Same Job. Different Money.

Everyone one of us is an individual and we all have different financial situations and personal living arrangements. This is why finance is personal and different for everyone.  As you may recall I previously told you about two of my colleagues who started dating and married men with money.  Of course I would like to think that my colleagues Tamara and Jane do actually love those men, but based on their behaviour I just don’t believe it.  If my two colleagues really did love their men and not the money they would not expect or demand their spouses to spend it on them.

We recently hired a new teller in my bank branch.  Her name is Mary and she also has an unusual living situation for someone in their mid twenties.  Mary lives with her boyfriend and two other people in a 3 bedroom apartment.  She only works part time and she lives on $70 per week.  Mary’s 24 hour work week was her choice.  This is how much she needs to live. She has no aspirations for her life or career beyond paying her monthly bills and living one day at a time.

Mary is the complete opposite of Tamara and Jane.  Tamara knows that she does not have money but she does expect her successful boyfriend to shower her with gifts.  Jane expects her husband to spend his family’s money on her.  Since she is now a part of the family, she expects to have a right to the money…even though she didn’t work for it.

Tamara, Jane, and Mary all work in the same bank branch that I do, but we all have very different money personalities and money management styles.  Take the test and find out if your money personality is a match to Tamara, Jane, Mary, or myself. Can you tell how each woman answered?

Think about last month and how you spent your money in October

How many times do you splurge in a week?

1. As often as I want as long as someone else is paying
2. I splurge everyday because I deserve it
3. I never splurge because bills need to be paid
4. Splurge…what does that mean?

When was your last vacation?

1. This summer we took a surprise vacation to a private island
2. Twice this summer we travelled throughout Europe for some shopping
3. Last year we took a family vacation to a European destination
4. Last summer I travelled to Sweden for a 3 month work exchange paid by the company

How should extra monthly income be spent?

1. I would hope he spent it on me, but it’s his decision
2. It will be spent on me of course.
3. I will have to check what the household needs
4. There is no extra money, all income is accounted for