Societal Pressure & Personal Finance

   

Recently I was at a conference in the city and between sessions, I decided to go for a walk outside. The conference was in a very trendy hotel in a nice part of the city.

Parked outside of the hotel were very nice cars and SUVs. They were luxury vehicles and appeared clean and sleek. 

Instantly I thought to myself, it would feel so good driving one of these. And a moment later, I thought there is no way I’m selling my current vehicle to add onto my loan balance and acquiring one of these.

But then another thought entered my mind. I do need to get my tires replaced anyway. What if I get my tires replaced and as part of that process replaces my factory wheels with a new set of nice aftermarket rims. I’ve always admired nice looking rims (I kind of grew up when that whole Fast and Furious thing was on the verge).

So while half-listening to the next training session, I started googling deals on tire and rim packages. Less than 10 minutes into my search, I thought to myself that, the only people that will enjoy its appearance are others, not me. I will be INSIDE the car so I’ll really only appreciate it when I enter and exit the car. And so my brain could not rationalize spending half a grand on rims. Furthermore, it is a cosmetic expense on top of a rapidly depreciating asset.

The purchase and installation of the rims would not materially affect my net worth. But at the same time, it wouldn’t add significant value to my life either. So I treated seeing the fancy cars parked in front of the hotel just as a reflex of my emotions. It happened and then it passed.

Pressure Is Inevitable

Societal pressure is all around us and depending on where we go, it may increase or decrease. But there are always two sides to things. So here is a quick list of luxury items I observed during my conference break and the effect of acquiring such items.

  • Shiny rims – little to no visual appeal as I would be inside my car.
  • Boats on the dock (the conference was at a waterfront hotel) – I can’t afford a boat anyway and even if I could, there are docking and maintenance costs to consider.
  • Fancy restaurants – I go to a fancy restaurant a couple of times a year for special occasions. Many fancy restaurants are in the city so there are driving and parking costs to consider.
  • Upscale shopping – many of the branded stores I saw don’t have the best sales. I can find much better deals at stores like Marshalls and T.J. Maxx.
  • Luxury apartments – these are not as practical as I have a family with small kids. I also have a large extended family with frequent guests. Maybe once I retire moving to a high-rise in the city could be an option, but it’

Pressure From All Senses

There are examples of pressures which target all of our senses and can result in consumer products:

  • Sightseeing nice cars and fancy clothes. Again at the conference that I attended, I spotted someone wearing these nice brown oxford shoes. Instantly I started wondering where he purchased them from, how comfortable they may be, what different types of outfits I can wear them with. The pressure to get them took over for about three minutes. Then I went back to refocus on the presenter.
  • Smell – passing by fancy restaurants. This happened as well at the conference during my walks as there were nice restaurants all around the city.
  • Sound – music, movies, and sounds of nature
  • Touch – going into one of those stores that have comfortable massage chairs, cushions, padding for your bed, shoes, and other products that provide some sort of comfort.
  • Taste – types of food we have been meaning to try or enjoy eating often

So it’s important for us to realize which ones are truly important for us to embrace that will continually provide an enhanced quality of life, not just temporary satisfaction. For example, every now and then, I like to visit a restaurant and try something new. So I’m embracing the sight and smell senses in that regard.

Ensuring Pressures Align With Your Goals

The best way I’ve found to fight off societal pressure is to take a step back and remind yourself of your personal finance goals. What are your goals for earning and investing? Do any of the societal pressures align with your goals? It’s really important to take time and energy to identify your goals because goals help create self-awareness. 

For example, if one of your goals is to try out new several new restaurants within the next year, that’s great. You’ve determined that visiting and enjoying new restaurants is an activity that creates value for you and you’ve probably carved out a budget for it.

So if we take the scientific definition of pressure, which is the exertion of force upon a surface by an object, the pressure needs to be released before it explodes. How can we release this mental social pressure when it exerts itself upon us?

Well, we can take a step back, even literally if needed and diffuse the pressure in our head by simply asking ourselves if accepting the pressure will align with our personal financial goals. We can write down the so-called pressure, why it is happening, what will happen if we indulge in it, what will happen if we deny it and how doing so can help or hurt our goals.

Join The Discussion:

  1. How do you fight off societal pressure so you can stay focused on your own personal financial situation?
  2. Have you caved in to societal pressure in the past? Was it worth it?

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