What do you do when one spouse wants to spend and the other wants to save?
Okay, great question. This is going to be true in every marriage. Even if you are both savers, still one of you is more of a spender than the other one. Here are a few principles.
1. We live in a spend crazy culture. The saver is usually right. (I can say this because I am the spender in our marriage).
2. Give each other some room to breathe. Stifling rules set you up for lying to each other and for 'walking on eggshells', not healthy relationship patterns.
3. Never be in a hurry. If you disagree about a purchase. Wait. Set a date where you will discuss it again (in a week or a month) after you have done some thinking about it.
4. Enjoy a 'splurge' once in a while. This doesn't mean buy a Mercedes, it means go for ice cream. :)
5. Set some parameters together of what is and isn't okay. Is it okay to spend $10 without my spouse knowing about it? Be careful of setting these too strict, you want a loving partnership not a parent. It's about great communication, not about getting permission.
6. We live in a spend crazy culture. The saver is usually right. I know I said it before. But let's just be honest. We know it's true. Why lie to ourselves?
Okay, great question. This is going to be true in every marriage. Even if you are both savers, still one of you is more of a spender than the other one. Here are a few principles.
1. We live in a spend crazy culture. The saver is usually right. (I can say this because I am the spender in our marriage).
2. Give each other some room to breathe. Stifling rules set you up for lying to each other and for 'walking on eggshells', not healthy relationship patterns.
3. Never be in a hurry. If you disagree about a purchase. Wait. Set a date where you will discuss it again (in a week or a month) after you have done some thinking about it.
4. Enjoy a 'splurge' once in a while. This doesn't mean buy a Mercedes, it means go for ice cream. :)
5. Set some parameters together of what is and isn't okay. Is it okay to spend $10 without my spouse knowing about it? Be careful of setting these too strict, you want a loving partnership not a parent. It's about great communication, not about getting permission.
6. We live in a spend crazy culture. The saver is usually right. I know I said it before. But let's just be honest. We know it's true. Why lie to ourselves?
