Appreciate More, Spend Less

Appreciate More, Spend Less

It’s hard to truly appreciate things until they’re gone. It could be something as simple as the electricity going out. When the power goes out you start to truly appreciate those little electrons that usually flow around your house unseen.  At the flip of a switch you could create light but now it’s gone. Food is getting warm in the fridge. Your cell phone is running out of power. At that moment, you really appreciate electricity.

Or maybe it’s the internet. Something few of us could live without. Information at your fingertips. Updates from friends and family only a click away. At the press of a button you have thousands of movies and TV shows available for streaming. When the internet goes down you really appreciate its value.

How does this relate to personal finance? Isn’t it obvious? Everything we spend money on has value to us. Some things have more value than others. Unless you’re super rich you need to make decisions when you budget. What stays and what gets cut? The easiest things to cut are those things you value least.

Budgeting Tips: Are You Suffering From Budget Fatigue?

Budgeting Tips: Are You Suffering From Budget Fatigue?

Budget fatigue is real and it can destroy your budget. Sticking to a budget takes willpower and we only have so much willpower. Slowly we deplete our willpower throughout the day as we encounter frustrating or difficult tasks.

There are lots of things that deplete our willpower, from emotional stress to something as simple as making frequent decisions.

Sticking to a budget is no different. It requires making many small decisions about whether to buy something or not. Pervasive advertising doesn’t make budgeting easy either. We’re constantly being bombarded with messages to buy more stuff or buy different stuff or buy better stuff. Advertising is designed to be emotional, to persuade you to buy something, and resisting these emotions takes a lot of willpower.

So how can you reduce budget fatigue and increase your willpower? Here are three budgeting tips to help you boost your willpower and avoid budget fatigue.

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