Falling Victim To Lifestyle Creep
Sliding into Over expenditure
Since starting my new job, my expenses increased. A lot. It seems as though the bailiffs have caught wind of my improved earnings and have all come knocking at my door at once, asking for £360 in car fines.
Nevertheless, since my last financial update in May, I’ve had the opportunity to pay for some long-awaited and expected expenses. Overlooking the expensive car fines for the sake of my sanity, I was able to buy several items that were on my wish list for a while.
New gym clothes was the first thing on the list. For years I had been wearing my worn-out garments that dated back to my teenage years. And if you are anything like me, having a new pair of running shoes invigorates the legs to go that extra mile.
I spent over £500 on gym clothes. Typing it out now, it sounds outrageous. I could try to justify it by saying they’re from Nike, but let’s face it, the sneakerhead strain, inherited from those before me, lingers in me.
Stepping away from the gym, my next significant purchase was a trip to the peak district which totalled nearly £400. This included travel costs, accommodation, food and hiking gear.
This was a purchase I have absolutely no regrets. It was refreshing getting to experience the Peak District again and doing it with my partner made it all the better.
Oh and if car fines were not enough, my vehicle decided to have new problems. Seems like everyone and everything caught a sniff of the cheddar as soon as it arrived. Anyway, I spent approximately £200 to repair various parts, but I suspect that there may be more issues before the year ends.
Another £200 was spent on tickets for me and my friends to see Andrew Schulz stand up in Manchester, and while we are here I’m certain I’ll be spending another £150 up north.
In addition to that, I did the following: ate at restaurants more frequently than usual, visited the dentist, purchased more materialistic clothing, replaced my laptop battery, and played an excessive amount of Diablo 4.
Lifestyle Explosion
There was nothing gradual about this lifestyle creep. When that paycheck came in, it practically went right back out. It feels like more of a lifestyle explosion than a gradual creep, as I ended up spending much more than I had initially planned.
I was not being nearly as mindful as I once was when unemployed. The sudden slide into over expenditure caught me off guard when reviewing my monthly statement. I didn’t realize the extent of my spending at the time because I had enough money readily available.
I’ve learned the importance of keeping track of expenses and income separately. Ideally, they should not be directly linked. A good budget means that expenses stay the same even if income increases. The only things that should be related to income are savings and investments.
Moving forward, I cannot guarantee that my spending habits will remain the same as when I was unemployed. However, I would prefer to continue following a similar path. In reality, my world is not ideal, and I wish to live out experiences that were not possible at the start of the year.
Spinning the Investment Wheel
I’m looking to get back on track with my finances now that I have a job again. My investment habits suffered while I was unemployed. My stringent strategy will remain largely the same: investing in the wildest meme stock Reddit has on the front page (heard Tupperware did a 7x in the last 2 weeks).
In all seriousness, my monthly investing rate will be distributed between crypto and stocks, with a 55/45 split. This allocation may change over time, but after observing the drastic rise of AI stocks from a distance, I believe this to be the most appropriate approach. That is ofcourse until I inevitably get wrecked.
In my next update, I will detail what exactly I have invested in and my reasonings for my decisions. Until the next.
