SOME think money will solve all their problems, others think “mo money, mo problems”. Some argue money is the root of all evil, while others say the lack of money is the root of all evil. Some think that money can’t buy happiness, others think it definitely helps a lot. The one person who never changed his mind about money was Oscar Wilde, who famously said that “When I was young I thought money was the most important thing in life; now that I am old, I know that it is.”
Regardless of your attitude about money, how you handle it, tells a lot about you as a person. At risk of being called an amateur psychologist and provoking a lot of people, this is what your money management skills (might) reveal about you, whether you want it to or not.
If you buy discounted items, you may suffer from low self-esteem. Of course, you could simply be a frugal person, but if you never want to pay the full price for an item it could mean you don’t believe you are worth the full price? This could spill over in your professional career in which you never ask for a promotion or a raise, or never negotiate hard for your salary because you secretly believe you are not worth it.
If you spend a lot of money on your friends, you may require a lot of social validation. If you love to treat your friends and buy them drinks and presents all the time or buy extravagant gifts for their birthdays, perhaps you are just being a great friend. Or maybe you’re afraid they won’t like you if you don’t spend money on them? If you are only happy and secure if you receive enough compliments, likes, shares and upvotes from your social environment, it could definitely bankrupt you!
If you’re anal about budgeting, perhaps you are a control freak. Of course, budgeting is important to manage your money. But if you track everything down to the last Ringgit and are hyper-organised, down to knowing expiration dates of reward points and categorising your spending behaviour in 50+ categories, that is downright scary. Perhaps you have trouble handling unpredictability and maintain a very rigorous lifestyle in order to feel in control?
Your life will come crashing down once a situation occurs in which you realise not everything is under your control. You might even be at risk of acquiring more serious obsessions, such as eating disorders and auto-mutilation, in order to feel in control.
Are you a hoarder? Do you have much more money than your home, clothes and meals reveal? Could you live much more comfortable till the last days of your life with your savings, but you somehow still pinch every penny sideways? Perhaps your friends and family are even turning away from you because you are stingy without a reason. Saving just for the sake of saving, without a clear goal or a reason in mind doesn’t make sense. You may require a lot of security and your savings are giving you just that – but nothing else!
If you have extreme attitudes regarding money, they may potentially indicate a deeper-rooted issue which you may not know exists. Don’t worry to quickly though! In moderation, these are all very sound attitudes to have. It is only when we take them to the extreme that we should become worried.
Mark Reijman is co-founder and managing director of www.CompareHero.my, dedicated to increasing financial literacy and to help you save time and money by comparing all credit cards, personal loans and broadband plans in Malaysia.
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