When we tire of chasing the so-called American Dream and begin seeking financial independence we often look at how we can cut our spending, to increase savings, start investing or pay off debt. This usually results in making some sacrifices. Some short-term and some for the long-term. But before you go determining your budget, be sure to consider your values.
There are varying opinions in the personal finance community on what sacrifices, if any, are a must. What things you should never spend money on and what investments you must make.
But let’s face it, there can’t be any specific rules to this journey, just general guidelines. Because, after all, we’re coming from different situations and going to diverse places.
“The budget is not just a collection of numbers, but an expression of our values and aspirations.” ~ Jacob Lew
As I embark on my less stuff, less waste experiment, I want to make it clear I’m not preaching that you should do the same. I am merely asking you to consider how and what you spend your money on to understand if you can make any improvements in your financial life.
Perhaps you’ll discover you’ve started spending money on things only out of habit. Or maybe you’ll find you aren’t spending enough on the things most important to you.
Do you consider your values when spending?
I don’t spend money at hair or nail salons, or on fancy clothes. Some may think I’m sacrificing and would never follow suit themselves. However, for me, not spending on those things is not a sacrifice at all because I don’t highly value them.
While I do surely value my appearance, I’m perfectly happy cutting and coloring (shhh!) my hair. Of course, it may look like I DIY it, but I’m okay with that.
If you do value freshly styled hair, polished nails, and fancy suits, however, I sure as hell won’t judge you. Just as I hope you won’t judge the amount of money we spend on organic food and golf, (and craft beer.)
Consider Your Values and Sacrifices
Have you taken the time to consider your values? Do you spend according to them? Or are you sacrificing what is important to you for a few extra dollars in your investment account?
Too much sacrifice on the things you value may lead you to resentment and cause you to veer from the path you’ve set out on to improve your financial health. It’s easy to do. But I urge you not to give up but to be more mindful of where your money goes and ensure you spend it in the right places. Where it’s right for you.
John and I started on the path towards financial freedom almost five years ago. Through the years our values have subtly changed. The same may be true for you. Perhaps it’s time to check your map to ensure the journey you are on is not only financially beneficial but joyful too.
“One of the great arts in living is to learn the art of accurately appraising values. Everything that we think, that we earn, that we have given to us, that in any way touches our consciousness, has its own value. These values are apt to change with the mood, with time, or because of circumstances. We cannot safely tie to any material value. The values of all material possessions change continually, sometimes overnight. Nothing of this nature has any permanent set value. The real values are those that stay by you, give you happiness and enrich you. They are the human values.” ~ George Matthew Adams
Can a mindful no spend challenge help you flesh out what you truly value? I hypothesize so. What feels like a real sacrifice, as well as what doesn’t, should be a clue.
It’s All So Personal
What’s a sacrifice for me, may not be a one for you. What you value may not be relevant to me. And even if we do hold the same values, we will still spend our money differently. But so what anyway. It’s not our job to judge each other.
Instead, let’s encourage and support. Let’s teach, motivate, and share. And be willing to experiment and learn.
Do you spend according to your values?
Or are you sacrificing on the things you love too much? And if so are you experiencing any discontent?
Will you try spending more mindfully?
Amy, good post! We do spend per our values. It’s freeing to know thyself well. Makes decisions easier, don’t you think? My latest post is about charitable giving per your values. Similar thought process. We can give to organizations who share our values without judgment. Take care!
Hope you don’t mind I add that’s Carol at DownsizeYour2080.com.
Values are an important consideration in personal finance.
Thanks, Carol. I’ll be sure and check out your post. Definitely important to give inline with your values too.
Great post, lots to think about here. I feel I spend on my values pretty well. I don’t value celebrity culture or media trends at all, so I’ve never had HBO or Netflix and I cut my cable years ago. I do think TV can be educational with certain things like National Geographic or documentaries, but I wish there were better options to allow us to buy just to good stuff and avoid all the hollywood crap. Needless to say, I spend a decent amount of time combing YouTube and Vimeo for intellectual content….
Good to hear you feel pretty aligned. My mom tells me Netflix has a surprising amount of documentaries. She watches several apparently. Thanks, AF!
Great post, Amy! Once you figure out what you value, you can spend money in those areas, and not feel guilty at all. For me, it’s outdoor sports and travel. Now I have a separate savings account for my hobbies, so I don’t feel the pinch when I register for a race or buy some lift tickets. Not spending money on the nail salon or new gadgets is not a sacrifice because I don’t value those things. Thanks for the mention!
Sounds like you’ve got it figured out, Mrs. FF, excellent.
Excellent stuff, Amy! Mrs. DS cuts my hair every time but she doesn’t trust me enough to cut hers haha! I don’t blame her. Like you said, it’s all about what every individual person values. Everyone is different and that is what makes life interesting!
Yes, makes life very interesting. Thanks, Mr. DS!
Great point Amy. If you are eliminating something that you do not value, it is not a loss. It is a gain in money, time, or freedom. Let it go.
Thanks, Dave, and I like the way you summed it up!
I don’t value stuff at all so it makes it easier for me to be frugal in that area. But I wouldn’t never give up travel, it would be too big of a sacrifice. Great post Amy.
Travel is one of those things I value but haven’t spent much on yet. Saving up for it! Thanks, Caroline.
I love your no spending challenge, Amy. We’ve committed this year to spending less on good food (less for us, anyway), because we know we waste too much, and we want to be better stewards of our environment and resources. Interestingly, being so focused on spending less on groceries has made me more mindful of every purchase I’m making. I plan to make this year a conscientious spending year, where we make few, maybe even no, impulse purchases. Thanks for more inspiration!
