“Personal finance is personal.”
How many freaking times have you seen that cliché of a line in PF blogs? I’m assuming at least once per post. It is usually said either (A) in response to someone berating the author’s financial choices, or (B) as justification of a questionable financial decision before anyone even has the chance to make a comment.
Look at all these financial priorities, we are just different eggs in the same basket!
I’ve said it, you’ve said it, everyone has used this line. And you know what? It’s true, everyone has different financial priorities. Personal finance is personal. But that doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s smart.
The personal finance blogosphere is basically split up into four groups, (1) the early retirees, (2) the traveling minimalists, (3) the frugalities, and (4) the why the hell do you write about personal finance-ers. Let me break this down for you:
(1) The Early Retirees:
- Want to retire at the age of 40ish.
- Will reach this goal through any means necessary including: mild starvation, buying used underwear, and charging their 6-year-old rent.
- Hardcore cheapskates. Everything you do that doesn’t fall in line with their almost homeless lifestyle is gluttonous and financially unacceptable.
(2) The Traveling Minimalists:
- Aren’t willing to give up experiences in favor of money hoarding.
- To compensate, they can fit most of their belongings in a suitcase as they don’t purchase a lot. (However, they generally purchase a small quantity of high quality items)
- Have fat savings accounts and save a large portion of their incomes in order to have more experiences.
(3) The Frugalites:
- Usually have debt, low incomes, are saving for something big, or just really hate not getting a good deal.
- Coupon cutters, laundry detergent makers, do-it-yourselfers.
- Get by on less and pinch pennies – maybe because they want to raise 8 kids on a single income or maybe because they want to save for a house that they can decorate with handmade, crocheted everything.
(4) The Why the Hell Do You Write About Personal Finance-ers.
- You see a train wreck.
- You want to look away.
- You can’t. Freaking. Look. Away.
The first three groups have accepted that the others exist. The early retirees don’t understand the traveling minimalists, the minimalists don’t understand the frugalites, but they’ve all embraced that there are people who prioritize differently. And then there are those people who you just want to scream at repeatedly, “You don’t get to call personal finance personal! You aren’t doing it right no matter what your priorities are!” These people don’t need excuses and justifications. These people need rules. So let’s come up with some basic rules, PFers. Let’s do the impossible and come up with a set of standard rules that aren’t personal. They’re just common sense.
- If your net worth is decreasing every month, you’re not doing it right.
- If you spend more than you make on frivolous crap, you’re not doing it right.
- If you are 52 and haven’t opened a retirement account, you’re not doing it right.
- If your child’s lemonade stand is your primary source of income, you’re not doing it right.
- If you know all your debt collectors by name, you’re not doing it right.
- If your bill paying strategy is “I’m sure it will take care of itself”, you’re not doing it right.
- If you aren’t reading LBee and the Money Tree regularly, YOU’RE NOT FREAKING DOING IT RIGHT! ( I kid, I kid.)
So help me out guys! Add to the list…when do you think personal finance stops being personal and starts being stupid?
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Hi, my name is Lauren but I'm known to those nearest and dearest as L. Bee. After twenty-five years on the planet I have worked in a lot of industries, moved to many different cities, and made almost every money mistake you can make.Join me on my journey as I navigate my twenties and try not to pick my "money tree" bare.
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There is the “I hate working for The Man, so I’m preparing to quit and work for myself as a professional blogger…” group
Heck yes! The lifestyle designers often crossover with PF territory.
I am in this group!
The SECOND the shaming starts, I tune out. I can’t stand when people are like “Well, obviously, this is where you should be at 25/30/40/etc.” and basically call others lazy because they have a different work ethic or, shockingly, work in a different sector or career that just isn’t as lucrative as theirs.
Danielle recently posted..When did the game of Life get so…real?
You’re missing a large group of personal finance bloggers – people just trying to find their “path” to handling their finances correctly and/or get out of debt. That’s who I am at the moment. I guess you could say I currently fall into the “The Frugalites” category….and the thing I’m “saving” for is to get out of debt.
I look at it this way. Personal finance bloggers write about their experiences. This is the kind of blog I gravitate towards. I can see how other “regular” people go through situations that I may have already experiences, or may experience in the future. I can gain perspective of how their choice affected them. Maybe it worked for them….maybe it failed miserably. But it’s information to put in the memory bank for future decision making.
They have the perspective of “Here’s what happened to me, what I did, what the result was, and what I learned for next time.”
Blogs that have the perspective of “Here’s the gospel truth of how to XXXXXX.” That’s not Personal Finance. That’s a Finance Blog – and if you’re a finance blog, you better know what you’re talking about……
Travis @debtchronicles recently posted..Comment on I Love You Like a Blogger Roundup – 02/15 by L Bee and the Money Tree
While I realize that the descriptions of bloggers were hyperbole, I agree that there are lots of “regular people” PF bloggers – like me!
