by rick london
As a young adult, when I was finally able to afford, at least some of the things I wanted and/or needed, I became a big fan of frivolous spending. I had to have that new issue of Esquire, that personal trainer at the gym (not just the gym), an office in a better location, a more trendy breed of dog or cat, live in a nicer neighborhood, and, of course, later, “My morning Starbuck’s”. I “had arrived”. The “American Dream” or at least for a short time it appeared that way. And what a letdown that was.
It seemed fun, at first, being a male version of Madonna’s “Material Girl”, but I was young, in my thirties and early forties, and was naive enough to believe that peer pressure at least ended after high school, and certainly after college. Not so. It became worse. If my friends bought a better house, I sure better call my Realtor immediately. They got a Lexus, time for a Mercedes. It all seemed like fun and games and, in fact that is all it was. We were simply male peacocks showing our feathers and attracting some pretty shallow female birds, as we were just as shallow.
Then came the 1994 Northridge Earthquake. Within twenty minutes, all that I had acquired as a material consumer was gone. And insurance didn’t come close to covering my collectibles, antique furniture, family albums/videos, memorabilia from as far back as kindergarten, etc. I was left with my car, and a few boxes of clothes, and a one year old golden retriever puppy named Otis who saved my life (barked wildly before the earthquake), I thought to go out to do his business, but to alert me at 5 a.m to get out of harm’s way.
A lot of water under the dam since those dark years, and I have learned something I never had before, and never thought I might learn. It is called “humility”. Please do not confuse humility with sainthood, far from it. Rebuilding one’s life from scratch midlife, after “having it all” teaches a few lessons, and, I am certain I am not unique in this situation. When I say “having it all’; I don’t mean the Forbes 400. I mean I could afford what I needed and usually what I wanted as well. Times have changed since then.
So all I had left was my health. Then it started to fail me too, for a number of years. This was a motivating factor in my enrolling in college in my forties, one thing I will never regret. I continue to read voraciously, and the local public librarians and I have become very close friends.
Possibly one of the most phenomenal books I ever read was not within the genre of books I usually consume. The book is titled “Start Late, Finish Rich” by David Bach. In it, he talks at length about something called “The Latte’ Factor”. Strange name I know, but it describes how the American consumer is taught from birth to consume all he/she can in this material world, that life is short, consume, consume, and consume some more.
David Bach gives us ways to counteract that. Do we really need that magazine subscription, must we have a latte’ and bagel each morning at our favorite coffee chain? Do we have to even buy his own book if its available at the library. Must we have a vehicle that is made to “show off” when a used Toyota or Nissan takes us safely where to our destination? I have a wonderful eight year old 4-door Saturn now and it performs better in every way than my “show off” Mercedes ever did.
When you add it all up, just the small non-necessities, that we don’t need, or, in the case of Starbuck’s and the other usual suspect (gourmet coffee chains) we could make coffee at home with flavored creamer for pennies and a bagel for a quarter, nix the magazines, etc. and we’re talking about savings of anywhere from $800-2000 or more a month. If that is put into an IRA, even if you are in your fifties now, you will be very comfortable if not wealthy by the time you are of retirement age.
A gift should be nice, but not expensive.I highly recommend personalized gifts that people see daily and enjoy and think of you when they see or use them. Gift-giving need not be removed from your spending agenda; gifts bond us and show people we care. Just more affordable ones, or even cards, as long as it is something memorable.
He recommends losing the credit cards and paying as you go, cash, check and/or debit card. I began doing that, and noticed a huge difference in my extra cash at the end of the month. He says budgeting does not work. I know he is right from experience. Prudent spending over personal budgeting wins out at the end of the day.
There is much more to the book, but the bottom line is that The Latte’ Factor need no longer be a part of our lives. Yes, at first it seems strange and a little boring, but it is a behavior modification in which, once done, we never go back. And we are happier and more prosperous in the long run for it.
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