Your Spending Philosophy

Everyone has a philosophy, be it on politics, religion or life in general. Instead of being existential in nature, a person’s individual philosophy is more like a set of internal guidelines they follow and, sometimes to the angst of others, spout to whomever is in within earshot. In many cases a philosophy can help manage a marriage, family or job. And it certainly helps to maintain sanity when it comes to finances.

Well, at least for those who have a certain plan for their money and a set of rules they follow to get to that goal. For those that decide money is useful at no other time except when received, a saving philosophy is a moot point. It also depends on a person’s age. Younger people, especially pre-teens who don’t understand the concept of money, figure they’ll be able to get it somewhere else at some point. Older folks tend to have a philosophy of saving for payoff of debt or retirement. Again, these philosophies can be reversed depending on the type of personality.

The question we pose to you is this … What’s your spending philosophy? Here are a few categories that you may fall under.

Spender or Saver?

The answer to this question may not be as simple as you think. There are certainly groups of people who do nothing but save their money, spending only what they need to survive, and sometimes not even that if they decide to go toward a self-sufficient route. On the opposite end of the spectrum, there are those who decide a bank account is pointless and spend money the minute it reaches their hands. Here’s where it gets complicated. There are people who save for a long time and then spend it all on something like a house, car, vacation or something less practical. Where do you fall under these categories?

Planner or Pantser?

By “pantser” we don’t mean you’re someone who pulls other people’s pants down. And if you are, you may want to get some help. We’re talking about people whose philosophy on money is made by the seat of their pants, meaning they don’t come up with a plan before they spend or save their cash. Call them compulsive or reckless, these types of people do what they want with their money and darn anyone who tells them otherwise. On the opposite side are the planners. You know these people because you may be one of them if you maintain a budget. It could be tough not to buy the wanted item as soon as it’s seen in the store; however, you feel satisfaction when you have the available cash to buy the item instead of putting it on credit.

Flustered or Fine?

Do you panic when the car breaks down or something goes wrong at your house? Does your heart race if your grocery bill is above your allotted budget? Then you’re flustered, and you may need to speak with someone on how to ease your fears. Of course, you could be one of those people who takes these issues in stride, most likely because you have an emergency fund built up for such an occasion. Finally, there’s the rare third person who has no problem paying the big repair bills and freaks out when an unscheduled trip to the market for a gallon of milk is needed.