I think the regular people bloggers are just ones who like to write/want to engage in community and have maybe a certain PF challenge that they’re dealing with that might push them toward one group or another.
Our current challenge (for about the next 1.5 years) is that we have a low income so that pushes us more toward the frugal bloggers, but that’s going to change when our income increases and we’ll shift our topics to the next set of challenges like career and home-buying and reproducing.
I started my blog with the long journey in mind – 5+ years I hope – not with an object or goal like paying off debt or a certain amount traveling. Our blog chronicles our lives through the lens of our finances.
Emily @ evolvingPF recently posted..How to Replace Large Items on a Budget
Totally. Think I am a hybrid too, just a normal gal seeking balance, as per my tagline!
I really like that, Emily: “chronicling our lives through the lens of our finances”. Think you and Travis are very insightful. Also, looking at the 4 groups, where does L Bee and The Money Tree fit in?? Because it doesn’t seem to fit anywhere
American Debt Project recently posted..My Must Haves in College (And Why I Wouldn’t Buy Most of Them Now)
Whew, I read L Bee and the Money Tree, so I must be doing it right!
Anne @ Unique Gifter recently posted..Gazelle Carcass! A Gift Idea for Men
Love this post! I’m definitely a frugalite, will probably become a travelling minimalist after I’m out of debt. I agree with you, while there’s room for a huge degree a variance in the personal finance world, there are some hard and fast rules I insist on sticking to.
Jordann @ My Alternate Life recently posted..Back From Boston
Hmmm…I don’t know where I might fit in this one. I just write about personal finance the way I experienced it. I don’t care if you hate my articles or think that my decisions are stupid. It doesn’t bother me one bit.
The one group that does irritate me are the ones that want to start a business to make money, yet have no idea how to start, run, or promote a business. These people just make me mad!
Grayson @ Debt Roundup recently posted..Budget Fail: A Best Man and A Bachelor Party
As a traveling minimalist, I think I have more clothes than normal for a minimalist,
That’s said, I understand all of the groups above, having had a foot in one group or another at some point in time.
My net worth also (sometimes) decreases each month because I work as a freelancer, so maybe amending that to: if your net worth doesn’t go up every year, instead of every month.
I also don’t get people who want to quit their jobs without a plan and unrealistically expect to be able to work 4 hours a week earning $200K a year. That’s near impossible unless you have a plan.
Maybe they think blogging pays. Hahahahahahahah!!!
Lol, great post L Bee! I was self-justifying my spending on food on our blog just yesterday (realized it after the fact).
I think you’re not doing it right if your view into the future is only about 1 year. Even if you’re not saving for the long-term or paying down debt ahead of schedule… Are you at least making investments in your career? Are you developing a plan to buy assets? Something along those lines.
Emily @ evolvingPF recently posted..How to Replace Large Items on a Budget
I loved your post! Funny with a bite. I was going to say that I am a ‘normal’ PF blogger but remembered that I don’t know what the norm is. And I will place myself in the group of ‘money management story-tellers who believe that life comes before money but both are necessary’ group. Wow, this is a mothful
.
maria@moneyprinciple recently posted..What Was the Interest Rate Scandal and How Has It Affected Small Businesses?
Lulz. I am all about setting up priorities for your money, but I agree there are hard and fast rules that you MUST stick to (such as you listed above), or you’re just a sinking ship, being all “look at how glamourous I look while sinking!!!” I have a tendancy to tell people how they SHOULD do things, but that’s because I’ve seen them work multiple times. When it’s something from just MY personal experience, I try to make that clear.
But some people are just destined to blow up their finances no matter what. You can give them good advice until you’re blue in the face, doesn’t mean they’ll listen to reason and logic. I mean, you can lead a horse to water, but sometimes you just want them to drown in it….
Jacob @ iHeartBudgets recently posted..How to Balance Work and Education While Earning Your MBA
I don’t think I fit into any of those categories. But I started my blog to chronicle my life’s financial journey and other musings.
SavvyFinancialLatina recently posted..Are Baby Boomers Still Retiring?
And ironically, sometimes if your net worth is decreasing every month, you are doing something right! We bought fixer upper homes during a RE crash, and then spent months on each of them dumping money and labor in. Fast forward a year on each and it was a stellar bet, but at the time… a LOT of cash was flying out the door and into Lowes’ register. =)
And I think we’re more of a 1a type pf personality. Want to say “see ya” to our bosses sooner rather than later, but not really willing to live like complete paupers to do so.
Mrs. Pop @ Planting Our Pennies recently posted..The Costs of Running
Love this post. I guess if I fit one category more than the others its the frugalites. I do like to be frugal, but I’m certainly not extreme, and spend my fair share of money on things that would make the real frugalistas blush. I don’t necessarily want to retire early, but I do want to work for myself at some point.
