Budgets and Diets: Restriction or Freedom?

Women spend $25,000 on shoes and in Britain L 133,000 on beauty products in their lifetime.*  Saving for retirement or saving period gets pushed aside with the “I want what I want and I want it now” pattern we consumers are so good at.

One of the biggest mistakes women say they make with their money is not saving enough for the future because they’re caught up in survival today. This is an interesting dilemma because by spending today and not saving for the future, the struggle is likely to be the same in ten or thirty years. Contrast this with one young woman, Kari, who considers herself a “money hoarder.” She started saving half her paycheck as a teenager. She finds it hard to spend money on herself, but she’ll be fine in retirement. There aren’t many Kari’s out there.

Putting ourselves on a savings plan feels the same as being on a diet. Yuk. We feel restricted, limited – it’s NO FUN. Or we feel we’re in jail waiting for a chance to bust out – shoe sale anyone?  According to Gary Becker and Kevin Murphy in “A Theory of Rational Addiction*” when you're struggling economically you’re unlikely to focus on long-term activities. The immediate is much more compelling.  

There’s a mind-set change that needs to happen to be able to have some shopping fun, while keeping in mind the long term goal of having financial peace in your later years. Just think about how good those shoes might taste if you’re trying to make it at 75 on social security alone.

*Daily Express Study quoted: http://tinyurl.com/2a2cvjw  Mail Online  http://tinyurl.com/67z36fd

* The Awesome Column, Joel Stein, The Times May 2012

Can You Ever Be Too Rich or Too Thin?

"You can never be too rich or too thin."  Babe Paley, 1950s socialite 

Did you know that wealth and weight issues are often tangled together for women? 

Women will go to extreme measures to look good and spend thousands of dollars over a lifetime on diet products, clothes and shoes and justify the expense for reasons that vary from:  "I have to look good for work," to "I'm working so hard I deserve this." By the way, that same justification works for food as well as shopping. Some women shop (or eat or restrict eating) to fill time because they're bored, or for the adrenalin high that comes with shopping anticipation.

These are not bad or wrong behaviors or feelings but they only work temporarily to make you feel better and they can dilute your power and productivity. 

Weight and money issues are self-esteem issues. Insecurity and the advertising industry drive the multi billion dollar dieting industry, pressure women to have more clothes than they can wear, purchase designer bags and shoes, and develop wasteful spending habits. I'm not saying it's not fun to spend money, but to take charge of our money women need to be very MINDFUL of what the energy it takes to earn money and where their money goes. 

Here are some questions to think about:

    Guesstimate how much you've spent in your lifetime on dieting books, videos, products. (Don't include gym memberships you actually use for health or fitness).

    What's your annual budget for clothes?  If you don't have a budget or know how much you spend you need to.  Guesstimate  how much you really spend each year on clothes, purses, shoes, jewelry.  How much of this is is a need or a want?  How much of the dieting or spending is to distract yourself from anxiety or emotional upset?  Remember what Peggy Gardiner, the Organizer said:  A shopping need is to replace something worn out, a want is anything else.  (I think that's a little stringent, but good to think about.) I hope this fuels some thinking & discussion.

If you're in business for yourself how much do you invest each year on education, self-improvement, business or financial education compared to what you spend on dieting or clothing?  Be honest and gentle.