There is a story making the rounds about a retired couple on a fixed income who have budgeted their money well – taking care of their necessities and a few minor pleasures, and allowing themselves one splurge a month to an upscale restaurant. This month they had their expensive dinner by driving to their nearby gas station and getting a full tank of gas along with sandwiches and sodas at the adjacent mini market. While I don’t know if the story is true, it is certainly believable.
Every time we look around, it seems that the prices of gas or food or other necessities have gone up. In general the same cannot be said for wages or retirement benefits. It becomes a challenge, especially for those on relatively fixed incomes, to maintain their quality of life when the cost of doing so is constantly increasing.
While it may seem justified to complain and wallow in a state of misery, that type of behavior changes nothing. Meeting financial challenges requires the same type of thinking as is required to meet other challenges. I believe that three steps can be very helpful at such times:
1. Relabel the problem as an opportunity to make changes in a positive direction.
2. Get creative. Recognize that all of us are creatures of habit to some extent, and recognize that some habits may be more expensive than others. Netflix and On Demand are alternatives to increasingly expensive movies at theaters. Make a game out of figuring out how many errands you can do by driving to a centralized area – even if it means getting acquainted with some new markets, drugstores, or laundries. Rediscover some past inexpensive behaviors such as reading or taking walks with spouses, other family members, or friends. Get involved again with an old hobby.
3. Embrace the process. Stay positive and confident that you will overcome this problem, just as you’ve overcome other challenges in your life. Recall and gain strength from those previous successes, and look to the future – recognizing that economies go through cycles and gas prices eventually come down too.
What to you think? Have you developed some techniques to deal with hard times. If so, please respond and share them with the other members of The Mental Health Gym.