2839: What Philosophy Can Teach Us About Our Finances by Cynthia Meyer of Financial Finesse on Mindful Financial Decisions

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[00:00:39] [SPEAKER_00]: This is Optimal Finance Daily, What Philosophy Can Teach Us About Our Finances

[00:00:45] [SPEAKER_00]: by Cynthia Meyer of FinancialFinesse.com. And I'm your host and personal finance

[00:00:51] [SPEAKER_00]: enthusiast, Diania Merriam. I'll keep this intro nice and short, so let's get right to it as we

[00:00:57] [SPEAKER_00]: optimize your life. What Philosophy Can Teach Us About Our Finances by Cynthia Meyer of FinancialFinesse.com

[00:01:10] [SPEAKER_00]: Do philosophers have something to teach us about financial wellness?

[00:01:15] [SPEAKER_00]: I think so. There are practical lessons, not just facts to learn for SAT preparation.

[00:01:21] [SPEAKER_00]: For example, author Henry David Throw wrote about the value of the simple life in his book Walden

[00:01:28] [SPEAKER_00]: over 160 years ago, emphasizing independence, non-attachment and nature.

[00:01:35] [SPEAKER_00]: Throw observed how his fellow Americans spent their time and money. He concluded that most

[00:01:41] [SPEAKER_00]: end up living their lives on desperate terms to meet someone else's obligations

[00:01:45] [SPEAKER_00]: instead of by their own design. Throw meticulously calculated and kept track of every dollar he's

[00:01:53] [SPEAKER_00]: spent while living by Walden Pond. He challenged every financial decision to make sure it was

[00:01:59] [SPEAKER_00]: something he really needed. While this is probably too extreme in our busy lives,

[00:02:05] [SPEAKER_00]: we can use his example to help us live our lives by our terms, not by someone else's.

[00:02:11] [SPEAKER_00]: I did an experiment a couple of years ago and wrote down every penny I spent for a month.

[00:02:17] [SPEAKER_00]: Just one month was enough for me to see the waste in my spending habits.

[00:02:22] [SPEAKER_00]: It doesn't seem like a lot when you purchase the gourmet coffee or the impulse item by the

[00:02:27] [SPEAKER_00]: checkout, but I discovered that I wasted over $200 that month on items I didn't need.

[00:02:34] [SPEAKER_00]: And that was a month that I was consciously thinking about it.

[00:02:38] [SPEAKER_00]: I probably turned down twice that amount that I would normally have spent.

[00:02:43] [SPEAKER_00]: That's spending my money on someone else's terms, not by my design.

[00:02:48] [SPEAKER_00]: I discovered that if I could reduce the waste and save $250 per month,

[00:02:54] [SPEAKER_00]: my family would be able to enjoy a $3,000 vacation every year.

[00:02:59] [SPEAKER_00]: We set up an online banking account and have funded it since then.

[00:03:03] [SPEAKER_00]: Two years ago, we drove from Omaha, Nebraska to LA, enjoying the country along the way.

[00:03:10] [SPEAKER_00]: Last year, we went on a seven-day cruise to the Bahamas, funded mostly by the money we would

[00:03:16] [SPEAKER_00]: have wasted if we continued to fall for the traps. A modern-day philosopher,

[00:03:22] [SPEAKER_00]: actually the songwriter and lead singer for punk rock band Talking Heads,

[00:03:27] [SPEAKER_00]: had his own version of living a desperate life from the song Once in a Lifetime.

[00:03:33] [SPEAKER_00]: Quote,

[00:03:35] [SPEAKER_00]: And you may find yourself living in a shotgun shack, and you may find yourself in another part

[00:03:40] [SPEAKER_00]: of the world, and you may find yourself behind the wheel of a large automobile,

[00:03:45] [SPEAKER_00]: and you may find yourself in a beautiful house with a beautiful wife,

[00:03:50] [SPEAKER_00]: and you may ask yourself, well, how did I get here?

[00:03:55] [SPEAKER_00]: How did I get here?

[00:03:57] [SPEAKER_00]: Now, I love my beautiful wife and wouldn't change that decision for the world,

[00:04:01] [SPEAKER_00]: but some of my financial decisions in the past have been less than wise.

[00:04:06] [SPEAKER_00]: During a three-year period, I traded in five different cars because I couldn't find the

[00:04:11] [SPEAKER_00]: right one. Looking back, those car upgrades cost me over $10,000 in trade-in differences.

[00:04:18] [SPEAKER_00]: The dealer sure liked me then. I learned my lesson and have had the same pickup for the last eight years.

[00:04:25] [SPEAKER_00]: I plan on driving it for the next eight. I discovered that the new car sensation

[00:04:30] [SPEAKER_00]: only lasts about a month or two for me. Then it's just a vehicle to get me there.