Thanks, Laurie! I didn’t realize until just recently that food waste was such a big issue for people. I’m glad you’re trying to tackle it in your house too. Being more conscious of spending is a great focus, good luck!
Thanks for quoting the Mister, Amy!
I say that your “And so what anyway” subtitle says it all. It’s all a learning experience. If it doesn’t work, or doesn’t make you happy — change course, cut yourself some slack, do something different. But be true to yourself.
We’re discussing our values a lot lately as we look at our home build. We can’t just stick to a dollar amount and call it a day. There are items we’ve overlooked. But it’s not about wanting MORE it’s about fitting our lifestyle.
Building a home is a great time to consider your values, Mrs. G. I love that you’ll be able to design it to meet your needs and maybe splurge a little on the things that are important to you. Yes, be true to yourself and do things that fit your lifestyle!
I cut my hair too ($65)! However, every now and then, I get a Brazilian Blowout ($300, ouch!), for the same hair. Elementary, my dear Watson – priorities!
Ouch is right, but I’m not judging! 😉 Yes, all about individual priorities.
Yes! In theory I just ruined my uber frugal month because I bought a plane ticket, but travel and spending time with my friends and family (oh, and getting to leave winter in DC for a long weekend in LA 😉 ) are things I value. So no regrets!
Isn’t travel automatically excluded anyway? 😉 Good for you, Erin, I’d pick sunny CA over winter too!
This was one of my greatest epiphanies since I started blogging about personal finance. It’s also probably the reason past budgets never worked for me. I was dieting money toward a guideline for how I should spend versus what I actually value. Thinking about my finances from a values and prioritization perspective has made it much easier to control spending and be a bit more sophisticated than just hiding it all from myself.
Don’t you just love those lightbulb moments? I’m glad you’ve found what works for you, OMGF. Thanks for stopping by!
I love the post. Not spending money has always been easy for me. Its my wife and kids that get frustrated with me. I love this FIRE community and learning new ways to save and spend less. You can edit this part of my comment out. By the way I think I found a grammatical error. After your George Mathew Adams quote you write. I hypothesis so. I think you meant to say I hypothesize so. Thanks again. Feel free to check out my blog http://www.thesmartfi.com. I sure I have plenty of grammatical errors. Shoot me an email if you see any.
That’s what makes having this community so nice, people get you. Thanks for catching my error! I’ll be checking your blog out. Thanks!
Yesssss!!!! I have always hated when people look at what others spend and attack their purchases based upon their own values!! Where you place value, place your dollars. Great as always Amy!
Thanks, Brandon, I appreciate the kind words!
Hi Amy,
I agree, and think it’s important to do a “value check” often. It’s definitely easy to fall into spending patterns that may not make sense, or that made sense at some point but no longer do. In my case, for example, my wife and I realized we overspent on our current car, and are planning to downgrade this year when we change it.
Hey Miguel – Good for you on realizing the car might be a bit too much. We came to the same realization a few years ago. Out with the sexy vehicles for sexier finances instead. Thanks for reading!
This is great, Amy!
I love this post. I agree that we should all support each other instead of judging. Everyone values things differently and have their own ways to make them happy.
I really believe that one can splurge on the things they love (luxury vacation, some luxury stuff, games, etc.) as long as they know how to prioritize (key word) and still be on track with their financial goals. I know a lot of the frugal community talks about preserving, cutting, and saving. While that’s all important, we should still enjoy. Like you said, too much sacrifice may cause resentment and stray us away from our goals, so we may just give up.
Excellent post!!! ❤️
You’re right, it is so key to find the sweet spot between prioritizing one’s financial goals and still partake in some enjoyment. Being frugal is good but being ‘too cheap’ is not. Thank you for the kind words and support. 🙂
That Jacob Lee quote might be my favorite one yet. Cable TV is something we’ve only had for six month of our entire marriage (and only because of a deal that made it cheaper than just internet for some crazy reason), but it is most definitely not a sacrifice. Giving up my $17 gym membership for saving a couple hundred dollars a year would be though, and so I haven’t. However, the easy $17 I could spend picking up breakfast and lunch was tasty, but definitely did not align with our long term goals. It felt like a small sacrifice initially, but now it just feels normal. I’m trying to stick to those kind of cuts and really cull to just what really brings value to our lives.
Yes, that quote really spoke to me and seemed just perfect for this article. Right! Paula Pant’s line…you can afford anything, just not everything, is so spot on. We just need to figure out what we want to spend on by determining what give us the ‘most’ in the long run. Sounds like you are doing a good job of figuring that out for you.
For what it’s worth, that $17 you spend on a gym membership is probably actually saving you money, not only on healthcare costs but also by helping you have fewer sick days. Well, assuming you’re actually using it, of course 🙂
But if you are using it, cancelling it would actually be a bad financial decision!
Mindful should be the new frugal. Over the past year I have trained myself whenever I pick something up I think of buying, I ask myself if it’s worth it. Will I still want this in 2 weeks? 99% of the time I don’t and 2 weeks later I’m glad I didn’t buy it. I stopped budgeting down to the dollar like I used to and simply ask myself to take the time and think about how I’m spending my money.
Turns out I save more being mindful and practicing conscious spending 🙂
I like it! Nice, Laine. Thanks for the comment!
Great post! Yes, I have always been of the mindset that our money symbolizes our values. And the important thing is that we are not mindlessly spending on things that don’t give us happiness and that we don’t value. I don’t do manicures and pedicures except for before I go on a sunny vacation 🙂 I used to go more frequently but I’m happy with this frequency.
That’s it, finding the spot that makes you happy and doesn’t hurt your wallet. Thanks, GYM!