As soon as we start earning, we think our days of struggling are over and we dream of living a life of luxury. We want to buy all the things that we have always wanted but couldn’t get because it was either too expensive or didn’t make sense to our financial condition at the time.
While that is a natural reaction to earning money, many people often forget that being mindful is really important when it comes to decisions that can impact your life for a longer-term.
There will be moments in your life when you will have to make tough choices regarding what you want and what is right for you; this is when you will have to sacrifice something you want in order to get something else you need. While most of such decisions do not usually create any long-term problems, this is not true in all situations, it is especially dicey in money-matters. You might make certain decisions that can push you into financial crisis and depression years down the line.
Whenever you are making big money decisions, try to take a pause and think about it with all the pros and cons and how it will affect your life. When you do that, instead of making impulsive decisions, it will become easier to make decisions that won’t make you feel regret with the added bonus of stopping you from starting a downhill journey on the road of debt.
“The man who never has money enough to pay his debts has too much of something else.” -James Lendall Basford
It is normal for people to fall into debt under the pretext of enjoying their lives and with credit cards being offered willy-nilly it has become easier more so. Someone might pile up on their credit card debt due to their excessive affinity for expensive clothes and someone else might take longer-term debts to go on vacations around the world – while some debts can be justified, most can’t. Whatever may be the case, you have to understand that the extreme focus on enjoying life even at the risk of falling into debt is a foolish decision in the very least.
As you grow older and enter your senior years, all the debt you have piled up during the younger years will become a burden to no one but you, trapping you with the repayment of all those debts at a time you should be carefully planning your retirement. In the worst-case scenario, you may even have to retire with little to no savings.
Final Thoughts
“What can be added to the happiness of a man who is in health, out of debt, and has a clear conscience?” -Adam Smith
Learning to control your desires and only indulge in them to the extent that you don’t end up taking debts is a sign of someone who is financially responsible. By doing so, you will never have to live a dissatisfied life or regret the poor financial decisions you took in your younger days. The smartest thing you can do now is to not create problems for the future you.