Focusing on Delayed Gratification
Posted on Jan 08, 2008 under Saving |It’s been quite some time since I talked about the concept of delayed gratification, and I figured it was time that I revisit it. It’s an important part of the wealthy mindset and something that we all need to work on.
We live in a high consumption society and we’re bombarded everyday with advertisements of what we should be and how we can buy/finance it now. There is also a lot of pressure from those around us to spend more money and buy more things. Once you recognize this, you can decide to ignore it and focus on your own goals.
I have also noticed that it’s a lot cheaper to get some of the things that I’ve wanted by waiting and not constantly dwelling on them. As an example, we’ve been wanting a wireless router for our house so that we could have a more stable internet connection when we’re out in the front room (we had been using a neighbor’s weak signal). We hadn’t bought one since we were technically able to do without. But this Christmas we were fortunate enough to get a router as a gift from my wife’s parents. It was great because we got something that we really wanted, and they were able to give us something that they knew we would like.
I have also a Nintendo Wii for quite some time now, pretty much ever since I played one for the first time at a friends house. Again though, we didn’t buy one since it wasn’t really necessary and didn’t fit into our overall financial plan. So guess what my parents decided to get us for Christmas? We didn’t have to pay for it and we still got what we were wanting.
Now I know that these are both Christmas examples, and Christmas only comes around once a year. But I have also been able to pick up certain things at extreme discounts just by waiting until I saw them on sale or by some other means. You won’t always know by what means you’ll be able to get what you’re after, and it may be quite some time before you do. Eventually though, you’ll be able to get what you want because you were diligent early on with your savings and investments.
Do you have any stories of how you have benefited from delayed gratification? If so, we’d love to hear about them in the comments.
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by MarketingDeviant, on January 8 2008 @ 11:20 am
I haven’t bought an electronic item for some time now and it feels good to restrain yourself from being impulsive. I hate buying items that I won’t being using after a month or two. I benefited from delayed gratification by not purchasing the item after a few months because I no longer desire it. That is true for almost anything. Wait for a few months and you no longer desire the item you dread for which is the best because I get to save money!
by RacerX, on January 8 2008 @ 11:52 am
I talk about this in the blog in more detail, but i love to Golf.
The nice thing about golf is that it is sort of like fashion. Every year there is a whole new collection of products. The great part is that the newly old are drastically marked down. If you go a second generation it really gets affordable with discounts of up to 70%+.
I have been saving my allowance
and I am about to buy a driver for $179, that was $499 a few months ago!
by Fiscal Musings, on January 8 2008 @ 1:33 pm
md: I like what you’ve said because I’ve found that I’m glad I didn’t buy certain things because I no longer really want it. It happens a lot with consumer electronics because there is always something new and better.
racerX: Way to go for the discounts on the throwbacks. And when it’s only a year old it’s usually still pretty good.