Imagine that you are sitting on the front porch of your house sipping lemonade with your family on a warm summer’s night. You sit back and reminisce with them about how you… bought the newest HG TV?
Materialistic gratification only lasts so long. It is said that our brains adapt to happiness. With materialistic things buying our happiness, we are successful for a brief moment. New things will lose their shine and we will lose our interest.
Instead of spending your money on things that will eventually be obsolete, try spending it on something that will make lasting memories. Memories become a part of our lives forever and help make us who we are. The good experiences will forever stay good in your mind forever and the bad ones turn into a funny anecdote in the future.
Below is a list of 5 things you should spend less money on and 5 things you should spend more money. Use these tips to save money so that you can spend it on experiences that will enrich the lives of you and those around you.
5 Things you shouldn’t spend too much money on:
1. Electronics
Electronics in this day and age are almost a necessity, but that doesn’t mean that you need to spend money to get the newest thing. The shiny new feeling of your devices are very short lived and it is almost guaranteed that there will be a newer and better model of the whatever device you own within the next year.
2. Home Decor Fads
There will always be a new popular theme to decorate your home with. You don’t have to spend hundreds of dollars to get the signature look you see in the magazine; there are always do it yourself ways to achieve the same look. You can make it an experience and a time to bond with friends and family.
3. Cars
Keeping up with the newest car models is not a smart lifestyle unless you can pay each of them off by the time the next model comes out. This is a way to get you into a never ending hole of debt. You will never have the title in your hands if you keep trading your car (half paid off) for this current year’s model (which probably cost more).
4. Newest Fashion
You don’t have to feel guilty about giving into buying new clothes, bags and shoes once in a while. But when it gets to the point where you are trying to get each new bag or pair of shoes for about $300 plus dollars, maybe you should skip out on one of these and save the money for something else. There is always going to be a new fad and there is no point on spending all your hard earned money and losing precious closet space on it.
5. Jewelry
Fancy jewelry is nice to have for formal occasions, at the office and when dancing on your night out. If you can afford to buy a two thousand dollar watch, good job. For the rest of us, there is a fine line between accessorizing and going into debt for shiny things.
5 Things you should spend more money on:
1.Education
There isn’t another feeling in the world that can compare to the feeling of starting to understand another language without thinking about it. Though some language classes are very pricey, they are worth it. Taking classes on different cultures, religion and different professions will open your mind to a whole different world.
It does not mean you need to convert your religion or change your job. It will simply mean that you have walked into a classroom with an open mind and have added the things you have been taught to your vault of knowledge. You may never know when it can come in handy.
2.Traveling
Traveling can be pricey at times, but it creates memories that last a life time- even the bad experiences. Typically we all laugh about the bad experiences later on in life. One trip to Europe can cost someone the same as good laptop and the long trips can cost less than a car you don’t really need but want.
Trade all those materialistic things in for a night under the Northern Lights, a kiss on the Eiffel Tower, or a long journey backpacking through the Alps.
3.Music
Learning to play an instrument is a great start to a new tradition in your family. You can pass this down to your children and make new memories. That is, of course, after you have told them about the ones you have when you learned to play.
You can also venture out and spend about a dollar or two to take a chance on a new genre. Who knows, you could end up with a couple (or a couple hundred) songs added to your music library.
4.Books
Book are always going to be something different with each reader that turns its’ pages. It is a completely different experience using your imagination to put the author’s words into images in your head. Books won’t ever require you to turn them on, charge them or restart them. They are things you can pass down from generation to generation.
It is a much different experience to sit somewhere, with a book in hand, with absolutely no distractions. Books are portals to explore completely different worlds with a turn of a page.
5.Food
Trying new food goes hand in hand with traveling the world. Instead of spending a few hundred on a bag, save it for some great food when out and about. Take some cooking classes on food from different cultures. In Italy, they offer cooking classes at a vineyard. You can learn from an Italian chef how to create a great meal. It is something you can take back home with you and teach friends and family.
There are several chocolatiers in Belgium that are worth spending the extra dime to appreciate a perfectly crafted truffle.
Remember…put your money into things that will create memories over the instant materialistic things. You don’t have to spend all of it on creating memories but if you do, it won’t be something you regret.
Featured photo credit: Packs/ PublicDomainPictures via pixabay.com
