In business, there is an old saying that has stood the test of time. It goes like this: “Hire slow, fire fast.”
Of course, most business owners and hiring managers do the exact opposite. They hire fast… and fire slow.
Companies usually hire too quickly because they’re short-handed and desperate for help. The employees are overworked, and are feeling the pain of being understaffed.
Result? They hire the first halfway qualified guy or gal who walks in the door.
Down the road, when it becomes apparent they hired the wrong person, they are reluctant to fire him or her. Because it would not only be admitting a mistake — it would be painful.
And us humans will do quite a lot to avoid pain.
So what the heck does this have to do with debt and personal finances?
I’ll tell you.
In the management of your personal finances, you need to implement a new rule. It goes like this: “Buy slow, sell fast.”
Of course, in real life, we are all severely prone to buy fast… and sell slow.
This leads to many wasteful purchases followed by the rapid accumulation of junk — stuff you never use but keep anyway.
I think we buy fast to alleviate pain in our lives. We think buying doodads and gadgets will make our lives easier.
Unfortunately, stuff rarely makes our lives easier. It almost always makes them more complex.
Which means we need to get better about managing the perceived “pain” in our lives. Otherwise, we may make stupid decisions that ultimately increase the pain we experience.
Ironic, isn’t it?
That we would create pain while trying to avoid pain.
Anyway, I personally suggest:
1. Always giving yourself a waiting period before buying anything more than $100. Give yourself time to cool off. Do you really and truly need to purchase this product?
2. Practice “intentional buying.” Don’t go window shopping for fun. Rather, go shopping only when you have a specific item to purchase.
3. When you realize you’re no longer using a particular item, get rid of it. And get rid of it fast. Don’t waste any more of your precious time and energy storing it “because you might just need it someday.” If you haven’t used something in more than a year, you will probably never use it again. So sell it.
These are three rules you can follow starting today so you can get in control of your personal finances and your stuff. Remember: “Buy slow, sell fast.” It’ll save you a lot of heartache.
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{ 2 comments }
I bought a bicycle like four months ago. Planning to use it every day, the reality was it started collecting dust in the garage of my building.
I bought the bicycle with a good intention and later realized it was more a compulsive decision.
A friend of mine offered me some little less than the price I paid for it. As you mentioned in the post, it took me more time to take the decision to sell it, than to make the decision to buy it (even with it just collecting dust).
So after this, the lesson kicked in, and since then I have been thinking about all the aspects involved before buying something (like, will I really use it? When am I going to use it? Do I have the time?). I have stopped buying a lot of stuff with this new logic.
MDR – Thanks for you sharing your story.
I bought a paintball gun a few years ago. My brother was into it, and I went with him and his friends a few times.
Since then, I haven’t used my paintball gun in more than 2 years! Definitely something I need to get rid of. :-0
Ryan
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