[00:04:36] [SPEAKER_00]: That car payment can be used for a better purpose, like retiring earlier.

[00:04:41] [SPEAKER_00]: The philosophers have something to say about our financial wellness if we'll listen.

[00:04:47] [SPEAKER_00]: 1. Think differently

[00:04:49] [SPEAKER_00]: Throw once said that the mass of men live lives of quiet desperation.

[00:04:55] [SPEAKER_00]: Don't be one of them. Live within your means. Save, make it one of your bills,

[00:05:01] [SPEAKER_00]: for the goals that are important to you. Go through your budget and challenge everything in it.

[00:05:08] [SPEAKER_00]: Ask the question, does this item fulfill my life, or could I use this money to start

[00:05:13] [SPEAKER_00]: funding the life I really want to live? 2. Do it yourself

[00:05:19] [SPEAKER_00]: Throw did much, if not all, of his labor to build his home and tend his garden while living on the

[00:05:25] [SPEAKER_00]: pond. Doing everything yourself isn't realistic, but there might be some things that you could do

[00:05:31] [SPEAKER_00]: to save a lot of money. 3. Be the wiser

[00:05:36] [SPEAKER_00]: We're sold something everywhere we go these days. Insurance,

[00:05:40] [SPEAKER_00]: warranties, impulse items by the checkout. Do a little research to see if there's real

[00:05:45] [SPEAKER_00]: value in these purchases. You only get to spend that dollar once.

[00:05:50] [SPEAKER_00]: 4. You are in charge

[00:05:54] [SPEAKER_00]: You are in charge of your own life, your financial decisions, and your future.

[00:05:59] [SPEAKER_00]: No one else is going to be more interested in your financial success than you.

[00:06:04] [SPEAKER_00]: Take control of your financial life and start making the decisions today

[00:06:08] [SPEAKER_00]: that will enable you to do what you want to do in the future.

[00:06:16] [SPEAKER_00]: You just listened to the post titled, What Philosophy Can Teach Us About Our Finances

[00:06:21] [SPEAKER_00]: by Cynthia Meyer of financialfinance.com and I'll be right back with my commentary.

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[00:07:29] [SPEAKER_00]: Cynthia mentions that Throw concluded that most people end up living their lives on desperate

[00:07:35] [SPEAKER_00]: terms to meet someone else's obligations instead of by their own design. As hard as it can be to

[00:07:42] [SPEAKER_00]: spend our resources according to our values, I think it's even harder to figure out what those

[00:07:48] [SPEAKER_00]: values even are. We're all subject to social norms and conditioning, so it can be

[00:07:54] [SPEAKER_00]: challenging to determine if we want what we want in a self-directed way or if it's just because

[00:08:01] [SPEAKER_00]: we've been programmed culturally to desire certain things. This is why I think personal

[00:08:06] [SPEAKER_00]: development practices like journaling, taking walks, meditation, and in general,

[00:08:12] [SPEAKER_00]: a quieting and slowing down can be really important. These practices allow you to

[00:08:17] [SPEAKER_00]: get in touch with the quiet voice inside that knows what will be most fulfilling.

[00:08:23] [SPEAKER_00]: We spend so much time being externally focused and looking for answers outside of ourselves,

[00:08:29] [SPEAKER_00]: but Throw is a good example of a different approach that embraces solitude and simplicity.

[00:08:35] [SPEAKER_00]: In our fast-paced, hyperconnected world, it's easy to lose sight of our true desires and values.

[00:08:42] [SPEAKER_00]: We're bombarded with messages about what success looks like, what we should aspire to,

[00:08:47] [SPEAKER_00]: and what will make us happy. These external pressures can drown out our inner voice,

[00:08:53] [SPEAKER_00]: making it difficult to discern our genuine aspirations. Throw's philosophy of living deliberately

[00:09:00] [SPEAKER_00]: and simplifying life serves as a reminder that we need to create space for introspection.

[00:09:06] [SPEAKER_00]: By slowing down and engaging in practices that foster self-awareness,

[00:09:11] [SPEAKER_00]: we can begin to peel away the layers of societal conditioning and reconnect with our authentic solves.

[00:09:18] [SPEAKER_00]: This journey of self-discovery isn't always easy, but it's essential for living a life that's truly

[00:09:25] [SPEAKER_00]: our own. But that'll do it for today in another installment of Optimal Finance Daily.

[00:09:31] [SPEAKER_00]: Have a happy Thursday, thank you for being here every day and listening,

[00:09:34] [SPEAKER_00]: and I'll see you on the Friday show tomorrow, where your Optimal Life awaits.