Are You A Financial Sinner? Round Up and Uncommon Money News

By: Roshawn Watson

I read a very interesting post last week over at Money Reasons entitled: Frugal Sins of a Personal Finance Blogger. The satirical tone was so inviting, I couldn’t help but participate. Before I knew it, I was confessing my love of eating at nice restaurants and entertainment. Apparently, I wasn’t alone in my transgressions, as there were several people who used the comment section to gain absolution. The idea is to highlight that everyone has an Achilles heel when it comes to frugality.

Upon reflection, I really don’t feel that there is really any reason we should feel guilty for enjoying ourselves if we have been responsible, such as operating off of a budget, have become debt-free, supported causes or ministries that we believe in, and invested for our futures. There is absolutely nothing wrong with making responsible purchases from which we derive pleasure. I would argue this is part of frugality: obtaining maximum value for input. Guilt-free enjoyment of our money is part of the financial peace that we should all be aiming for anyway.

If this is so, then why are we so hard on ourselves? Well, in some cases, we haven’t been particularly responsible, so our self-criticism is somewhat justified. Also, many of us are conditioned to feel good old-fashioned “Protestant and Catholic guilt,” regardless of how responsible we have been. In these cases, it is a lot less about our balance sheets and more reflective of the internal struggles to feel “worthy” of such pleasures. Lastly, I do think that there is an adjustment process that we go through as well. For example, I have significantly less stress now than I did just 5 years ago. As we mature and reach financial goals, we reevaluate what is frugal at this time in life. I remember a time when going on a vacation seemed irresponsible; however, this is no longer the case.

Thought Question: Are there any things that you feel guilty about that you shouldn’t?

Now, it’s time to do the weekly Uncommon Money News and Yakezie Round Up.

Uncommon Money News and Yakezie Round Up

In preparing to write my posts, I often come across noteworthy and sometimes bizarre financial and business news. Below are links to some of these sites. Enjoy!

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Personal Finance (Yakezie and other PF bloggers)
Welcome to the Post Consumerism Era: Will You Make the Turn? at Balance Junkie – 2cents explains what is necessary to be prepared in this turbulent economic environment: Deleveraging, Downsizing, and Destabilization plus much more.

Your Overconfidence Could Hurt Your Portfolio at Moneyed Up – Miranda Marquit explains why being an average investor isn’t so bad after all.

Frugal Sins Of A Personal Finance Blogger at Money Reasons – Money Reasons highlights that everyone has an Achilles heel when it comes to frugality.

Memo to Government, Cut Spending at Hope to Prosper – Bret makes some interesting points about the present intersection between politics and the economy.

15 Inexpensive Things to Do in The Fall at Everyday Tips – Kris welcomes you to embrace some fun activities this Fall that don’t break the bank.

Should Each Partner Have a Little My Money? at Frugal Dad – Jason discusses why it makes sense for he and his wife to have little private funds set aside.

Business News
30% Of Young Netflix Subscribers Are Skipping Cable

Economic News
California unemployment rate rises to 12.4%

Offbeat Money News and Humor
Tostitos Dip Caused a Bloodbath At Our House at The Penny Frugalista – Nicole explains how both she and her husband were “attacked” by a jar of dip.

Entertainment Money News
16 Luxurious Celebrity Homes on the Market

‘Big Bang Theory’ cast gets sizable salary bump (to the tune of a couple hundred thousand per episode)

Who Earns More Tom Brady or wife Gisele Bundchen?

Ben Affleck’s Welcome in Town (#1 movie); Joaquin Phoenix’s Shunned

My Guest Post