Most people probably wouldn’t really consider money management when they think of addiction. Usually we think of the normal human vices like drugs, alcohol, and sex, but rarely do we consider some less extreme behaviors as addiction as well. The truth is, addiction is a disease that can consume any behavior, regardless of its origin or social status. Over time the environment around us, including our own personality, condition us to act and behave certain ways. Those actions start to feel routine and normal to us as they make up our reality. Thus, the longer we continue those behaviors, the harder they become to break. Not only that, but we’re so used to them that they “feel” right to us. This can be a dangerous combination when it comes to destructive behaviors that can take over our lives.
While no one would argue the urgency or importance of a drug or alcohol addiction, I would think that an addiction to irresponsible spending can be just as devastating to your life. While it may not directly affect your health like the former addictions, it can be a precursor for those addictions. Our society is so taken over by the lust and need for money that it drives much of the bad news we see on TV every day. Murders, robberies, assaults, home invasions, the list goes on. Sure there are some out there that just do it because it someone arouses their interests, but most of these incidents stem from money, or a lack of it. Part of what is to blame for that is a lack of proper guidance and money management skills. I know, it’s sounds stupid to blame the crime in America on poor money management skills, and I’m not trying to say that’s the root cause. I’m just saying that money is a factor in just about everything we do in our lives, and if you’re irresponsible with it you have a good chance of getting into things that do affect your health and well-being.
So what does this commentary have to do with your daily finances? Well, the behaviors that cause us to never quite get over the hump with our savings, or never quite pay off that credit card balance, or never quite put away as much as we’d like to retirement have a close relationship with the extreme behaviors from above. While they may seem much less dangerous, the concept is the same. We find it common sense to be disciplined when it comes to drugs or alcohol, because we perceive it as a critical issue. A life or death situation. If we applied the same perception and discipline to our finances, it can carry us to much greater heights financially as well. It might seem silly to consider your monthly budget a life or death situation, but it definitely is serious when it comes to the financial security of yourself and your family. That’s the financial security that hopefully keeps you and your family away from the drugs, the alcohol, the robberies, etc. So in a way it really is a life or death situation, just one that only those with the vision to see it that way will reap the rewards.
