So Many Shoes, So Little Money – Blog

Suze Orman

May 19th, 2009

If you want to learn about personal finance, Suze Orman can be terrific. She is knowledgeable and helpful. But she can also be intimidating, patronizing, and borderline mean. Her approach is to treat folks like their nagging mother when they’ve been bad. Regardless of what you think is best for you Suze usually thinks it is a lousy idea. To prove her point, she nags, cajoles, occasionally bullies, and otherwise makes people feel like they are letting her, and more importantly themselves, down.

That said, often she’s right. But there is a healthier way to help folks who want to do a better job managing their money – which doesn’t require scolding. Chances are you already know you should learn more about managing your own money. You often already know the right answer to whatever question you have and, equally as often, you either don’t trust yourself or find managing your money a drag, boring or just plain anxiety producing. (For some, the mere thought of money management drives them to straight to the bar.)

Here’s a dirty little secret that Suze doesn’t want you to know about – finance does not have to always invoke your mother! You don’t have to feel like a “bad” girl every time you want to buy something. On the contrary, finance is a valuable tool you don’t have to dread learning about and understanding. And it can actually be fun – after all the better you understand your finances, what you have and what you don’t, the more you know what can an can’t do. Hello, shopping!

If you’ve read my blog before, you know that most people get into trouble with their money because they don’t create a budget or worse, do, but promptly ignore it. Contrary to what Suze might tell you, this is not a personal failing. The reasons most budgets fail is not because of how you budget – it’s how you use your budget. Attitude is everything. Most budgets fail because they seem to stop you from doing what you want: “It’s not in my budget.” But a good budget really tells you what you can spend. “It’s in my budget.” Start thinking of a budget as a way to help you achieve your life’s goals and dreams. A budget doesn’t tell you what you can’t do, it tells you what you can do. There, isn’t that more fun. No putting you down for your shoe habit. No pointing out what you are doing wrong. Just a reminder that making and using a budget helps you manage your money.

So even if you blow it (or are about too) you can get beat up by Suze or remember,on rare occasions, being bad is good!

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/17/magazine/17orman-t.html?hp

Filed under: Bad with Numbers?, Bank Accounts, Introduction