When Not Having Money can be Good for You

Life is a never-ending rat-race and yes, “money does make the world go round”.

If you have bills to pay and dreams you want to fulfill for yourself, your family… your kid/s, then you know exactly what I mean.

While we all strive not to be enslaved by money, but to make money our slaves, believe it or not, not having money can be good for you. I am living it, so I know and I have proven this statement to be true.

I used to have money at my disposal… emphasis on the phrase “used to have”… past tense. But back then I did not give it much of a thought… or appreciation. Whatever money I spent I know I will earn again come next payday… whether I work hard at it or not.

I bought and paid for what I wanted with nary a doubt or tinge of indecision. It was my money after all… I earned the right to spend it… or did I?

Would you believe I never “enjoyed” having money as much as I do now? I have never given any purchase longer than an hour’s worth of indecision… until now.

Not having as much money as I used to have made me really enjoy and look forward to having money every time. And, why not? The money I get every now and then is the product of my blood, sweat and tears… almost literally actually.

Those of you who have opted to forego having anything that even remotely resembles an 8-5 am/pm job “just” to be a fulltime house-“MAID” (I’m using the term with much admiration for the wives who single-handedly run their households), you know what I mean.

It really is no joke to be a fulltime mom… especially when you do not have help whether paid for or voluntarily given (ehem… husbands I hope you get the message)… but to still scramble to work immediately after your kid has gone to bed (be it at an early 9pm or a late 11pm) only to go on working until the early morning so you could earn a little extra to help out with the expenses and the occassional "shopping spree"… man, work-at-home moms really deserve a tight hug, a beautiful bouquet and a huge plaque of appreciation (ehem ulit husbands)!

These days I make sure I get the full value of every peso I spend, and why shouldn't I? I worked so damn hard to string words together into a paragraph and weave those paragraphs into a pay-worthy article.

And, because I work soooo hard to earn whatever amount I could, I find it easier now to resist going to the mall just to tempt myself into buying what I really don’t need. Retail therapy used to be my addiction, but nowadays I find crying or pouring your heart out in a blog or forum to be be more effective and less costly, too.

Indeed, I have come to realize that not having money can be good for me. No, this is not a suicide-averting mechanism nor am I sweet-lemon-ing. Perhaps, you can call it an “awakening”.

I think I have somewhat adapted to my new lifestyle because earning even just half of what I used to earn entails a lot of long hours… a full week even... spending it should take that long as well or a lot longer. That's the irony of money, it is so hard to earn yet so easy to spend wastefully.

Although, I am still very much a work in progress, I have to admit.

Just last Sunday I bought a table runner and a box of wine glasses (4 pieces per box)… for P89.00 and P129.95, respectively. What do I need them for? Wala lang… I just want to have a nice table runner to be readily available when I need it (should I buy on the day that I need it? I think not!), and the wine glasses are for when my husband and I decide to open the wine bottles given to him (again, should I buy wine glasses on the day that we want to have wine? It’s called foresight, people!).

Oh, was I tickled pink with my purchases! Part of the reason is I know I got nice items without having to spend much. That P218.95 was enough to give me the feeling that I can still buy what I want despite not having a regular income.

It seems not having money is like dieting, the key is to not feel deprived because you’ll surely go crazy and do something drastic.

Dieters and reforming spendthrifts, show of hands please…