[Coins]

I spend my money. You all should see my monthly comics purchases from DCBS.

I could die tonight. I have no kids so no reason to save it all.

[Mgoblue201]

It's not that I have self-control, it's that I'm neurotic about wasting money. Better to just let it accrue untouched.

[Raknar]

I save hard, then spend big. I hate buying little things every now and then. I'd much rather save for longer and get something that I'll have / use / enjoy for a long time.

[Alligatorjandro]

I save to spend

[Dog Problems]

Hey big spender, dig this blender.

[ArtistDude88]

Self-control except steam... dat backlog :|

Same. I can go for weeks not buying anything for myself (except the essentials). But once something good comes up in a Steam deal.... :-\

[jb1234]

I'm on a fixed income due to disability so as a general rule, if I'm not careful with my money, I either find myself eating nothing or eating top ramen (which I'm doing right now, in fact. I threw some tofu in there for extra protein but top ramen is top ramen, you know?).

[.GqueB.]

I'm in full on save mode right now. Trying to save up so I can move out. I was once extremely bad with money and I just recently got rid of a $10,000 credit card balance that was haunting me for a while. I don't even remember what I purchased. Right now, I'm on a pretty strict $120 a week budget which includes groceries. Doing well so far. Saving about 900 a month and it's not as hard as I thought it would be.

[Tragicomedy]

My wife calls me frugal, but I'm really a bit further down the spectrum than that. We save 40-50% of my paycheck every month. My goal is to stash away half a million in the next 10 years. Inflation, currency devaluation, blah, blah blah. I'd rather save more than less.

That said: I'm not insane. We buy everything we need. We enjoy traveling. We just don't make any impulse purchases, and we discuss every single purchase of $100 or higher (except groceries). We don't eat out hardly at all. Neither of us cares much about clothes or fashion.

We never borrow money on anything. Pay for used vehicles in cash. Credit cards are untouched.

No smartphones. And no cable TV is a big help. You can get pretty much everything for free in HD with a UHF/VHF antenna.

[Gradivus]

I have self control.

Back when I was about 12, my grandmother bought me a lotto ticket for my Christmas present. In the end I won about $1,500 from it (which was a lot for a 12 year old). I ended up buying games, DVD player, DVDs and a present for my Grandmother just a day after I received the money. Even since then, I've been careful with my money ever since seeming its just so easy to blow it away with your interests that you cater for.

Other than games and travelling, I don't really have much stuff that I want to buy now days (besides housing related stuff).

[Tragicomedy]

I'm in full on save mode right now. Trying to save up so I can move out. I was once extremely bad with money and I just recently got rid of a $10,000 credit card balance that was haunting me for a while. I don't even remember what I purchased. Right now, I'm on a pretty strict $120 a week budget which includes groceries. Doing well so far. Saving about 900 a month and it's not as hard as I thought it would be.

Congrats! Keep up the good work. I spend a good amount of time counseling my troops on getting out of debt and saying up an emergency + rainy day fund. You can literally see the pressure of debt melt away month after month...very rewarding to get out of debt.

[.GqueB.]

Congrats! Keep up the good work. I spend a good amount of time counseling my troops on getting out of debt and saying up an emergency + rainy day fund. You can literally see the pressure of debt melt away month after month...very rewarding to get out of debt.

Nice! What amount do you typically recommend for a rainy day fund? Just curious if I'm on the right track.

[Piecake]

I hate spending money, and actually enjoy saving more than I do spending it. So i guess its not really about self-control, more that I like having money and dont like wasting it on things that i dont need

[alphaNoid]

I have self control, however I do buy some things every now and then and when I do they are always expensive. I buy no clothes, or little day to day stuff but will buy camera gear, gadgets and shit, or guns throughout the year.

But mostly I'm good with money, and manage to save a massive chunk of my salary for other more important stuff.

[Tragicomedy]

Nice! What amount do you typically recommend for a rainy day fund? Just curious if I'm on the right track.

Well the first grand is the most important, by far. That's more for the emergency side of the house. Prevents you from having to dip into a credit card in case something goes wrong with your car, or health, or something along those lines.

As far as the rainy day fund goes, that totally depends on your lifestyle and comfort level. Most "experts" say to save 3-6 months worth of your pay, so you can absorb an unexpected blow like unemployment. If you have rock solid employment, that may be less necessary. If you aren't married and don't have kids I don't see why you'd need more than 5K or so for whatever pops up.

