so I don’t beat myself up too much if I want to splurge occasionally!
I want a new 32 inch HDTV. None of our TV’s are digital. We have Dish, so it’s not absolutely necessary…unless the Dish goes out. I could buy a converter box. Our newest TV is 4 years old, so realistically, how long are they going to last? So, do I spend the money for a box (or two)that I will only need as long as these sets last, or break down and buy the TV we really want. I am just putting it off. I guess I am hoping one of the sets we have will blow before next February so then I’ll have to buy the TV.
I look for it and ask for it on Freecycle.org. I got a portable dishwasher that way.
This year my husband has made huge strides in coming “on board” with cutting expenses so that we ultimately pay off our debt and save for emergencies. He even sold a truck that he loved to get rid of the payment. However, what I want is for him to make a couple more concessions, that being getting rid of our cell phones & Direct TV. We can easily afford it but that’s not the point. The point is that we need to cut out the extras so we can achieve our goals sooner. He’s not budging and I get annoyed everytime I have to pay those bills. Either I need to lighten up or he needs to grow up. Pray for us.