Money Myths Debunked

Hi 👋

Do you have a bestie who believes something untrue about herself?

Maybe she thinks she can’t pull off the color pink, and you know she looks totally fab. 💅🏻

Maybe she thinks her parties are lame, but you know they’re the only ones worth staying up after 9 p.m. for. 

Have you ever been that person yourself?

Similarly, sometimes what we believe about our finances isn’t actually reality. There are so many myths perpetuated by society, it’s hard to know what the truth is.

Below, we demystify popular finance beliefs and give permission to look at your spending in a new light. 

🔓 Money Myths Debunked

❌ You’re either a spender or a saver

Have you ever heard the saying: “You’re either the saver in the relationship, or you’re the spender”? Popular adages like this one make it seem like spending is black and white. In truth, spending is something we do. It’s an action that everyone must take in their lives.

The important part is learning to identify what’s in line with your budget and values and spend accordingly!

 We love the things money can buy us, but at the end of the day, spending is what we do, not who we are. 

❌ You should only spend on what you need, not what you want

The truth of the matter is that human beings are a diverse people with many different needs. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs highlights this. We all have physiological needs, (food, clothing, shelter) but we ALSO have higher needs of safety, belonging, and self-fulfillment. It can be difficult to detangle needs from wants when many things are BOTH!

So instead of focusing on deprivation, we can focus on creative ways to value and meet our needs. Sometimes that will mean spending money, and other times will mean finding free alternatives! Either way, we think our needs and wants are nuanced and it takes time to align our spending with it.

If you’re interested in a deeper dive into this subject, Jen & Jill’s book Buy What You Love Without Going Broke explores how our sense of self is tied to our finances and is available for pre-order now! 📖

 ❌ Spending is a moral failure

We don’t come out of the womb knowing how to walk – much less how to handle our finances. Much like math, dancing, and cooking, we have to learn how to spend wisely.

Like any other skill, it takes practice, time, and dedication to improve your spending habits. If you’re unsure where to start, consider doing a 90-day transaction inventory to see where you’re most likely to impulse spend.

Once those areas have been identified, come up with an action plan to mitigate the impulse.

Looking for tons of tangible tips to save $$$ this holiday season? Jen & Jill tackled this in Tuesday’s Episode: How to Have a Frugal Holiday Season (Ep 456).

Today, we demystified our habits by breaking down how marketing campaigns have influenced us over the years. Listen to: 10 Things You Didn’t Know Started As Marketing Campaigns (Ep 457) now!

Listen wherever you get podcasts and let us know what you thought of the episode over on our latest Instagram post!

✅ Read: The Serpent & the Wings of Night. Carissa Broadbent exploded in the fantasy genre recently, and if you want to keep up with #Booktok, you’ll need to be caught up before her newest release in mid November! 

✅ Watch: Going along with our earlier conversation, watch Dominique Sachse’s interview on Breaking Free from Financial Anxiety. She’s a gem of a human who was just on the podcast, and has so much wisdom to share. 🍃

✅ Do: Learn and earn with the Arro credit card! If you’re in the market for a good credit card (especially one that helps you build your credit score), Arro offers a low-interest, no-deposit credit card and personal finance app that gives you control over quickly growing your credit limit as you set goals, make payments, learn, save, and budget. Apply for Arro here.**

✅ Meal Prep: We’re in the throes of flu season, and studies show that chicken soup helps regulate your immune response during a cold. Try this four-ingredient Homemade Chicken Soup recipe from Allrecipes for a healthy, hearty meal that will turn your day around! 🍜

Spending is a skill and you can learn to master it. If you’ve ever struggled with being unable to stick to a budget or felt guilty about spending on something you enjoy, Jen and Jill’s upcoming book is going to be your next favorite read.

Grab your pre-order gifts. Free With EVERY pre-order. 🥳

Pre-order now

Catch you on the flip, 
Kim

⭐️⭐️ P.S. Want to share all this goodness with your friends AND earn cool Frugal Friends merch?

**Means this is a sponsored or affiliate section. We may earn a small fee or commission when you choose to try one of our sponsor or affiliate partners. But opinions are still 1000% our own.