Kelly Robertson
As you work harder and harder, you will be making more money. And will also be tempted from people to give them or invest in their projects some of your earnings. Saying “no” is perfectly OK in many situations — even if other people think you’re being selfish. Who are they to judge you?
Here are 4 situations when we think it’s ok to be “selfish” with your money:
1. When someone asks for a loan
If we can single out a group that you should be most vary off, that would be borrowers. It could be a friend, a family member, or a colleague — you don’t want to “just” give them the money.
First, determine their needs – “why they need the money for?” Chances are they will give you explanation even without you asking for it. Determine for yourself whether those are legitimate needs, and only then consider offering them a loan.
Today, we have a number of different financial institutions offering loans — ask why they didn’t go to them for money. Or, if they have a credit card, why they don’t swipe it to buy the things they need? Or use ATM to get cash?
If the person is one of those “serial borrowers” you may want to be the one saying “no” to them. This is never easy, but again — you have worked hard for your money.
2. MLM and other get-rich-quick schemes
We at Wallet Weekly are big believers in hard work. Combined with the right kind of education it can take you a long way. And by “right kind of education” we don’t necessarily mean the Ivy League schools — a good, straight-to-the-point course could be equally if not more beneficial for most people. Case in point — founders of Apple, Facebook and Microsoft don’t have university degrees.
Back to the point — multi-level marketing (MLM) seldom works. And so do other get-rich-quick schemes. So we are extremely selfish when giving our money to such product and services. Heck, as soon as we smell MLM is in the air, we leave the room even if good friends invited us to the event. That’s how vary we are and we suggest you take the same approach.
In contrast, there are many fair-paid jobs and various work opportunities we are covering on this site, but we always explicitly say they won’t make you rich.
3. When your child cries for it
Tears work… sometimes. But should *never* work all the time. This isn’t good for your child, and neither is for your wallet. He or she can’t have it all. Period.
You don’t want to feel guilty about it even if two (or three) of you are in a jam-packed store. So what if everyone around hears your child is crying? Who are they to judge you?
Ten to fifteen years into the future, your child will be a grown man/woman, and he/she needs to learn some things. One of them is that they can’t get stuff with their tears.
4. When you’ve already gave enough
In addition to putting money into our retirement funds, all of us should considering giving something back to the community. It could be either time (work for free) or money… or combination of the two.
We advise everyone to give away a small percentage of their earnings to their charity of choice (or more of them). Or set a fixed amount of money that will go towards the same goal every month.
However, every now and then someone may ask for something you haven’t budgeted for. Whether those requests come from neighbor’s kids or a GoFundMe campaign, you may want to say no.
Again, we suggest including donations into your budget projections, and if you reach that number — it’s time to stop. Explain yourself if you have to, and eventually ask them to contact you next month. Be polite, and remember that you have worked hard to make that money.
Also read: 7 Money-Saving Habits You Should NOT Apologize For
