W<\/span>ith inflation hitting a 40-year high, we\u2019re all paying the price. Sky-high prices for fuel, food, and just about everything we buy are causing us to look for ways to save money anywhere we can.<\/p>\n Yet savings rates have plunged<\/a>, incomes aren\u2019t keeping up, and household debt is soaring<\/a> as Americans have returned to pre-pandemic spending habits. And the sad fact is, many of us spend much of our income on items that give us very little in return: no lasting satisfaction, joy, or value\u2014what a waste.<\/p>\n Wouldn\u2019t it be great if you had a way to determine whether a purchase will be an absolute pleasure or just a waste \u2014 before you buy?<\/p>\n To do that, we developed a little exercise called the Spending Pleasure Meter. This is a fun and revealing way to determine whether a purchase will bring you real (lasting) pleasure or if it\u2019s just another spending decision you will regret later. Here\u2019s how it works:<\/p>\n Next time you\u2019re considering a non-essential purchase, ask yourself these five quick questions:<\/p>\n No points either way for this one. But if you can postpone the purchase, why not put it off? And you\u2019ll be surprised how often you\u2019ll realize in a month that you didn\u2019t really need or want that item after all!<\/p>\n 13-15 points:<\/strong> Go for It! Probably a worthwhile purchase and will give you lasting pleasure.<\/p>\n 9-12 points:<\/strong> Wait a While. You have mixed feelings. Wait a few days, then revisit the Spending Pleasure Meter and test yourself again.<\/p>\n 6-8 points:<\/strong> Probably Not. You know in your heart you could happily get along without this.<\/p>\n 0-5 points:<\/strong> Are You Serious? This is about as pleasurable as flushing that money down the drain. Something else would give you much more satisfaction!<\/p>\n TIP:<\/strong> Focus on experiences and relationships (what I call The Big Happy) rather than \u201cstuff\u201d (The Little Happy).<\/em><\/p>\n Your most profound happiness comes from experiences and relationships, not from stuff, contrary to what Madison Avenue would have you believe. Research<\/a> consistently finds that pleasure from material goods is fleeting compared to joy from activities.<\/p>\n Experiences are better than stuff because your experiences can\u2019t compare to anyone else\u2019s experiences. They\u2019re your personal events and give pleasure long after the adventures are over when you relive them as memories.<\/p>\n We quickly get used to stuff. The new car smell wears off, and the fancy new phone becomes ho-hum after just a week or so. But the memory of screaming down a zip line or swimming with the dolphins? The thrill and joy of experiences like these will last a lifetime.<\/p>\n I adore our grandkids and used to buy them many gifts whenever my husband Larry and I visited. But when I asked the kids to name the highlights of these visits, they always talked about our hikes and our trips to the river. So now, rather than wasting money on toys they quickly forget, we go for the Big Happy by planning excursions they\u2019ll always remember \u2014 and many of them are free!<\/p>\n It\u2019s not about tightening your belt \u2013 that\u2019s not only uncomfortable but is also often unsustainable. Instead, think about ways you can cut wasteful spending so you can use your resources in ways that give you more joy and satisfaction.<\/p>\n 5 questions for a richer lifestyle without spending more<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":757,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[160,162],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12844","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-fall-2022","category-fall-2022-columns"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/healthyaging.net\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12844","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/healthyaging.net\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/healthyaging.net\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/healthyaging.net\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/healthyaging.net\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12844"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/healthyaging.net\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12844\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13212,"href":"https:\/\/healthyaging.net\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12844\/revisions\/13212"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/healthyaging.net\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/757"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/healthyaging.net\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12844"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/healthyaging.net\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12844"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/healthyaging.net\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12844"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}How long have I wanted this and seriously considered its purchase?<\/h4>\n
\n
Did I want this before I saw someone else with something similar?<\/h4>\n
\n
How long did my enjoyment last time I purchased a similar item?<\/h4>\n
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If I finance or charge this item, will I still pay for it after the pleasure is gone?<\/h4>\n
\n
Can I postpone this purchase for a month without causing harm, discomfort, or inconvenience to myself or others?<\/h4>\n
Total your points and check your score:<\/h3>\n
Pamela Yellen is the founder of Bank On Yourself<\/a>, a financial investigator, and the author of two books on safe wealth-building strategies. Readers can get the Spending Pleasure Meter and scoring tool and a free copy of her latest book, Rescue Your Retirement<\/em><\/a>, on her website, bankonyourself.com.<\/a><\/h5>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"