Balance between living your life and saving for your future

[tomatostellar]

Do you feel your life is balanced when it comes to living in the NOW vs. saving for the future?
Yes? No? How can you say so?

[chiqmom]

i want to give a definite answer but all i can say is "maybe". but it is hard to keep the balance that's why i have to rearrange and organize myself too often.

usually, i spend the weekends the way i want to live my "present", not thinking of anything. so weekend usually means going to the beach, malling, or cooking for the family. well this is my idea of living a happy life. i also get my massage on weekends. i try not to open emails or answer texts during weekends. i learned this from the book, the Monk who Sold his Ferrari, that there should be times when you have to choose more important and lasting things or people in your life. and that you should not fret always about answering phone calls or whatever.

weekdays are spent working and thinking about my future. i am a single mom so i cannot help it. i have to keep my future a priority for my kids na din.

i think, in the end, it is not about living on our present or for our future, as long as we find balance and contentment in our daily life, then that would do well. 

[tomatostellar]

^sis how about managing your finances?
syempre enjoying now would mean gastos food, travel misc.

[quinone]

ako naman sis pagdating sa money matters medyo worrier ako, so gusto ko talaga laging may savings, parang security blanket ko siya. such as iba pa yung normal savings sa emergency fund, sa biglaang hospitalization, sa retirement, etc...

gusto ko ang pag-spend ng money ko 'realistic,' parati ko nire-remind yung sarili ko na huwag maging pretentious. feeling ko minsan kasi may binibili tayong unnecessary to please other people. chaka i don't buy anything na hindi ko kayang palitan kagad (except house of course), kung halimbawa bumili ako ng high-end bag, binili ko lang yan because kaya ko siya palitan kagad at hindi ako magiiyak kapag nawala yan o nanakaw. yun ang standards ko para masabi ko na i can afford to buy that item, spend on that vacation, or eat that food.

siguro basically, ang sinasabi ko is live within your means pero kung mag-travel ka doon lang sa budget mo, kumain ka sa labas na pasok lang rin sa budget mo. hindi ko nire-recommend na i-substitute one pleasure for another like kakain ka na lang sa labas instead na mag-travel or you won't eat out & travel kasi lalagay mo na lang yung money for your house, kasi if ako yan i'd feel 'lacking' and most probably feel depressed too. basta dapat everyday strive lang to earn more para mas ma-enjoy pa ang buhay, but don't forget to help others rin when you get your blessings.

[twelvth_goddess]

^I'm a worrier too kaya hinde pwede saken ang walang savings, especially for my daughter.

My husband and I save money for our daughter, we have a mutual funds account, and I have my own savings account. Pero si hubby walang sariling savings dahil nahigop ng family nya na lageng may kelangan.

I'm a firm believer in living within our means. I love to shop and eat out pero ayaw na ayaw ko ng utang. We don't go on vacations on a whim or splurge on latest gadgets ng basta basta without planning for it. Even if we have savings, we set aside money for vacations and what not.

[aquacharly]

Do you feel your life is balanced when it comes to living in the NOW vs. saving for the future?
Yes? No? How can you say so?

All I can say is --  yes, pretty much balanced, to the best of my/our abilities.

I love the good  life, the trappings of wealth --  but inuna namin ni hubby putting in place income-generating assets & really worked 19/7 on our businesses for years before we went into unnecessary consumption.
We also put off having kids for 5 years while we built up our businesses & accumulated assets.


As in, we are mortgage/loan free. Own real estate properties, & other assets --  which are all income-generating except for this house we live in. 
We have locked down trust funds for the kids --  for top rate education. 
I have my own portfolio & real estate properties,  & secret accounts. 

We did not make kurakot, but worked hard for what we have.  There's a big difference kasi in spending patterns, lifestyle & SATISFACTION level of those who work vs kurakot.  Hahaha, but true.
It is easier to moderate greed when money is worked for. Hahaha.

So, I love & enjoy the trappings of wealth but I am never wasteful. We enjoy the simple things in life too. 
Pero ayoko din denying myself at magku-kuripot for the kids, their future, their future families.  Hello, I don't want my kids to feel they don't need to work --  like some parasitic adults with bad habits.

I believe my life is balanced coz I do not feel helpless. I mean, yes what happens is up to God -- but  I will not end up crying and suffering indeterminately coz Life  throws a curved ball.  Being balanced means, IMO, always having options & the ability & means to bounce back, regardless.   

What else? 
We compensate all employees & laborers with above-industry rates.
For me, after family needs are covered, providing stable employment to quite a number,  is the greatest "balance".  They have families too. And I get a kick out of hearing through the years that they get to own a house/a car/jeep/tricycles/rental vans, send all their kids to school, set up some small side business, travel abroad, etc

Life IS beautiful; THANK YOU, GOD.

[craziestqueenever]

^ I really admire you, Sis aquacharly!

[whinx]

^^ very well said sis aquacharly. I hope I can do the same. It's really a challenge to live a life and at the same time save for the future specially when you have limited resources.

