It's a balancing act

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adekruif

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Ok, so I just graduated college and accepted a position in my field, a position that pays well. As a result of the job and now living on my own, there are now lots of opportunities to do things that have never been there before. I am struggling with spending money on myself when I could be either saving that money or using it for other people. I am saving money and tithing, but it seems selfish to spend allot of money on myself. Does anyone ever struggle with guilt over spending money on things that you want to do?

IDK if that makes any sense, there are lots of thoughts flying around in my brain...trying to get them down on paper isn't exactly one of my strong points. Maybe it's just been too hot lately, and I don't have enough sleep....
 
This would be a good time for you to sit down and write a budget out with your new income. Im thinking if your just out of college, you might have some school loans to pay off and I would start with that.
 
adekruif, i will pray for you that God give you the wisdom to administrate your money and to give you the strenght to do it according to His word and purpose in you.
 
Yes, write out a budget, but before doing that you need to set some financial goals if you haven't already. The goals will help you realize how important it will be to save.

If you plan on buying a house, figure out how much you will save each month towards a down payment and look at how long it will take you to reach that goal. Same thing with buying a car (you'll have to buy another one eventually), and any other major purchase you are planning on like a vacation.

You also should establish emergency funds in case you lose your job. They say you should have at least 1 year of living expenses put aside for that. Are you hyperventilating yet?? Add to that the cost of a wedding if you plan on getting married, the cost of your future kids' college education, car repairs and maintenance, house repairs and upgrades/remodels,...and the big one...retirement.
 
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zeroturbulence said:
By the way I really wish someone had explained all that to me when I was your age.
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Me too! I'm in a lot of trouble financially and it is gonna take a lot for me to get there, but yet again We serve a God of Miracles!
 
Since some really sound advice has already been given, so I won't bore you with repeating it. I just wanted to say you are a rarity. Most young men at your age spend their money as fast as, if not faster than they earn it and end up regretting it later in life.
 
I should have mentioned in the original post that I have done a budget and am saving a good chunk of money from my paycheck for things like a house at some point, a new car :), car repairs, marriage at some point, retirement, emergency fund...

I know I am young and that I have time to save for such things^^^ but to me it seems like it is super dumb to spend money on myself, because I can, instead of saving it for later. IDK

And Oncefallen, I'm a rarity in more than just financial matters.
 
i can get like this sometimes where spend stuff on stupid things not like over the top but it might be on tonnes of dvds or instead of buying one hoodie that i need i buy a couple lol but if i know i got to save for something i just do a hectic budget and just be strict to it cuz i know it would be worth it like at the end of the year in going overseas to the US of A so i already have money for tickets and some of the other spending necessaties over there , i just got to do some more saving for the extra spending such as shopping! haha and im sweet to go and i know it will be worth it in the end :)
 
adekruif said:
I should have mentioned in the original post that I have done a budget and am saving a good chunk of money from my paycheck for things like a house at some point, a new car :), car repairs, marriage at some point, retirement, emergency fund...

I know I am young and that I have time to save for such things^^^ but to me it seems like it is super dumb to spend money on myself, because I can, instead of saving it for later. IDK

And Oncefallen, I'm a rarity in more than just financial matters.
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What you can do is set aside money for yourself each month or out of each paycheck the same way you'd set aside money for a house or anything else, then you'll know how much you can spend on yourself without feeling guilty about it. Make it a set amount so that it accumulates like savings and then you when you have more expensive things you want to buy for yourself you can calculate how long you'll have to save for it. In the meantime you can still take small amounts out of it out when you want to, just don't spend it all at once. ;)
 
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I generally don't spend money unless I have to, and it helps the extra money to pile up quickly. At the same time, I get stares from people who notice the lack of soles on my shoes.
 
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Jilly81 said:
I generally don't spend money unless I have to, and it helps the extra money to pile up quickly. ]At the same time, I get stares from people who notice the lack of soles on my shoes.
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I don't spend allot of money either, and that is why the original question came up. After talking with people around me, and parents, and my pastor I feel more comfortable with it, but I still have my "doubts".

For good reason....almost all girls have LOTS of shoes and they are probably wondering why you keep wearing THAT pair. :p
 
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