Spend or save?

[Roxxy]

Do you live paycheck to paycheck or are you able to save for your future?

I’ve always saved as never earned much and it made me feel safer. Some people spend more than they earn and live on credit. I always save then buy.

 

[Midoriya]

I save some and spend some, but generally don't have to worry about saving for my future because I'll be earning a ton of money in a year or two from a business I own.

 

[Corrie]

I save, save, save. I can't stand not having savings.

I've learned to not save too much so I do spend here and there to bring life joy lol. I treat my credit card like a debit card. If I don't have the money, I don't buy it. Thinking you have more money because of a credit limit is how people get into debt to begin with and I never want to fall into that trap.

 

[Disneyfangirl23]

I do both spend & save lol

 

[SkyKnight03]

I'm almost guaranteed to say "I'm going to save all my money"! then go blow it all in a single weekend.

 

[Snek]

Instead of saving I prefer investing

 

[Goldi Locks]

I'm good at budgeting and saving. I don't have a lot, but I refuse to complain when I have a roof over my head and take full responsibility for myself and my situation. I could shake my fist at the government, but what's the use in that? Waste of my time and it won't change a thing.

I could probably teach most people how to live within their means. It seems to be a rare skill these days. But I'm living proof that it's possible, but only if you're willing. Sometimes it's the mindset and I say that as someone who was raised in poverty.

 

[moonbyu]

spending (or at least OVERSPENDING) makes me nervous, so i'm definitely a saver

 

[Giddy]

both spending and saving, maybe a little saving.
my work doesn't give me a lot and when I finally do get more than normal, they can't give it all in one go; just lucky I am living with my mum, and with what I give her is somewhat enough for shopping and such.

I truly want to save more. There's just 'big' things I need to get, beforehand. Or even saving up for that specific thing.

 

[Soigne]

i'm a chronic saver because i grew up poor and spending money scares me lol

 

[-Blue-]

I spend on things I need or want, but not a lot. I mostly save most of my stuff. But there are some sizeable purchases I've made. Either for necessities, food, repairs (I try to do my own work), things like that, and a little bit for entertainment/enjoyment. But most of it is saved.

Once I had enough security, I started investing some of it like Snek mentioned. I feel like this is really the only way you can get ahead anymore. Banks used to give you a good interest years ago, but of course it's garbage now. I get like 5 cents in interest per month. That's dog crap.

So the only way to make money on those savings is to invest it elsewhere. Not everyone can do that and I couldn't either until I slowly built my savings. Currently it's not much, but by the time I'm close to retirement hopefully those investments will make it worth the trouble.

 

[daringred_]

i used to be a chronic saver growing up. my siblings would usually spend their pocket money as they got it, while i would save it up and then have at least a hundred when we went on holiday. i think my nan is the one who accidentally drilled into me the importance of saving, and while it is obviously good to save and spend within your means, it's given me a bad relationship with money because now i feel guilty any time i buy something i don't necessarily "need". (and sometimes even when i do, like when i bought my pc after my laptop broke!) even if it will make me happy and i can afford it, i still always feel a weird guilt for spending the money, and i'm always having to fight the feeling lol. i still save, but i'm also trying to teach myself it's okay to spend on "wants" sometimes.

 

[-Blue-]

i used to be a chronic saver growing up. my siblings would usually spend their pocket money as they got it, while i would save it up and then have at least a hundred when we went on holiday. i think my nan is the one who accidentally drilled into me the importance of saving, and while it is obviously good to save and spend within your means, it's given me a bad relationship with money because now i feel guilty any time i buy something i don't necessarily "need". (and sometimes even when i do, like when i bought my pc after my laptop broke!) even if it will make me happy and i can afford it, i still always feel a weird guilt for spending the money, and i'm always having to fight the feeling lol. i still save, but i'm also trying to teach myself it's okay to spend on "wants" sometimes.

I get that. I'm the same way with saving money because of how I grew up almost dirt poor. I still don't spend frivolously on things, but a small investment here or there or a large one is fine as long as it is done in moderation. I remember having to buy a laptop for school and the price killed me lol. But it's still going strong and has definitely given me its worth in the money I invested in it. You definitely deserve to treat yourself to something nice every now and then.


Now on the other hand I refuse to buy any name brand stuff anymore. They're double or triple the price from a few years ago. Potato chip bags that are family size are actually the size that used to be regular and the regular size feels like it has 5 chips in it.

 

[Romaki]

Right now I'm a spender because I make so little money.

 

[Mairmalade]

My dad taught me the value of saving very early in my life, so I've always prioritized saving & putting away.

For a while it was an unhealthy obsession because I'd get anxiety over spending a few dollars, and would scrutinize every purchase heavily while checking all of my accounts & statements multiple times per day.

I'm a bit more balanced now, but I'll still overthink purchases.

 

[digimon]

my upbringing among other things have made me have a really unhealthy relationship with money. my grandpa really instilled the importance of saving and putting money away for a rainy day and growing up i was great at saving. i'm doing better than i was before, but i still get the sense that i overspend to make up for other things that aren't going so great in my life. it brings me temporary joy, and i always feel torn between letting myself have those cause "nothing really matters anyways, yolo" or trying to be a bit more thoughtful with my purchases. everything being super expensive here doesn't really help much either unfortunately

 

[Dunquixote]

I’m saving; I don’t have a job so I can’t really spend much. I used to spend a lot when I still had a job. I’m trying my best to be more responsible with my money. it helps that i don’t have a job and that there isn’t a lot anymore that I wany and that my mom helps me manage my money.

 

[skarmoury]

To be honest, idk anymore I don’t overspend but I also dont oversave, y’know…. some days I even feel like I’m overspending on basic necessities like food and drinks and I don’t deserve to splurge, lol. I’ve saved quite a bit, both from allowances and stipends I’ve accumulated through the years, so those are basically my ‘fallbacks’ in case something goes horribly wrong. I have a different account for money I spend on the regular for daily living so I don’t go trigger happy and spend so much in one go, and even then I limit myself to how much I should at least have in that account.

I remember last week I told my mom I had a photoshoot coming up but I didn’t have any more nice clothes (I had like one nice piece of clothing but I’ve already worn that to another shoot), so I asked her what to do. She told me to buy myself some new clothes and I’m like, but new clothes are expensive?? should I just go to a thrift store? and she said girl why are u so stingy with spending on new clothes and that made me realize that I have not bought myself new clothes for like……. a year or something most nice clothes are upwards $20 and my wallet was not ready to spend on that…. so at least it’s good I know my boundaries in terms of spending LOL.

 

[ali.di.magix]

I always feel like I could save more...but then I save over a third of my income per year so it can't be that bad right? I hate buying things on credit...it just makes me anxious paying things off lol. I just much prefer to pay cash for any big purchases, that's the whole point for me putting money aside is so that I can afford expensive purchases every once and a while. But I do like a bit of retail therapy every so often, and I do tend to buy the pricey stuff lol

 

[JemAC]

I mostly save my money as I like knowing I have something put aside for when it’s needed. Each month I do spend some of my pay buying things though but it’s generally only a couple of things and just a small portion of the pay, generally the only months it is higher are November/December when I’m buying presents for a lot of people. It was the same when I was young and had pocket money I’d always save it up which I think has helped a lot now, even if it is really tempting to always go on a shopping spree.