For the most part, people hear “living below your means” and immediately think it means giving up everything fun in life. Yeah, it sounds like that because the usual advice is to stop going out to eat, stop date nights, stop weekend outings, stop vacations, basically, stop doing anything that creates any joy. Instead, life should be about clipping coupons and feeling sad about it. But that’s not what it means at all. Sure, that’s the most common advice you hear, that and being prepared for the unexpected, financially speaking.
Now, it might sound a little too hard to believe, but for the most part, living below your means is actually about freedom. No, really, you actually read that right. It’s about having the space to breathe, to make choices, and not to panic every time a bill shows up. For a lot of families, well, individuals too, they think it’s about living cheap, like way too cheap, like it’s about hoarding money and never spending it.
But no, it’s about spending wisely and living an easier life, rather than being flashy.
It’s About Redefining What “Enough” Really Means
Scroll on TikTok, IG, or even YouTube for a few minutes, and you’ll find people showing off their vacations, their hauls, their groceries of already prepared food, and probably some restocking videos of people showing off extreme consumeristic habits (and living normal is called “underconsumption core” for some reason).
Now, yeah, it’s true, every family has their own version of “enough.” For some, it’s a big house and two cars in the driveway. For others, it’s knowing they could take time off work without stressing about money. Both are great, like there’s no doubt about any of that.
But living below your means doesn’t mean you can’t have those things; it just means you don’t force them into your life at the expense of your peace. Seriously, none of this has anything to do with not having fun; it’s just skipping some things to have other things. Like you don’t go out to eat every weekend, and instead use that money for your emergency fund or use that money for a weekend trip instead. It’s about not using a credit card to buy some trendy outfit and instead questioning and establishing the whole want vs need thing.
The Comparison Trap is Pointless
Why bother trying to do the whole “keeping up with the Joneses”? Why bother trying to show off on social media how amazing your life is? Why try to follow trends in general? Yeah, bluntly put it, it’s hard to live below your means when everyone around you looks like they’re living above theirs.
You see your friends posting vacation photos, your neighbors upgrading their car again, and your coworker showing off that new kitchen renovation. It’s easy to start feeling behind. Honestly, yeah, wanting to live below your means is easier said than done. Believe it or not, but a lot of folks look wealthy but are actually one emergency away from panic mode.
Besides, living below your means means not playing that game. Actually, you can get a lot of insight from professionals like Educated Investors, since they’ll tell you how often people are living way above their means, they’ll get you to better understand how to handle your money, how to properly invest (a lot of people don’t do that), and well, that guiandance helps in the long run too.
The Talk Doesn’t Need to be Awkward
A family meeting can be awkward to a degree, but this at least doesn’t. It helps to just try and keep the conversation casual with your partner, kids, whoever is living with you. These little lessons and discussions stick, but it helps to explain that none of this is a punishment or anything like that.
