Living Stingy To Achieve Your Financial Goals: Does It Work?

[Yusra3]

This is a question that's been floating around in my head for a while. I'm not sure how much of an impact living stingy has on our financial lives, but I've been thinking about it a lot lately because I want to know if it works.

The basic idea behind living stingy is that if you live on less than you earn, then your savings will grow faster and you'll be able to retire earlier than if you're spending as much as you earn.

But does this actually work?

I've found that the answer is: It depends.

If you have a good paying job and are already saving money from that job, then yes, living stingier can help with your savings goals. But if your income isn't very high and you're struggling to pay your bills, then maybe giving up some of those luxuries will help more than it will hurt.

It's also important to remember that we need more than just savings; we also need retirement accounts like an IRA or 401(k). If we don't have enough money saved up for retirement yet..

 

[Etini]

I don't call it living stingy. I call it delayed gratification. It is a state where you shift the maximum utility or enjoyment you would have gotten with available funds till the future. Those funds would have to be invested for a greater utility or enjoyment in the future. It is just an issue of opportunity cost and choice. Would you prefer to ride a motorcycle now to driving a car in the future? When you delay certification, it is always because you can see a bigger goal in the future. I know of so many people that delayed gratification to invest their funds in a business and they are financially okay today.

It is a matter of eating your cake and having it. It is not possible. If you don't deny yourself some things for now to build the future, your future would suffer. I don't call it living stingy.