I have the odd distinction of being able to say that I’m both good and bad with money. I waste a lot of money weekly on what they call “the Latte Factor”: a little bit of money spent regularly that adds up to big spending when you look at it over a period of time. I buy my lunches almost daily, and that can set me back anywhere from $3.50 (Italian sausage from the street vendor) to $5.70 (two slices of thin crust pizza; one deluxe flavour and one cheese flavour). Usually I spend somewhere in the middle, $5.30, on my white rice + a meat and vegetable dish at the takeout Chinese food place across the street from work. And every now and then I treat myself to a drink that isn’t water, which can add anywhere from $2 to $6.05 (thanks to a smoothie place) to my bill. Multiply that by five days a week, four weeks a month and ten or eleven months and this is a fine example of the Latte Factor.

But when it comes to spending money on anything more than snacks or lunch, I am terribly thrifty, and I do think it’s terrible.

I am interested in embarking on a business, and I either need a high-quality printer (machine) or a printer (business) that will print my creations for me. I have been talking to some people in the same line of business and one thing the three women I’ve talked to have in common is a particular printer. Since I found out about this printer I have been obsessed with it, reading reviews, trying to find blogs of actual users to see how they like it, and trying to make sure that it will be able to print on the media that I’m interested in printing on. I get obsessed like that and I was not going to rest until I had a printer like that of my very own, never mind that this business idea is in fragments in my head (versus in the form of a proper business plan) and there are some fairly large components of this plan (also in fragments in my head) that need to be in place before I get to the printing stage.

I was contemplating ordering the printer from the USA because it was less expensive, but with all the associated fees it would not end up being the bargain I was seeking. So when I found the printer on sale here last week, I was so excited that I went and bought it the very next day. Three days later it is in my house sitting there in its original packaging.

I have buyer’s remorse, and 11 more days to return the printer should I choose to. Keeping it in its original packaging won’t hurt and will facilitate any returns I may have to do. My buyer’s remorse was brought on by the fact that I know a smart person would have created a business plan, done at least preliminary tests of the market to ensure there is a need for the product, and compared printing in-house to using the services of a printing company. A smart person would not buy something just because it was on sale and her blog crushes in similar businesses (who are actually established to some degree in the business, by the way) are using the same item. I feel like I may have jumped in the deep end and the idea will flop spectacularly due to lack of planning, but at the same time, I’d be furious if, when I’m ready to launch the business, I now have to pay full price for the printer because it was no longer on sale. In fact I probably wouldn’t buy the printer again until it went on sale, and that might lead to me missing some key opportunities.

So I have to decide whether I can get my act together before I run out of time to return the printer. And I really am aware that normal people do not face these so-called dilemmas that rule my life.

Another thing I need to purchase is glasses. My workplace will cover some of the cost but with a prescription that’s fairly expensive due to my very poor eyesight, and the fact that I want really nice frames, I know I will be spending a lot and that gives me pause. Even for “necessities”, the cost will hold me back.

Also, I need a car. My family has been more than gracious and generous but it’s time for me to stop putting off buying a vehicle of my own. When I think of spending that money (and the work that shopping around for the best deal will entail because I must get the best deal or I feel ill), I put it off and keep hoping my siblings and parents don’t mind being a one-car household for a little longer. I know I have to grow up already and get over these issues with money.

I know for certain that my upbringing is responsible at least in part for the problems I have spending money, but my parents don’t understand how I can spend blithely on things they consider a waste, yet spend eons making a decision on things I actually need. It doesn’t make sense. It frustrates me that even though I’m aware of the Latte Factor and how it affects my life, I haven’t managed to switch my way of thinking. My laptop and the house are the only major purchases that I haven’t had buyer’s remorse about, and even with the former I was worried that I might not be getting a bargain (it was a Boxing Day sale and the original price of the laptop wasn’t advertised), and in the latter case I was annoyed with myself for not buying the house earlier, and saving 10% of the amount I ended up paying.

I want to be able to spend money on something I need without regretting that I had to spend $X, especially because $X is never low enough. I can live with the fact that I need to get a deal on something before I buy it, but how do I get to the point where I don’t feel a twinge of regret over spending on a big-ticket item? Or how do I increase the amount of money it takes for me to consider an item “big-ticket”?

(Update on the sugar thing: I bought candy four days ago and ate it over a period of 24 hours. I guess I just wanted to reinforce that I’m still addicted? Woe.)

Filed under: Money by jummy