A Penny Saved

I was reflecting this weekend how powerful emotions are in regard to fianances. What got me thinking about this was an event that happened Firday at our home. It started Wednesday when our refrigerator started making some strange noises. By Thursday evening we knew something was wrong. So Friday morning my wife called the appliance dealer that we bought it from four years ago. Well they came out and it was the compressor, which is a very expensive part of the refrigerator.

Between Wednesday and Friday I was bummed. Here we go again, anouther unplanned expense. And my emotions started caving in. “Why is it every time we try to pay off debt something happens” (not true in reality, but emotionally I was there). “What is the use.” And on and on. It was just a downward spiral - and my friends consider me pretty level headed and steady.

Then on Friday as I am thinking how much this is going to cost me, my wife calls me and says the repair will be free! The refrigerator was still under warranty, and the part they were replacing (it was the condensor) was part of a bad batch of units, and the company that made the refrigerator would cover everything including the service call.

Now my spirits were soaring. Life was good again.

The whole episode got me to thinking how important emotions are in finances, and likewise, how finances affect our emotions. During my brief frustration between Wednesday and Friday, I was tempted to use money to bring “happiness” - shopping therapy. Fortunately I did not do that, but there was temptation. Likewise, after I found out that it would cost us nothing, I was ready to go back to full scale pay off the debt.

Nothing changed but my frame of mind, my emotions. So I have been thinking about how important emotions are to achieving our goal of being debt free. It’s good to understand our tendancies, how things will affect us, and set out a plan.  It’s also good to have someone on your team. For me, it’s my spouse, but it could be another relative or friend. When things get tough (and they will), it’s good to have someone on your side to pick you up and cheer you on.

I hope you have a plan that will help you weather the financial storms. And I hope you have someone else on your team to pick you up when you fall.