Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Do You Spend, Save or Spare?
“What! $17 for 4 bowls of noodles! That’s extremely expensive!” I complained during one of our late night supper session. I was buying the meal as I just won $22 in a gambling session (refer to post: “A Time Of Gambling?”).
“Aiya, it’s ok la. It’s CNY, and they still have to open stall to sell noodles. Let them earn a bit more never mind la,” my mum and sister echoed each other. On normal days, the meal would have saved me $4, but they had raised the price by $1 each since it was the 3rd day of CNY. Strictly speaking was the 4th day since it was past midnight.
“Ya, that’s right. Ok la,” I was satisfied with paying that extra $4 now. In fact, shouldn’t we be grateful to them for opening their stalls, otherwise we might have to go hungry to bed.
You see, to me spending money is about seeking value. If I pay for something, I deem the purchase as worthy or not based on the value I received. The value can be a real one (for example, gold) versus perceived (a piece of clothing). It can be tangible versus intangible (a foot massage).
For things that I don’t find any great value in, I choose to spare. For things that I see value in but not a necessity, I save. For things that I find great value to have, I spend.
Fair enough?
That’s probably one of the many thousand people out there too. But there are also those on the extremes who will spend regardless of the value, and those who will spare even if it means ripping other people off their own value they deserved.
What’s the difference between saving and sparing then? Can you tell a saver and a stingy man apart? If you can’t, then chances are you probably are either a spender or a miser. Because to a spender, not spending means being stingy. For a miser, spending any amount is tantamount to squandering.
But is that the case? To me, so long as you don’t amass your fortune at the expense of shaving off others, I’m fine. It is good to save. It’s a virtue! Hey, weren’t we taught to save since young? We were strongly encouraged to open a POSB account with the savings bear diligently going to every primary school to build rapport with each child so that we will dish out $2 to begin our habit of saving 10cents daily.
Saving to me is also one way that we can protect the environment. It’s not just about saving money; it’s also about conserving electricity, water and the trees!
But to constantly think of ways to get others to pay for your share, being calculating with every cent is not a wise move. It may add a few cents, or dollars, or hundreds of dollars due to accumulation (the miser’s mindset!) to your pocket, at the same time, it may also dent a few holes in your relationship with others. Not that I’m advocating using money to build relationship, but that I’m saying being overly calculating will certainly cost you some friendships.
Which one has more value to you, then?
The money itself, or the relationship?
To me, money is a means to my goal. It is never the end.
So, if it means remunerating them for their precious time they could have instead spend sleeping or with their family during such an important festive occasion, what is $1 extra per bowl that I have to pay to keep our stomachs warm and nice?