Work at Home Job Search       Find The Perfect Home Business! Free Match Up Service
150 Home Biz Opps Got a Blog? List it for Free! Free Fax Covers
HOME BUSINESS STEP-BY-STEP GUIDES  ||  WORK AT HOME IDEAS  ||  BIZ OPPS  ||   ARTICLES  ||  CLASSIFIEDS   ||  MESSAGE BOARDS
WAHM Directory  ||  Promote Your Business ||  Links  ||  Freebies  ||  Kid Stuff  ||  Recipes  ||  Work at Home Blog  ||  Contact  ||  Advertise
TOP 20 WORK AT HOME JOBS IN YOUR CITY  ||  WORK AT HOME JOB SEARCH  ||  OUR SITES  ||  PRINTABLES   ||  BIZ TOOLS   ||  ABOUT 



Get Our Articles
On Your Website
Click Here


Moms Network Articles 
Back To School
Beauty and Fashion for Moms
Computer and Technology
Family & Kid Crafts
Finance
Frugal Living
Health and Fitness
Hobbies
Home and Garden
How To's
Life Coaching
Money, Taxes & Small Business
Motherhood
Organizing Life, Home and Work
Parent & Child
Problems With Solutions
Product Reviews
Psychology for Moms
Snippets of Success
Spiritual
Success Stories
Taking Care of You
Working @ Home
Working Your Business


Organizing Life, Home and Work
When You Can't Have It All: Separating Wants From Needs
By Cheryl Gochnauer 
Email Cheryl@homebodies.org
May 29, 2005, 20:46

Email this article
 Printer friendly page

   

Nearly everyone goes through some period in their lives where money is tight. Whether by necessity or by design, the purse snaps shut and with each potential purchase you’re forced to ask yourself: Do I really need this?

Separating wants from needs isn’t as easy as it may sound. “Most people would agree that ‘needs’ are shelter, clothing, food and transportation,” says Ronica Stromberg, a Olathe, Kansas stay-at-home parent who has had lots of practice cutting back to the basics. “The problem is that these needs easily morph into wants. Is the make and model of my vehicle so important? Do I need as many shoes as Imelda Marcos to be clothed well?”

MATCHING YOUR PARTNER’S PERCEPTIONS. Identifying necessities can get tricky when you’ve got someone else in your household to consider. For instance, what if your husband sees his golf lessons as indispensable and you don’t?

Stromberg encourages couples to discuss why they feel the way they do. “Has he received job promotions in the past after schmoozing the boss on the greens or networking with others? Share your definitions of ‘need,’ then search for some common ground.” Talk about areas where you’re each willing to give. “One person can’t make all the sacrifices, though,” she warns. “That’s guaranteed to breed resentment.”

LOVING THY NEIGHBOR’S STUFF. “There are people all over the world who are living off a fraction of what we Americans do,” Stromberg notes. “If you start comparing your lifestyle with theirs instead of people around you, you begin to see what great abundance you have and where you can cut.”

The pull to keep up with the American Joneses is hard to resist, though. It’s easy to get caught up in the competition,” she admits, “unless you set different priorities for your life. People who run after youth and riches often end up disappointed and disillusioned. Everyone gets older, and there will always be someone with more money than you.”

INDULGING IN MODERATION. That doesn’t mean you can’t cut loose sometimes. “You shouldn’t get yourself so focused on saving money that you can’t ever enjoy spending it,” says Stromberg. The key is to control your finances, not vice versa. “Work toward getting some financial cushion. Then once you have it, splurge every once in a while on the extras you don’t really need, but you truly want. Reward yourself.”

-------------------
Copyright 2005
Comments? Write Cheryl at homebodies@comcast.net or discuss cost-saving ideas on the active message boards at www.homebodies.org. If you’d like to get an autographed copy of Cheryl’s "Stay-at-Home Handbook," visit http://www.gospelcom.net/homebodies/bookstore/orderSAHH.php


© Copyright 2003 - 2011 by MomsNetwork.com

Top of Page


Submit Articles
Organizing Life, Home and Work
Latest Headlines
Time Management Tips For Working Moms
Natural Disasters Raise Data Recovery Awareness
7 Organizing Personalities and 14 Ways to Start Small
Get Organized Secrets
25 Tips and Tricks for an Organized Move
Organizing Tips For The New Year
HOUSEWORK + HUSBAND = HEADACHE?
Planning Your Garage Sale

         

Free Content for Websites   Free Fax Covers   Direct Sales Opportunities   Home Business Profiles   Message Boards
How to Choose a Home Based Business   100 Home Party Games   Work at Home Tips  Guide to Direct Sales Success  
Partners In Success   Free Online Business Card   Webring   Coloring Pages  Crafts   Recipes   Family Links Guide

©Copyright 1997 - 2013 Moms Network Exchange (MNE) No content from the MNE site can be used without written permission.
Moms Network  P.O. Box 238  Rosemount, MN  55068 (phone) 651-423-4036  (fax) 651-322-1702