Friday, December 23, 2011

How to Save Money and Still Have Fun - Memories over Things

Please read this, just for fun.

One misconception that many people have is that if you save money you won't be able to have any fun.

I suppose that all depends on what your definition of fun really is. Does it mean spending all of your income to go to the movies, the bars, sporting events, eating out, vacations, or what have you. Or maybe it means to spend all of your income on the latest gadgets, gizmos and clothes. Or maybe it's a combination of many or all of the above.

Whatever your definition of fun is, it will likely be different from anyone else. Everyone will have a different definition of what the word fun really means to them. Different strokes for different folks.

                                                               A Fun Exercise

Make a list of what activities and what things are fun for you. Now rank your fun based on what you remember the most to least over the past five years. This will be your fun scale.

If you are like most people, the fun things that you remember are actually memories. They are not generally the gadgets, gizmos and clothes. They are the activities that produced lasting memories, such as family vacations, a night out on the town with friends, etc.

Memories are something that you can take with you far into the future well into your old age. On the other hand, things come and things go, even quicker today than in the past. Short term fun over long term fun.

                                                            Memories Over Things


Saving money will likely mean that you will have to give up a few of the fun things you have listed above. Start with your least memorable fun thing and work your way up. This could very well mean that what you are giving up is the latest gadget, gizmo or clothes. Will you really miss these over the long term? Probably not.

By doing this fun exercise, you will be able to see what fun things you will have to give up today to start saving  for your future fun things of tomorrow. Yes, with more savings, you will some day be able to have more fun things in your future with more time to enjoy them.

After all, life is all about having fun. If you can't have fun, what's the point of living.

Never, ever, ever give up all of your fun things on your list to save more money. It will simply not be worth the misery you will create. None of us know how much time we have left, so enjoy today but plan for tomorrow.
You must learn to balance your fun things of today with your savings for the fun things of tomorrow. It's that simple and it's that hard.

One last point. Many have found that their best memories did not actually cost them that much at all.Time spent with friends and family are often high on one's list.

Now think about what you can do today to create your future memories and long term fun.Have fun today and start planning for your even funner (is that even a word) tomorrow.

As always, I welcome your comments and suggestions for future topics.

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