Bottom line: whatever amount helps you sleep more comfortably at night. My wife and I like to feel extremely safe, so we keep 25K stashed in a liquid place. That's probably way too much for most people, but it works for us. We know we can cover a year and a half of mortgage payments if necessary, or buy a decent used car with cash and avoid interest payments.

The trick is to not tap into it unless it's absolutely necessary, then immediately build it back up once you do. The rainy day fund is there for large-scale purchases that aren't expected. If there's something you have planned and want to save up for, keep that separate.

[LuffyZoro]

My problem is I have a squirrel hoarding syndrome to money I save, save, save, then when I think it's about right amount/time, I unleash the wealth, start the stockpiling again I do it on a wave basis Some months nothing, then 1-2 months shopping bonanza, always leave Best Buy during Black Friday like a fucking champ! My mom says that I'm like my father, he did the same thing, I never knew that about him Really weird habit

I do the exact same thing.

[.GqueB.]

Well the first grand is the most important, by far. That's more for the emergency side of the house. Prevents you from having to dip into a credit card in case something goes wrong with your car, or health, or something along those lines. As far as the rainy day fund goes, that totally depends on your lifestyle and comfort level. Most "experts" say to save 3-6 months worth of your pay, so you can absorb an unexpected blow like unemployment. If you have rock solid employment, that may be less necessary. If you aren't married and don't have kids I don't see why you'd need more than 5K or so for whatever pops up. Bottom line: whatever amount helps you sleep more comfortably at night. My wife and I like to feel extremely safe, so we keep 25K stashed in a liquid place. That's probably way too much for most people, but it works for us. We know we can cover a year and a half of mortgage payments if necessary, or buy a decent used car with cash and avoid interest payments. The trick is to not tap into it unless it's absolutely necessary, then immediately build it back up once you do. The rainy day fund is there for large-scale purchases that aren't expected. If there's something you have planned and want to save up for, keep that separate.

Very helpful. Right now I'm shooting for around 10-12k. Would cover me for about a year if anything happened. Seemed like a good number. 25k sounds better though, lol.

[Platy]

Got nothing at the last Steam Summer Sell.

Self control level 99.

....but it is REALLY hard to have self control over artbooks =x
I usualy explains to my brain that I work with art, so they are work resources.

[dekline]

I don't have a lot of money for big spending so self control is a must.

[BPRD]

i buy crack like its fkn crack

[Tashi]

I suck at saving money. I spend on a lot of stupid shit and I'm very giving with my money. I have to become more cheap :/

[GraveRobberX]

I suck at saving money. I spend on a lot of stupid shit and I'm very giving with my money. I have to become more cheap :/

Also stop caring so much... jeez... giving money away... what, you think charity is worth it? =D

[Snkfanatic]

Big spender...trying to change that now over the past few months.

[Persona7]

Save some, spend some.

[wenis]

depends on the situation, but with just saying that I suppose it implies I have some self-control.


Although if there is a record I really fancy at the moment and have the cash to buy it. I don't see anything wrong with that.

[DjangoReinhardt]

I have self-control. On top of that, I set a budget for myself and track my spending.

[Double_Helix]

I used to be but had to stop it lol

[Mr. F]

I have self-control. On top of that, I set a budget for myself and track my spending.

Mint.com is a really useful tool for budgeting. Either that or don't have money to budget in the first place (thanks summer job market).

[whatsinaname]

I have a lot self control and don't really "enjoy" my money (vactions, wanted cars, "x" item, watching fav sports team playing live) but I do feel good about it because I don't like to owe or worry about "big" surprises from life. Are some of you hell bent on being efficient/not wasteful and only buying what you want and need or you don't mind spending money for the hell of it? Is there a happy medium? I might be too boring or something lol...

I usually have good self control. Most of my purchases are planned well in advance. If I decide I do want something, I give it time and wait for a deal. I have realised that in the time I wait for a deal (usually 1-2 weeks), I might decide I don't want/need the item.

I loathe having buyer's remorse.

[SolKane]

I am a fucking miser... but I am poor also.

I spend my money. You all should see my monthly comics purchases from DCBS. I could die tonight. I have no kids so no reason to save it all.

Possible that you could die tonight, but more possible you could find yourself unemployed with no savings or living to an old age with no savings.

[Dark Phoenix]

I'm a happy miser.

[chaosblade]

I'm a tightwad when it comes to everything except games. And even with those I'm getting even more cheap.

I guess that's what happens when you grow up not having much.

