Et liv med mere eller mindre - A Life with More or Less

For mange i den vestlige verden er at være rig eller fattig et spørgsmål om opfattelse. Med risiko for at havne i en såkaldt shitstorm vil jeg påstå, at det afhænger af, om man ønsker, hvad alle andre har, eller om man ønsker, hvad man har råd til - og accepterer det.

At have eje meget kan være et mål. Hvis det er den store villa på den rigtige adresse, de store biler, stor udskiftning af tøj og tilbehør, eksotiske rejser o. lign., så kræver det en stor indtægt. Med en stor indtægt følger ofte mange arbejdstimer, og dermed kommer presset, der følger med alle udgifterne, der skal betales hver måned. Det er helt fint.

At eje mindre kan også være et mål. At bo småt og/eller billigt, at have en lille bil eller ingen overhovedet, at have tøj og tilbehør af god kvalitet, der ikke behøver at blive skiftet ofte, at rejse med måde eller slet ikke, kan gøres for en mindre indtægt. En mindre indtægt kan skyldes færre arbejdstimer eller et arbejde, der ikke griber ind i fritiden. Og det er også helt fint.

Hvad der ikke er helt fint er, når mennesker, hvis livsforhold ændres, tror, at de kan fortsætte uden at ændre noget.

Når unge, der har boet hjemme uden at betale, fortsætter levestandarden uden at tage i betragtning, at de nu skal leve af en SU suppleret med et deltidsjob.
Når mennesker, der mister deres arbejde - for kortere eller længere tid - ikke sætter sig og beregner, hvad der er råd til og holder igen, mens situationen byder det.
Når ældre krampagtigt holder fast på dyre huse alt for længe og udhuler deres økonomi, når de går på pension, hvis den er mindre end lønindtægten tidligere har været - hvad den ofte er.

Der kunne være mange flere eksempler, men det drejer sig alt sammen om at erkende, hvad man har råd til lige nu. Situationen behøver ikke at være permanent, men hvis indtægten går ned, er det dumt ikke at nedsætte forbruget, så man ikke kommer til at stå med en masse gæld, når man kommer ovenpå igen.

Det samme gælder, hvis indtægten går op. Man behøver ikke med det samme at gå ud og købe hele indtægten væk. Sæt dig ned og tænk på, hvordan du gerne vil have det om 5 år og planlæg. Lad være med at drysse pengene væk.

Mange mennesker, hvis økonomi hænger i laser, kunne have haft god og stabil økonomi, hvis der var blevet gearet op eller ned, alt efter hvor mange penge, man har at råde over.

At have råd er ofte et spørgsmål om at ønske sig mindre - i hvert fald når det gælder materielle goder.

Man kan ikke både have kagen og spise den - You cannot eat the cake and have it at the same time!

Den er bagt af min vidunderlige underbo - It is made by the wonderful lady, who lives downstairs!

For many of us in the Western part of the world being rich or pour is a matter of perception. Risking running into a s...storm I will claim is a matter of, if you want, what everybody else have, or if you want, what you can afford - and that you can accept it.

To own a lot can be a goal. If the big villa has to be in the 'right' address, big cars, changing clothes and accessories constantly, exotic travels et cetera, the salary has to be high. With a high salary often comes lots of working hours and on top of that the pressure, which follow the expenses to be paid every month. That is quite OK.

To own less can also be a goal. To live in a small place, to have a small car or no car, to have clothes of good quality, which doesn't have to be changed often, to travel occasionally et cetera, can be done on a smaller salary. A smaller salary could be due to fewer working hours or a job, which doesn't take hours from your spare time. That is quite OK too.

What isn't OK, is, when people, who's living conditions change, think, that they can go on without changing anything.

When young people, who lived at home without contributing to the household expenses, continues to live as before, when they move out, without thinking about, that they have to live on a student job salary.
When someone loses their job - for a shorter or longer period - don't calculate, what they can afford and don't hold back, while the situation demands it.
When older people hold on to expensive houses much too long and therefore are digging into their economy, when they retire, and the pension is smaller than the previous income - which it often is.

There could be many more examples, but it is all about acknowledging, what you can afford right now. The situation doesn't have to be permanent, but if the income goes down, it is wise to decrease the spending, so you don't end up with a lot of debt, when you get back on your feet again.

The same goes, if you income goes up. You don't have to go out buying a lot of expensive stuff immediately. Sit down and calmly think about, where you want to be in 5 years. Don't throw good money out the window. Invest it in something lasting.

Lots of people, who's economy is hanging in a thread, could have had a stable and good economy, if they had 'geared' up or down, and they had accepted the amount of money, they actually had on hand.

To be able to afford thing is often a matter of wanting less - at least if you think about material stuff.