Waiting for the Deal

Well, Black Friday is coming to a close. And while it was not my intention to spend anything I inevitably did.  I am sure I am not alone with what transpired to my pocketbook today. 

Prefer Audio Tune in HERE

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How about you – did you make a purchase or two?

What I did do was weigh all my options. 

·         Determined my exact needs. 

·         I only searched for those items. 

·         Took advantage of the savings.

Making these purchases was an investment for me physically, mentally, and financially.

Many times we don’t discuss the need to buy something that will make our lives simpler.  We tend to neglect our own personal health to accommodate all those things we are supposed to do.  The things that all have a price tag we are not willing to pay or can’t afford to pay.

Now to be fair my finances are in order and I could technically make any purchase I want.  The difference is I choose not to.  This has everything to do with my upbringing, my early financial struggles, my crash and burns moments and my awakening to understanding all things money and finance.

I know that what I have today could be gone tomorrow.  Without warning or reason, but I also know I’m not done with this life yet and I want to ensure that I always have enough for the future.  

Many times this has led me to conversations with people who talk about the latest fad or the must-have item.  I guess you could say it reminds of years gone by.  You know the age of keeping up with the Jones or the neighbours next door.  I can’t resist the urge to say ‘and how much did that cost you’.

Most would call this being nosey, but in my mind, I just want to know to compare pricing.  To better understand how the cost aligns with the value of the purchase.  If there would have been a more affordable alternative option.

You are probably saying to yourself at this moment;  ‘who the cares’. 

Well, you see I do because managing money is my business.  So staying in tune with the thought process behind making a purchase and the cost associated with it is education to me.

It allows my mind - storage bank to retain and analyze the data and store it for the next person who might need it.  After all, my main focus is to reduce debt, build growth, and have cash flow.  So the more I know about what motivates you to spend - the more I understand the pitfalls and safeguards to put in place for others.

Like when I determined my needs to purchase a commercial shredder. 

·         Did I already have one? – yes 

·         Did it still work? – yes 

·         So why would I even consider making the purchase for another one?

The balance becomes; what is the current shredder costing me in time and management.  The cumbersome task of shredding documentation, because we have such a security risk out there these days, means everything needs to be disposed of constantly.

The current shredder had a small capacity before the container filled, or the continuous motions sent it into sleep mode while it recharged its blades.  Idle time meant moving on to something else and inevitably the job not being completed.

With the endless array of documents within my personal stuff, my client documents and details, and then the addition of my mother’s estate preparation.  [Don’t even get me started on saving everything because you might need it.]

Bottom line if I was to get all that done that needed to be done - the old shredder had to go and a new more efficient model needed to take its place.  But, have you looked at the price of those things. 

And so the dilemma became real as I was not willing to part with the cash to achieve the efficiency.  Well, that is, until today as I took advantage of a $100 saving on the cost price.

Yet the fact of the matter is we all in some way or another procrastinate that of which we really need vs. that of which will make our life better. Sometimes it is the small things that we ignore which will make our lives so much richer overall. 

What did I lose – 4 months while I procrastinated!

What did I gain – exactly what I wanted at a price I wanted.

When in life you need something to balance your time and management but it seems impossible to attain because of cost.  Take a moment and breathe.  Finalize what it is you really need, and then work towards attaining it.  Nothing is impossible if you are determined to reach the end goal.

Care to Comment or have questions - feel free to reach out and contact me.