[aquacharly]

^Sis, once upon a time we too had "limited resources" -- that is subjective, after all.
We started not from zero, sure --  but nothing near from where we are now.  Thank you God!!

Then once, times got tough.
As in, business was really really bad.
But as long as you have proven integrity (people will always do business with you/extend suppliers' credit/recommend your company), sipag, trust in God,  persistence --  you will bounce back. 

To advance in life --  you must avoid being fearful. 
Always open your eyes & ears to what is happening around you, & in the world. 
Always live beneath your means, no matter how rich you get to become.
And on your way up, pull along others with you.  Hindi puedeng ikaw lang aasenso.
     Specially, your employees --  their lives must progress along with yours. 
     Most specially, your maids and drivers -- those who live separate from their families to be at your family's beck & call.  (I have sent them to school/abroad; or helped them set up small businesses their families/they can manage well: sari2 store/tricycles/jeepney, whatever.)

So there, Sis WHINX, "Limited Resources" is only a Starting Point; it need not be a Permanent State of Affairs.

Good luck to all of us!!! 

[girl24]

if everything is up to me, i will scrimp and save, save, SAVE always. just like other sisses here worrier ako sa finances. i hate being short. i hate not having the exact amount i need for the school fees a month before. gusto ko lahat planado, lahat me nakalaan na na pera.

but ang husband ko naman ang motto in life is --- splurge pag meron.

so in a way nababalance kasi pag weekends, we eat out, buy stuff (kasi kukulitin ako ni hubby na kailangan yun) BUT yung important things like tuition fees, medical expenses, etc. i make sure na meron ako natatago na. iron clad rule na yun at hindi pwede gamitin sa kung [textspeak!] anong bagay lamang.

i'm a staunch believer also in buying stuff to ask myself or mainly husband to ask first is it a need or a want...

[84SCORP]

aquacharly

Thank you for this quote' nag light bigla yung bulb sa head ko when i read this. It means a lot.

To advance in life --  you must avoid being fearful.

[luckymommy88]

I must say na hubby and I delayed our gratification too much pero thankful na din atleast now medyo maluwag na we can afford to splurge paminsan-minsan,travel a bit and help others. We try to stick to our targeted monthly savings and investment and the rest pwede na spend.

[chiqmom]

^sis how about managing your finances?

ito ang mahirap.hehe anyway, what i do is to limit my desires. kuripot kasi ako e when it comes to myself.

[whinx]

So there, Sis WHINX, "Limited Resources" is only a Starting Point; it need not be a Permanent State of Affairs.

Yup. Agree sis! Thanks for all the insights.

[ziva]

^Sis, once upon a time we too had "limited resources" -- that is subjective, after all.
We started not from zero, sure --  but nothing near from where we are now.  Thank you God!!

Then once, times got tough.
As in, business was really really bad.
But as long as you have proven integrity (people will always do business with you/extend suppliers' credit/recommend your company), sipag, trust in God,  persistence --  you will bounce back. 

To advance in life --  you must avoid being fearful. 
Always open your eyes & ears to what is happening around you, & in the world. 
Always live beneath your means, no matter how rich you get to become.
And on your way up, pull along others with you.  Hindi puedeng ikaw lang aasenso.
     Specially, your employees --  their lives must progress along with yours. 
     Most specially, your maids and drivers -- those who live separate from their families to be at your family's beck & call.  (I have sent them to school/abroad; or helped them set up small businesses their families/they can manage well: sari2 store/tricycles/jeepney, whatever.)

So there, Sis WHINX, "Limited Resources" is only a Starting Point; it need not be a Permanent State of Affairs.

Good luck to all of us!!!

This is such a positive quote! Very inspiring...    I especially agree on the treatment of maids, etc.

[rheinfall18]

for me personally mahirap to, kelangan talaga mamili ka sa dalawa. either you save more or your spend more. i don't think you can do both on a 50-50 manner

[aquacharly]

^Exactly.  We aim to always live BENEATH our means, therein lies the better balance - IMO.
That entails discipline & forces you to ante up your business creativity.  (It is best if you save AND create more returns than what banks give you.)

Happiness, or living a Good Balance, is not only for the rich. 
But Happiness comes from leading a balanced life. No work & no play is extremely bad.
One must find pockets of happiness or self-indulgence that do not strain one's current resources.
Be creative. Be happy now, don't postpone it for some future day. 

[toinkz]

gotta agree. for me i apply the 80/20 rule wherein 80% of the year i save while the the rest i make sure we experience things to make new memories. as they say you can always make money but you can't always make memories.

[mooncake and leaves]

like what the others said, balance isn't necessarily 50-50. mine is like 70-30 din. i save on a lot of things so i can afford the things that matter most to me like my travel plans and good food & entertainment once in a while. talagang meron at meron kang masasacrifice and some of your desires, you can't always fulfill. the key is knowing and prioritizing what you want.

[pinesfly]

Just live within your means.