Being the older sibling, my parents took great pains to make me "earn" my spending money and to teach me to budget...
(I don't remember my younger brother getting the same training!)
To encourage saving, my father would equal any savings I deposited in my bank account.
My first fun purchases (made with baby-sitting money) were for movies, records and books. I did Saturday chores for my allowance, with which I had to buy clothing. The memorable year of my growth spurt (age 12), winter arrived and none of my clothes fit! My mother quickly decided that I would have to earn money to buy the things I wanted. (That was the only time I ever remember going out and buying an entire wardrobe!) My mother (a working mother who needed help around the house) decided I should "earn" my clothing by working for her!
Both my parents - who had been impressionable youth during the Great Depression - remembered the days when people considered themselves lucky if they had food on the table and a roof over their heads. They didn't want me to take anything for granted.
(Looking back, if I regret anything, it is that my carefree childhood - when money was not an issue -ended too soon! But I did develop financial discipline - I knew that the same money couldn't be spent twice! And I absorbed strong ideas about how I was going to spend - and save - my money. Some of them came from my parents. Others from the successes and failures I saw around me. Still others came from mulling over Biblical principles...) Here are some of them:
Avoid Debt.
- Never go into debt for anything except to buy a house, or to go to school (which are investments).
- Only buy a house you can afford, and pay it off as soon as possible. (Fortunately in Canada - unlike in the US - there is no tax benefit for carrying a mortgage - which, in fact, subtly encourages debt.)
- Don't rent an apartment that is above your means. In fact, I always rented one that was below my means, allowing myself to save extra money for things I enjoyed, like travel.
- Only buy a car if you can afford it - or unless you absolutely need it for work. (At which time it becomes a work investment!) Taxis and occasional car rentals are cheaper than owning a car.
- Never take a vacation unless you have the money to pay for it before you go!
- The only time I would break this rule, is on a vacation month... but then I would expect to have enough to pay for the vacation before I went!
- By that I mean, spend no more than you earn.
- Budget, if necessary: At critical times in my life (going to university, buying a home) I have religiously tracked everything I spent - to see where my money was going and where I could make potential cut-backs, if necessary.
- Be willing to do without, if necessary. After buying our first (and only) home, Terry and I didn't go out to a restaurant for about three years. Instead, on shopping outings with babies in strollers, we "treated" ourselves to a few tasty muffins we'd buy at the mall.
- I did, whenever I didn't have enough to meet my needs.
Pray!
- For wisdom in making wise financial decisions.
- For God's provision (for work, home, food, clothing, spouse, children...)
One attitude I try to avoid is that I DESERVE THIS. Rather - with a sense of wonder - I remind myself that...
- All these things are gifts from God - so appreciate them!
- And in faith, share in the cycle of giving by giving 10% ... from the top, not what's left at the end - to the church and to the poor.
Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this," says the LORD Almighty, "and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.
I have always tried to fill my part, expecting God, in return, to provide all my needs...
And of course, blessing is much more than money!
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