The old saying is wrong. Or at least from an emotional point of view it is mis-leading.
The old saying goes, “It all adds up.”
It would have more impact if the saying went, “It all multiplies out.” The only problem is- that saying is lousy…”It all adds up” is much catchier!
Now look, everyone is sick of the same old story, “If you just cut out that $4 cup of coffee you could save twenty million dollars a year.” Can anyone come up with an original magazine article? Besides how many people do you know who actually get a $4 cup of coffee everyday?
It’s not the small habits that necessarily make the difference. It’s just the pesky math. If you take the family out to eat twice a week and it costs $30 each time then you spend about $260 bucks a month- over $3,000 a year. You can eat at home for a third or less of that amount.
Now the problem is that I think that you probably need to go out and eat- at least as our society is now. It gets you out of the house. It is fun. The food tastes good. You can’t just never eat out again. This is not about that. It’s about the principle.
Every time you spend money the effects of that multiply. Do you play golf every week? $50 a weekend for 40 weeks a year is $2,000. Have a shopping habit? $100 here, $20 there, a fabulous $9 pair of shoes over here. And pretty soon you are spending $300 a month.
Keep it in mind– “It all multiplies out” Not in and of itself as a behavior modification tool- but as an awareness tool.
“Wow, I notice that I go to Red Box 3 times a week. That’s $156 a year.”
“I go to Sonic every night after work. Wow, that’s $27 a month.”
“My mobile phone plan costs $150 a month. My goodness- that’s $1,800 a year!”
Then if you are married you take both of your habits and expenses together and it really adds up.
The consequences and the solution:
The solution is not elimination, it is modification. Really, if you like Red Box then go to Red Box- but maybe you only do it twice a week- savings: $52 a year.
And say you go to Sonic three times a week instead of 5- savings: $156 a year.
Then you take a look at your cell phone bill and you realize you have a feature you don’t use- your bill is reduced by $30 a month or $360 a year.
Just these three little items and you have spent $568 less.
Have you ever wanted to take a Caribbean cruise? That’s the consequence part. You can take a 5 day Caribbean cruise for around $600. So by doing all these small things over and over and over you multiply your spending. Instead you could almost pay for a cruise!
The important thing to remember is this- don’t try to cut all this stuff out. Obviously you “need” a mobile phone these days and going to Sonic is a ritual you cherish and a good movie is how you unwind. So keep all these things around- just do them a bit less often so you can do big stuff more.
(Notes- Sonic- $1.50 a day, 5 days a week, 4.33 weeks a month. Red Box- $1 a movie.)