[Tenck]

I am the first, but I'm trying to become the second. The worst is trying to cut back on eating out. So hard.

Basically this. I almost never eat at home anymore because the convenience of just getting out of the house, and buying something to eat is very nice.

[Kaizer]

I'm the cheapest dude in the world. I'm the kind of guy who likes to collect all my money and then just sit and stare at it. Anytime money leaves my wallet/pockets/bank account and I feel a deep sense of woe. I will splurge on the occassional item, but usually I'm super cheap.

[The Mana Legend]

Lots of self control. In the last few weeks, other than food and bills, I have spent $52, and that was one something I needed for my exercising.

[KillGore]

I don't know, I have a lot of self control with buying most things (games, tech, etc) but when it comes to food, I love eating in good restaurants so there goes a lot of money. Good thing I'm not fat yet

[Aselith]

BIG PIMP BALLER BOOOOOOYYYY*

*I'm so poor please help me

[ChubbyHuggs]

I am... Poor.
So I have plenty of self control. Usually when I have money I forget I have it, so I don't really make random buys. It's usually something that I've wanted and saved money for. Not sure if that means I have self control or not.

[Rubenov]

Grew up poor, have money now and I hate spending it.

[teh_pwn]

Mostly self control. Exceptions are building new PCs, but in the grand scheme of things it's such a small amount of my free income.

I've also sort of entered the anti-materialistic phase of my life. I'm constantly tossing out and donating stuff I don't use. The only stuff I do buy a lot of lately is organizational sort of stuff.

Grew up poor, have money now and I hate spending it.

Sort of the same here. I grew up middle class. But 4-5 years of my childhood my dad was finding other jobs and we were on crazy strict budgets. I just don't get the idea of driving around, eating out, and traveling. The budget has ingrained itself into me.

[Unicorn]

I splurge a lot, but only because I can afford to. I get my bills paid, but save very little (I have about 1k in savings now). I hate the concept of money as a restraint in holding people back from doing things they would like to do.

Now that I'm out of my lease agreement I'm going to be saving close to 1k a month while enjoying life as much as I can while still meeting "obligations."

In the last month alone, I've gone on a couple day trips with a friend, bought 2 netbooks (going to return one), have signed up for another trip in October that will cost about $400, and plan on splurging either this month or next and buying a new xbox to play borderlands 2 with the bros.

I usually try to get deals when I can, but I love being able to help a friend out if they need money (even if they never do ask).

I wouldn't consider myself frivolous since I fulfill all my monetary requirements, but I certainly don't hold out on using my money in exchange for enjoyments. Memories are greater than monies.

[FloppyDelux]

Hey big spender, dig this blender.

rainbow suspender, hey big spender

and im not rich nor poor, and can controle what i spend my cash on since i am saving for a cintiq...

[awwyeahgurrl]

I have what I like to call a safety net, where when my bank account dips to a certain amount I'll just stop spending money on anything that isn't 100% necessary. So long as I'm above that I'll just buy things when I feel like it. This way I can buy what I want when I want it and I'm safe if an emergency happens.

[SyNapSe]

I used to think I was a master of self control. I grew up under a single disabled mother and she would have been comfortable during the great depression.

As you gain more wealth you spend more wealth; life is weird that way but I realize that I spend amounts of money seemingly without thought that would have been a huge decision earlier in my life.

[Souless_PJ]

Big spender here. Ball so hard I've been living paycheck to paycheck for years.

Started doing a savings plan with the mrs. Putting away a couple of grand a month since we want to start a family soon and that shit is expensive.

[Tawney Bomb]

I only splurge a few times a year, other than that, I'm pretty responsible and make sure I have enough stowed away for emergencies.

[demon]

I don't have the option of being a big spender. I make less than 13 bucks an hour, have a little over $9k in CC/personal loan debt and live paycheck to paycheck. I budget pretty tightly so I'm able to manage, but without making unnecessary credit card purchases (which I no longer do) I simply don't have the ability to splurge. A little over a month ago I came close to spending $250-350 on a new tv but backed out at the last minute because of that. Also have put off getting a new phone (currently have an original Moto Droid). That won't change until I can manage to get a significantly better paying job. Not where I wanted to be financially at 30 but hey wutyagonnado.

[FrenchToastDisciple]

I spend a bit, but I'm more of a compulsive saver than a compulsive buyer.

[MidnightScott]

Yeah I just ordered like 20 friggin games from NewEgg's $10 off sale. You tell me.

[Rebel Leader]

Forced to save