Friday, March 30, 2007
Instant Vs Delayed gratification
Why not buy it now and save for it later as opposed to save now and buy it later?
With the former, you will be at least be forced to save and hence discipline yourself while gratifying. So what then is the case for the latter?
Here is what I feel about the latter:
If you decided to save some amount every month for 6 months and then buy it, one of two things would happen at the end of 6 months.
1) You will have saved enough and by that you have proved to yourself that you care about it enough that you could set apart the amount every month and live without it.
It may still be a want but your priority is clear or if it is truly a need, it has withstood the test of time and the
whims of mind.
You can now afford to buy if you still feel you want it and you can do so with a clear conscience and no debt.
You totally deserve it, You are the man, all is well.
2) You will not have saved it, and in here, I believe, lies the true value of this latter proposition.
It either means you were not disciplined enough to put away the set amount every month which in turn means that it was simply a "want/nice to have/don't care" and not a "need", which is good to know OR
It means you do not care about it that much as compared to the other things that you spent that "set" amount on every month, and this insight is also very valuable - at least now your priorities are clear and it also made it glaring that you cannot afford it now.
Either way, besides the obvious benefit of cutting down on the impulsive buying behavior, the waiting/saving period really tests if it is a need or a want, highlights your priorities, reveals your affordability and as a side effect, you won't end up with stuff that you don't really need and in some cases, even, less debt.
With the former, you will be at least be forced to save and hence discipline yourself while gratifying. So what then is the case for the latter?
Here is what I feel about the latter:
If you decided to save some amount every month for 6 months and then buy it, one of two things would happen at the end of 6 months.
1) You will have saved enough and by that you have proved to yourself that you care about it enough that you could set apart the amount every month and live without it.
It may still be a want but your priority is clear or if it is truly a need, it has withstood the test of time and the
whims of mind.
You can now afford to buy if you still feel you want it and you can do so with a clear conscience and no debt.
You totally deserve it, You are the man, all is well.
2) You will not have saved it, and in here, I believe, lies the true value of this latter proposition.
It either means you were not disciplined enough to put away the set amount every month which in turn means that it was simply a "want/nice to have/don't care" and not a "need", which is good to know OR
It means you do not care about it that much as compared to the other things that you spent that "set" amount on every month, and this insight is also very valuable - at least now your priorities are clear and it also made it glaring that you cannot afford it now.
Either way, besides the obvious benefit of cutting down on the impulsive buying behavior, the waiting/saving period really tests if it is a need or a want, highlights your priorities, reveals your affordability and as a side effect, you won't end up with stuff that you don't really need and in some cases, even, less debt.
Labels: gratification now
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