KK @ Student Debt Survivor recently posted..Big Beer Companies Paid Me $350 Last Year
Funny.. and yeah, I am not sure where Michelle and I quite fit. Perhaps we are a train wreck, well at least we used to be.. But at this point, we are just a normal family sharing our experiences..
I admit that I am a little bit minimalist.. But not especially frugal. I still like nice things, and will pay for great experiences from time to time…
jefferson @SeeDebtRun recently posted..Financial Lessons To Learn After College
Love this! Still trying to figure out where I fit in. I don’t fit in the early retiree group: 40ish yes, but never planned on retiring in my 40′s but hopefully when I’m 50ish. And my 7-year-old refuses to pay me rent.
We love travel and experience new things but our belongings don’t fit into a suitcase (although we have plenty of suitcases). I’m not a frugalite. I don’t believe in being crazy stupid with money but I live a good life and enjoy it. I guess I’m sharing what I know and hoping that helps others.
Shannon @ The Heavy Purse recently posted..Weekly Roundup: February 11, 2013
I would consider myself a cross between a frugalite and travelling minimalist. I REALLY hate paying full price something or knowing that I can better deal somewhere else.
I guess it gets stupid when it becomes repetitive? But on the other hand, these are blogs, web diaries, so you should be able to write whatever the hell you want. If people find it stupid, then so be it.
MakintheBacon$ recently posted..Guest Post at Lbee and the Money Tree
Haha you crack me up… I am going to write a post in response to this next week!
Savvy Scot recently posted..Savvy Scot does the Carnival of Financial Camaraderie
With so many things we have to spend with, sometimes personal finances isn’t really personal anymore and we have to accept that the hard way at times.
Sarah Park recently posted..How to Get Something You Want
I love a good rant. And this one was a chart topper!
Johnny Moneyseed recently posted..Your Money or Your Life: Part 2
It’s funny, I’ve never blogged about personal finance and I doubt that I ever will – at least not in the accepted sense of PF blogging which apparently means you have to talk all the time about what you spend, what you save, what your net worth is, and how much everyone you know in real life is doing it wrong. Still, I would say that personal finance blogs make up nearly a solid 1/3 of the blogs that I follow on a regular basis. It shows that I’m pretty fascinated with money and how other people deal with it, even if I don’t want to talk about it myself.
I also find it kind of amusing that the PF blog world seems to have blown up in the last week with all kinds of posts about how most PF blogs are boring for posting the sameshit over and over again or condescending towards people who don’t have the same attitude they do.
So ramble, ramble, ramble as I try to redefine my blog and my personal voice and ultimately I think I agree with @Travis when he says “They have the perspective of “Here’s what happened to me, what I did, what the result was, and what I learned for next time.””
That’s what I look for in a blog, and I’m hoping that’s what I’ll offer in mine as I develop and grow.
Kara recently posted..Crazy Household project weekend
Good idea! I like the idea of the standard rules. All the different schools of thought should focus more on getting to the destination of economic security, not the route to get there. No one is “wrong” unless their route doesn’t work.
Alex recently posted..Happiness Experiment 39: Eat the Rainbow Conclusions
Not sure where I fit in on this one… I’m definitely not going to make that last mistake anymore though! I’m not sure how you haven’t made it into my Google Reader yet but you did today
Lance @ Money Life and More recently posted..Personal Finance Round Up, Mentions and Carnivals #43
I fit in all first three categories, and probably a few more. As long as you progress towards whatever your goal is, you should keep at it. The ones I can’t stand are the ”so, I am filing for bankruptcy, and just bought those $500 shoes because really, bankruptcy is hard and I need a treat”.
Pauline recently posted..Friday recap, some sun and 7 random facts
I fall into the optometrists who spent too much money and are now frugal who want to retire early. Maybe I have my own category?
Kim@Eyesonthedollar recently posted..Does Being Rude Get You Further in Life?
And we wonder why we have problems talking about money as a society?!? I absolutely loved this post. Great morning laugh!
The Insurist recently posted..Four Practical Web Marketing Tips for Small Businesses
Travelling minimalist here! Choose not to write about PF ’cause there’s already so many doing it. …And I’d loathe myself forever if I ever scraped the barrel and wrote one of those “How to Travel Inexpensively” posts.
I don’t understand the “Why the Hell” group at all! They’re the proverbial nuns teaching sex ed. Would you give guitar lessons if you didn’t know how to play guitar? Sorry, it’s a sham. Used to be slightly fascinated by the train wreck, but now turn my head from the gore.
Man this post made me laugh and I needed to! I would say I fit pretty solidly in the Traveling Minimalist pack and loving it!
Don’t forget the “outsource everything so you can make more money” group. They’re mostly women though. (Men, I suspect, already outsource everything to their wives.)
nicoleandmaggie recently posted..Ask the Grumpies: Should I stay or should I go now?