How To Be Smarter With Your Finances

Being smart with your money is really important if you want to live a life that is not dragged down by the worries of financial instability. This means being careful how you spend your money, thinking about your priorities, and investing in savings for your future.

People like to talk a lot about how important it is to know the “value of money” and be smart with your spending. Yet they also don't give anything more than surface level advice like “don't buy things impulsively,” Or anything else you could figure out yourself.

That's kind of like telling someone they shouldn't hit while playing blackjack on Thunderbolt online casino if they have a hand of 19. Sure, that's good advice, but not all good advice is really all that helpful. More so if it is something rather obvious, like don't spend too much.

Now, I'm not saying that none of that is good advice, just that they don't explain enough to be helpful. How much is too much? What things should I spend more on, and what should I spend less on?

One thing before I jump into it. I'm not a financial expert. Everything I say here should be taken more as a possibly good idea, and not real financial advice. If you need real financial advice, I would recommend going to an expert, as money trouble can ruin lives.

Purchases

Being smart with your money is one of the most useful skills someone can have in today's day and age. Yet, it is also probably one of the least understood skills as well. Think about how much people spend on things they don't need.

People also don't really understand the value of things. Our world has become more and more disposable as the years go by. Disposable dishes, disposable clothing, disposable planet.

When something breaks on someone, a lot of people just buy a new one. Even if they could fix the object relatively easily. All it takes is some skill but this generation fixes things less. People like to pay for things they could, but just don't know how to do themselves.

However, this is a bit of a digression from our topic at hand. Back to how to be smart with your purchases, and not about home repair or complaining like some old cynic.

When I say you should be smart with your purchases, I don't mean just avoiding impulse buys. I mean doing research into the items you buy before you buy them. Making sure your purchase is actually worth it before you buy it will save you a lot of money in the long run.

And more so, think about the object you are buying. Is this something that is likely to get broken? Then it may be worth spending the little extra money to get a better quality one that won't break and save the money of having to replace the cheaper one.

My ultimate point is to realize the value of the object, not just the cost of the object. I will give you an example to illustrate my point.

Let's say you are going to the store because you need a new dustpan. There are 2 dustpans at the store. One is 5 dollars and is made of nothing but flimsy plastic. The other is 8 dollars but has a metal handle and a thicker pan.

One that costs 5 dollars would end up breaking in a couple of weeks or months, but the 8 dollar one could end up lasting for years because it's simply made better. This means the price is a little less than double, but the object is worth more than double the cheaper one.

This is what I mean by the value of the object. How much money do you save in the long run by having that object over a different object? If it is something you want for a long time, chances are that getting something a little better quality will be worth the higher price.

Now, there is also another level to this. Do you even need the object at all? There is a tale told about one of the ancient Greek philosophers named Diogenes. He was very much a minimalist and the founder of Cynicism.

The story goes like this: Diogenes was walking along when he saw a child drinking from a stream with his hands. To this, he remarked about how the child has beaten him at living a life of simplicity and proceeded to throw away his cup realizing he didn't need it.

Now, I don't think I would recommend everyone go out and throw their dishes away in the name of virtue and simplicity. Cups are rather nice, especially if you want a particularly hot drink or a particularly cold one.

But, there is something to be learned from this story. How much of the things we own or spent money on were really worth it? How much stuff do you have that you don't really need, and is just destined one day for the landfill?

It's important to think purchases over well before you buy them. Will this thing you want to buy actually make your life better? Or, are you just telling yourself it will because something about it attracts your eye? Sometimes we just want things to have because we want things.

Savings

Something else you should get into the habit of doing is saving your money. I mean setting a percentage that you are going to put into a savings account every month where it will not be touched until you need it. And I mean really need it.

Another form of savings is also to make sure you always have enough money to pay your bills for a certain number of months in case the money stops flowing into your bank account.

So, let's say you have to pay out the equivalent of about 50 Troi Ounces of silver by weight every month as your bills (approximately 1100 USD). This means you should have about 150 Troi Ounces of silver worth of money (approximately 3300 USD) in your bank. In other words, enough for 3 months payments.

This allows you to have a safety buffer in case anything happens and you need some money in the meantime. For instance, if you suddenly become unemployed and need to find work. This allows you time where you know you won't be out on the streets.

It's simply something to give peace of mind. Living month to month and paycheck to paycheck is not healthy. Saving your money might take away some immediate pleasures of buying things at the moment, but it will give you a lot more long-term peace of mind and happiness.

Investing

Now, you might have asked, “Why on Earth is this weirdo talking about Troi Ounces of silver? Seems like he thinks he is actually living in the times when Diogenes did, and not just learning from him…”

And, to that, I will say I have a reason! First and foremost, silver is a commodity, and therefore a universal form of currency. Everyone all over the world values silver, and it's not like I can list an amount of money in every currency.

But, more than that, silver is a very common commodity to invest in! This is because it is a tangible asset that someone can save up and make money off of later in life. No worries about a digital collapse like some might with Cryptocurrencies or stocks. Your silver isn't going anywhere.

But, this is all to say one thing. You should learn how to invest your money. That is way too large a topic for me to open up here, but just know this: If your money is just sitting around, you are probably losing money, not gaining it.