A colleague asked me today if I was willing to spend $700 for a winter coat if the said coat would last 10 years. What??? I'd rather buy a much-needed netbook with that money (if I had that kind of money lying around). And besides, even if the coat would last 10 years it doesn't mean I'd still love it after 2 years.
I used to be a very irresponsible shopper. Whenever I fancied something, I bought it. It didn't matter if it cost an arm and a leg. If I had money to buy it, nothing stopped me. But moving to this city has given me perspective. I've seen people bury themselves in debt because they thought that with a regular paycheck it wasn't that hard to pay them all off. They didn't take into consideration that they based their security on such a volatile variable.
If there's anything that this recession has taught me it's this: If you can't afford to pay for it in cash, don't buy it. If it's not something you need, it can wait. What do we really need anyway? For certain, I don't need a $700 coat when I could buy something that would serve the same purpose for a lesser amount.
We place such a high premium on fancy things. That's why we got into this mess in the first place. We are so obssessed with designer labels and high-end phones. It's not enough to have a pre-owned car that would take us from point A to point B. It has to be a brand new BMW. If you are Donald Trump, I guess its okey. But even The Trump has a ceiling price. I don't think he would've succesfully built his empire if he was anything like us.
Note to self: cash before credit. But don't go shredding your credit cards. You still need to keep building your credit if you want to own a home someday.
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