Managing Money

[ailbhe]

Some people are good at it, some people are ok as long as there's plenty of money, and some people are dreadful at it. I have never really worked out what makes people so. I know people from poor backgrounds and wealthy backgrounds in all categories, as well as people from varying degrees of comfortable backgrounds.

Some people seem to learn to manage money by living in fear of poverty (raises hand) and some people seem to learn by good example (raises hand) and some people seem to learn by being involved in the financial planning and management of their families as they grow up (like good example but more hands-on) (raises hand again) and most people probably have some combination of all three going on.

But the part I can't work out is what makes people who know what bad management does, up to a point (a point between stress and hunger, say) nonetheless continue to manage badly. What do Groups A, B and C learn which group D can't seem to? Let's not assume that group D are delusional, or want to rely on other people in their lives to pick up the pieces - let's assume that their desire and intention is to be able to spend only 252 pence in the guinea and not forever hanker after the half-a-crown that isn't there.

Comments

[glitzfrau.livejournal.com]

This, this is wisdom. I think this applies to most self-destructive behaviours: the emotional high and sense of control or comfort that we get out of drinking way too much, engaging in abusive relationships, flaking out of really important commitments, are stronger than the emotional high of acting wisely. Possibly, in some cases, because the emotional high of acting wisely is utterly unfamiliar, but possibly for other reasons. Or, as someone else wise said, destructive behaviours are adaptive behaviours for which the situation to which they were appropriate no longer exists.