5 Financial Lessons We Can Learn From Our Grandparents
You might think that in this day and age of technology and digital communication there isn’t much we can learn of any financial importance from our grandparents, but you’d be wrong. There are still some valuable financial lessons we can learn from our grandparents.
Buy Quality
I’m sure you’ve heard your grandparents say something along the lines of ‘back in my day, things were built to last’ and they’re not wrong. In today’s throwaway society, products are made with a finite lifespan. It’s not an accident that your VCR from 1987 still works and your 4-year-old Blu Ray player doesn’t. Our grandparent’s had it a little easier since the market was full of well made, quality items. The onus is now on you, so do your research, read online reviews, talk to friends and then make an informed decision on purchases. It doesn’t mean you have to buy the most expensive thing on the market, just make an informed decision, because who knows; the cheapest could be the best.
Make the best with what you have
Don’t feel you need to rack up a credit card debt to have all the latest mod cons. If iPads have taught us anything, it’s that technology doesn’t make our lives any easier; it just makes it easier for us to procrastinate and ignore our loved ones at the dinner table. Our grandparents fixed things, reused items and repurposed items. Thanks to the internet you can search thousands of websites that show nifty tricks for repurposing household items that you might otherwise have thrown out. You’ll be surprised at how much money you can spare by making the best with what you have.
Invest in the future
Coming through the baby boom it was vital for people of our grandparent’s age to invest in the future of their new families. If there’s one thing Generation Y continually gets blamed with it’s not investing in their futures and living for the moment. However these two things don’t need to be mutually exclusive. By getting help from financial planners like My Wealth Solutions you can easily set yourself up for your future, your future family and still have enough money to make all those baby boomers despise you for having fun.
Network on all levels of the community
This point stems from another one of those ‘back in my days…’ situations whereby the rise of social media has lead to the demise of the face-to-face community socialising. The great thing about networking with everyone you meet (not just trying to climb the corporate ladder) is the age-old Australian idea of ‘mates rates’. By rewarding good work from contractors, making connections with neighbours, chatting to people in your local community you can create a large network of ‘mates’ that may be able to help you out down the track. Don’t forget to offer your own services up as this style of networking works best on a ‘you scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours’ basis.
Be selfless
The most important thing we can take away from our grandparent’s is that they were a more selfless generation. Since their time the world has been consumed with an inward looking mentality. Make personal sacrifices for the future of your family and community and those good deeds will come back to you, even if it’s only through self satisfaction.
About the Author:
Garima Mehta is a professional writer a regular contributor on different sites. She is specialized in many areas from business, marketing to health and lifestyle.
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Category: Family Finances, Financial Education
