Looking A Certain Way In Correlation With Spending Habits
Financial Management

Looking A Certain Way In Correlation With Spending Habits

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This was sort of an interesting but common predicament that a lot of people have and that I just saw recently. A person I know is currently trying to maintain a certain budget in his lifestyle by not doing things such as spending so much money dining out all the time. Now he mentioned that he has been able to follow that plan as he has been doing things such as bringing his own lunch to work. The weird thing is, just then I saw that he was spending money by buying his lunch instead and it was more than an average meal price. So, that kind of contradicted what he just said.

I then asked about that and the funny answer he gave was that he was wearing a suit and all as he was meeting some people that day and for him to bring something from home and carrying like a lunch bag to work doesn’t feel right to him while at the same time he feels that it will project a less than admirable image of him. I personally find things like that to be a little on the being too subconscious side. Surprisingly though, I guess this type of thing happens more often than we can imagine.

Special occasions and those types of things I can see where you are kind of expected to do certain things, but I personally think believing that dressing a certain way obligates you in having to say spend as much as you look is a bit much. I mean, do you mange your finances for yourself or to please others as an example? It just seems like something back in one’s early school days.

2 Comments

  • Bob T 6/28/2007

    I thought that’s what briefcases were for.

    Really, it comes down to attitude. If you think, “I can’t afford to buy lunch,” you’re likely to want to conceal your brown bag. If you think, “I’m taking charge of my future so I can live the life I want,” you can show it off.

    Confidence in yourself and your choices tends to impress others more than what you eat for lunch.

  • James Simmons 7/5/2007

    Sometimes you just have to live up to the expectations of others.

    For example: You are a businessman meeting a prospective (partner, supplier, employee, customer……, take your pick) and your meeting lasts over lunch time. At this point, you don’t want to leave this person on their own during lunch, so you not only buy your own lunch, but you also end up buying the other person’s lunch. This is perfectly acceptable and would not violate Bob’s “attitude” statement above. You are not thinking “I can’t afford lunch”. You are being a good host.

    On another note, suppose your friends are eating out for lunch and they invite you, at the last minute? Do you not go, simply because of your budget? If you don’t go enough times, your friends may stop asking. That is just a fact in realtionship dynamics. Of course, you don’t have to go every time.

    Essentially, you can decide to go or not, depending on the circumstances at the time and the dynamics of whatever relationships you have, whether business or pleasure.

    Just my two-cents worth.

    James Simmons, President & CEO PCUG

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