Before I talk my financial fears, let’s talk about a more immediate fear: I’m really excited about this weekend (my college roommate is visiting!), but I’m kind of afraid that the plague is making a comeback. I was feeling a lot better earlier in the week but now my throat is hurting again and I’m coughing and sneezing a lot. We’ll see..
Nothing is really new on the financial front, but I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about my mindset about money. I’m counting down the days until I can make that personal loan payment. I’m not only looking forward to paying it off because of the toll it was taking on my finances, but I’m looking forward to freeing up a little cash for my own enjoyment. I’m not going to make the rookie mistake of paying off debt only to increase my lifestyle (or worse, pile the debt back on again) but I realized earlier this week that I’ve been so focused on paying off this debt that I’ve been forgetting to enjoy my life. I’ve turned down invitations to do things that would have really been enjoyable (not just time-filler activities) because I’m so focused on debt payoff, and I’ve become sort of a scrooge about having fun because I’m afraid it will cost too much. This is a side of myself that I don’t really like. And I think it boils down to fear.
I think I’m genuinely afraid that if I let myself have too much fun or enjoy life too much I’m going to wind up in debt again. I need to find a happy medium between enjoying life and being responsible with my money, and I’m just not sure how to do that because I have no experience with it. I need to re-adjust my financial mindset, and I’m asking for help.
How do you balance living in the moment and enjoying your life and being financially responsible?
