It’s easy to understand the basic concepts of personal finance. In a nutshell, they are:
- Spend less than you earn
- Save
- Invest
- Pay bills on time or early
- Insure against financial threats
- Pay attention
None of those things are particularly hard in theory. (The steps for implementing most of them are pretty easy too.)
But in order to actually do most of those things on a regular basis, we have to use a word that most people dislike.
That word is no.
No as in:
No, I…
- am not interested in 90 days same as cash.
- will not tell you what monthly payment amount I’m looking for.
- don’t need everything immediately.
- am not buying it if I don’t have the cash.
- don’t need a new item because of the latest rationalization or commercial I saw.
- can’t count on things continuing on the way they always have.
- may not always feel exactly the same way about what I’m doing or where I’m living.
- will not assume that I’ll automatically get a great paying job the moment I leave college
- am not too busy to pay attention to my money
- will not put off getting disability insurance and making a will
And the thing is, all of those no’s can very quickly get you to a whole lot of yeses.
Yes, you can have an enjoyable life, get the things you want, AND be in great financial shape.
Sometimes no can be a very positive word.
Posted in Financial health on 03.03.10 with 12 comments.
I love the “I wont tell you what monthly payment I am looking for”. I just bought a car and they asked me that question. My response “The one with 0% interest and the total on the car being the lowest”. I can see why car dealers have the potential to do so well.
Thanks for the great list of no’s. I may have to print them up and post them by my office desk.
That’s cool, my no’s will be famous at your desk
I work closely with car dealers and you have to say no alot or be run over…
Side note, unless it’s a “special” APR like those advertised specials, APR’s are negotiable. So is the cost for extended warranties, GAP policies, and all dealer add-ons. Almost everything about a car deal is negotiable and never tell them that you have a trade unless you know what you could sell it for on Craiglist first.
Now I’m thinking that I’m going to have a blog about how to deal with car dealers next week.
I bet a lot of people could benefit from how to deal with car dealers. Good idea!
Unfortunately for me, ever since we got married 14 years ago, the Honeybee has really mastered “the power of No.”
I’m still waiting for all those yeses to come back to me in spades. Er, or does that only apply to personal finance?
All the best,
Len
Len Penzo dot Com
Doh, Len, did I forget to mention that little disclaimer?
No, I will not comment for more than 140 characters! Good post Jackie. I get a lot of good ideas to overcome psychological barriers here.Thx
Ken, are you keeping your comments smaller than a tweet? Anyway I’m glad you like the post and the blog. Thanks!
Haha yes, only for that comment though. It’s probably the side-effect of Twitter. Saying NO to a great paying job the moment you leave college is a tough one. You probably want to know what you really want in your life before you make the jump. =)
Ken, pretty soon we’re all going to start talking in tweets. It’s catching! “No, I will not automatically get a great paying job the moment I leave college” probably should have said “No, I will not ASSUME that I’ll automatically get a great paying job the moment I leave college” in order to be clearer. I’ll have to edit that later. I was thinking more along the lines of it being dangerous to assume that a degree will automatically net a great paying job that can be used to pay off loans.
Jackie,
Outstanding post.
It’s taken millions of commercials and salespeople to convince people to say Yes to bad financial decisions. Yes, you should buy your spouse a Lexus for Christmas and a diamond pendant for Valentines Day. Yes, you can buy that new flat-screen on credit because it has 0% financaing. Yes, you can afford that $500K house on your $40K salary.
It’s about time more poeple started saying No to consumer goods and Yes to Financial security. Yes, you can reduce the stress in your life if you have an emergency fund. Yes, you can retire in style after your house is paid off. Yes, you can drive older cars and invest your money.
I think more people are finally catching on to this.
Bret
Bret, I hadn’t thought of it that way, but you’re right — it HAS taken millions of commercials to change people’s mindsets. Debt used to be a shameful thing, and somehow it got twisted around into a normal way of living. Financial security is a much more pleasant path to be on though.