Are You Obsessive Compulsive About Money?

I enjoy money, do you? I enjoy money not because I am superficial, but because it helps support my lifestyle.  Money makes my life a little bit less stressful because when my bills are paid on time I am less stressed. I work hard for my money and I enjoy knowing that I have a roof over my head and food in my fridge.  I like knowing that I can save money for retirement as well as my personal goals.  If I don’t have a lot of money left over for personal spending on a weekly basis I am not necessarily stressed out about it because spending money on materialistic things no longer makes me happy.

I used to spend money on personal materialistic things and I couldn’t pay my bills on time (or at all). That’s how I know that “stuff” is really not important in my life.  However, being financially responsible is a very important quality to have for a young professional who got a second chance at both personal and financial happiness.

I don’t mind if I don’t have a lot of extra money to spend on personal things, I definitely could have more money left over from each pay check if I saved a little less but personal spending is really not important to be.  I am happy as long as all of my bills are paid on time each month, as long as I have short term savings in the case of an emergency, medium term savings for my personal goals, and long term savings for retirement.

I know exactly how much money comes in each month from my 9 to 5 job as well as my freelance gigs, and I know exactly how and where each and every penny is being spent.  I guess that you can say I have learned from my past financial mistakes and now I have become a little (or a lot) obsessive compulsive about money.

I used to be an extreme spender and now you could say that I am a reformed credit card user who likes to save. I no longer carry balances on my credit cards because I don’t spend money carelessly and I don’t care (as much) about materialistic things.

How do you and your spouse manage your spending and expenses?

Maybe one of you is an extreme saver and maybe one of you is an extreme spender; or maybe you share the exact same views about money.  If you are an extreme saver then maybe you are extreme in controlling other aspects of your life as well.  It is possible that being extreme is part of a personality pattern and you may be obsessive compulsive about other things in your life such as always eating well balanced meals, working out on a regular basis, keeping your home incredibly clean, sticking to a daily routine, or extreme organization.

If you are an extreme spender then maybe some other aspects of your life are also out of control. Maybe living care free is part of your charming personality and maybe being extreme (about anything) completely terrifies you.  This is not my personal choice as a way to live, but that doesn’t mean it’s a bad way to live.  As long as your bills are paid on time, as long as you have the things that you want in life, and as long as you are happy it doesn’t really matter whether you are extreme or carefree.

Photo by Rodrigo Paoletti