3569: 11 Practical Ways to Spend Your Money by Marc Chernoff of Marc And Angel on Financial Freedom

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[00:00:30] [SPEAKER_02] This is Optimal Living Daily, 11 Practical Ways to Spend Your Money by Marc Chernoff of MarcAndAngel.com. And I'm Justin Malik. Welcome to the Sunday bonus episode where I share an episode from another podcast in our Optimal Network. Today's comes from Optimal Finance Daily. Please do follow or subscribe to that show. It helps keep this one going. Again, that's Optimal Finance Daily. But with that, let's get right to the bonus episode and Diana's commentary. as we optimize your life.

[00:01:04] [SPEAKER_01] 11 Practical Ways to Spend Your Money by Marc Chernoff of MarcAndAngel.com I know, I know. Saving and investing your money for the future is one of the most practical things you can do. This is solid advice. But when you do decide to spend your hard-earned money, it should be spent on something practical, useful, and meaningful to the well-being of your existence.

[00:01:30] [SPEAKER_01] So many people either save their money or blow it on worthless crap. Here are 11 practical ways to spend your money on something useful. Number one, travel to see the significant people in your life. There may be no better way to spend your money than use it to nurture and rekindle personal relationships with the most significant people in your life.

[00:01:55] [SPEAKER_01] As time quickly passes, we sometimes forget how essential strong personal relationships are to our mental well-being. The older we get, the more we need true friends and family to be regular parts of our lives. Number two, hire a personal trainer. Your health is your life. Without it, all the success and affluence in the world is meaningless.

[00:02:20] [SPEAKER_01] Committing yourself to a regular exercise routine is one of the best ways to maintain the health of your body and mind. Sometimes it's hard to tackle this endeavor on your own. Spending money on a knowledgeable personal trainer who can set you on the right course creates priceless results. Make sure you stick with the trainer until you're committed to exercising on your own. Number three, fix what's broken. Have you been ignoring your screeching brakes?

[00:02:50] [SPEAKER_01] What about the excessively loud hum from your AC compressor? Or the scratching noise coming from your computer system? Sooner or later, these small annoyances will wear down the reliability of the product. And you'll be left with a completely broken product instead of just a halfway broken one. Use your money wisely to fix and maintain your belongings. Number four, educate yourself.

[00:03:16] [SPEAKER_01] Use your money to purchase educational courses or books pertaining to your career or to a miscellaneous topic that interests and intrigues you. Remember, knowledge is power and your brain is the container of that knowledge. There are few options for spending money on something more practical than the development of your brain. Number five, add value to your home.

[00:03:42] [SPEAKER_01] Your home should be your sanctuary, the place on this planet where you feel the most comfortable. Adding value to your home, be it personal value or increased monetary value, is always a practical choice for spending your money. If the additions you make increase your level of comfort for years to come, you win. If they increase the value of the home to a third party someday when you sell, you win. If both occur, you win big.

[00:04:11] [SPEAKER_01] Number six, take a healthy, relaxing vacation. A vacation revitalizes your mind by pulling you away from the daily stress factors in your life. It can spark creative thought by stimulating your brain with new material. And finally, a vacation allows you to be yourself without the external influences present in your typical surroundings. Does that sound like something worth spending money on? It should.

[00:04:39] [SPEAKER_01] Number seven, upgrade something you use regularly. There's nothing wrong with splurging on a practical item that you actually use on a regular basis. If you're a hardcore movie buff that loves to watch movies on Saturday nights with your family and friends, having a 65-inch HDTV and a Blu-ray player makes sense. If you love computer games, purchasing a powerhouse laptop gaming rig makes sense.

[00:05:06] [SPEAKER_01] The idea is to never waste money on stuff you don't use. Spending money on upgrading your hobbies is one of the reasons you work so hard in the first place. Number eight, buy meaningful gifts for key people in your life. One of the most rewarding acts in life is the act of giving, especially to those key people you truly care about the most. Spend a little money every now and then on a sensible gift for some of the key people in your life. Surprise them.

[00:05:35] [SPEAKER_01] It doesn't have to be their birthday or holiday. Remember, there's no better gift than an unexpected gift. You'll make them feel special. For instance, my buddy Donnie brought me back a cool souvenir from Amsterdam a few months back, and it just made me feel good. Number nine, update your wardrobe. You don't have to waste money on the latest overpriced fashion line to look good. However, if you're still wearing the same ratty shirts, slacks, and shoes from five years ago,

[00:06:05] [SPEAKER_01] it might be time to go shopping. While appearance isn't everything, it can make you look older, smarter, and more emotionally mature. First impressions for job interviews, dates, and the like are heavily weighted on the way you look. Sometimes it's practical to dress to impress. Number 10, buy healthier food. You are what you eat. There is a great deal of truth in that statement.

[00:06:32] [SPEAKER_01] It's impossible to maintain a healthy body and mind if you pump your body full of junk food. Fresh, healthy food is usually more expensive, but this is an expense with priceless benefits to the longevity and well-being of your future. Eating healthy goes right along with bullet number two about hiring a personal trainer. Your health is your life. And number 11, pay down debt.

[00:06:59] [SPEAKER_01] This one's a no-brainer, so I just couldn't bring myself to leave it off the list. If you have a great deal of high-interest debt, it would be foolish not to pay it down before you go off and splurge on additional purchases. There's nothing less practical than being a slave to your debts. You just listened to the post titled, 11 Practical Ways to Spend Your Money,

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[00:08:41] [SPEAKER_01] This is a pretty timely article for me because I've recently challenged myself to spend more money in meaningful ways. You see, when I quit my full-time job in January, I did so with the knowledge that my typical spending for both fixed and discretionary expenses is $3,000 per month. But being the frugal person I am and having a drastic cut to my income,

[00:09:07] [SPEAKER_01] I naturally pared back and have only been spending $2,000 per month on average. So my burn rate is actually much slower than I planned. And big news! My Midwestern gentleman is moving into my house right now, which will reduce my expenses further by about $600 per month. So I feel that I've got some wiggle room here to spend some more money. One of the things I cut out when I quit my job was regular massages.

[00:09:37] [SPEAKER_01] But I have a hard time regulating my nervous system. And when I treated myself to a massage recently, I realized that this is more than a luxury expense. It's actually really helpful for my mental and emotional well-being. So I committed to one massage per month for $120. On that same note, I decided to also spend some money on therapy. I've had a really hard time finding a good therapist.

[00:10:06] [SPEAKER_01] I've seen four different therapists in the last four years. And frankly, I've never found it helpful. I've hated spending money on therapy as it simply hasn't been worth the cost. But I found something called somatic therapy. And it does seem like it'll be more effective for me. So I've added this into my budget for $180 per month. While these expenses on the surface might seem like luxuries,

[00:10:34] [SPEAKER_01] I suspect the benefits to my well-being will far outweigh the costs. And I have plenty of room in my budget to accommodate them. And that will do it for today. Have a great day and start to your weekend. Thank you for listening. And I'll be back here reading to you tomorrow, where your optimal life awaits. Thanks.

[00:10:53] Thanks.