How a Once-in-a-Lifetime Mentality Spoils Your Budget
When I was planning my wedding, everyone warned me about the once-in-a-lifetime mentality , which is essentially an excuse to waste money madly because this is a special case. However, this mentality does not only apply to weddings. He can strike in other cases as well.
You’ve probably been there yourself. You spend a huge amount of money on something special, and since you’ve already spent so much, you think, “Oh, you might as well give your best.” Maybe you go on an expensive vacation and come back with souvenirs that you will never use, such as the Empire State Building magnet I bought. Or maybe you go to a concert and have such a good time that you decide to go all out and buy an overpriced T-shirt, poster, and buttons.
The once-in-a-lifetime mentality is why I don’t mind spending $ 25 on beer and a hot dog when I go to a baseball game. I’ve already spent so much on a ticket, and while it’s not exactly one event in my life , it’s a rare pleasure. And since I am already treating myself, I could pamper myself to the maximum. On the other hand, what’s wrong with that? Beer and hot dogs are part of the experience for me. The thing is, I know this when I buy my ticket, so I put in an extra $ 25 on it. This is a deliberate cost decision.
But here’s another example.
On the weekend I went to a theme park. After spending a crazy amount on a ticket, I found myself spending money much more on snacks, drinks and souvenirs (and I don’t even like souvenirs). I didn’t actually buy any souvenirs, but I got close to that when I was about to pay another $ 3 for a new mug that I would bring home and never use. It was a once-in-a-lifetime mentality. How often do I go to Universal Studios? Rarely. So I could just as well get a hell of a lot of fun out of it, even if it means spending money on things that I don’t need or even don’t need.
The counterpoint here is that money is just a tool and you should be able to spend it on what matters to you. (Even if it’s a $ 3 new mug!) However, most of us don’t have unlimited cash flow. Spending money on one thing is not enough for something else, so you need to be sure that your spending matters and that it is deliberate. This is another behavior to watch out for.