Temptations away from your financial goals is a second practice that could lead you to unnecessary debt.  Remember that I always advise that you should make your Statement of Assets and Liabilities (SAL) to know exactly where you are in terms of your financial life.  Perhaps you can appreciate your SAL if you consider that it is the same as the SALN (Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth) that is discussed so often now related to the Chief Justice impeachment hearings.

You should also make your Budget Forecast clearing showing your income, your savings and your expenses.  (Income minus Savings equals Expenses).  Knowing your Budget and your SAL, you should make your Personal Financial Plan, which is a target on how much money you should have at a future period of time.  Your Plan should include how you are going to invest your savings to grow your SAL.  As you make your regular SAL at least twice a year, you will understand whether your wealth is increasing or not.

There will be so many temptations along the way that can make you forget what your financial goals are.  Most of these temptations will come from your relatives, friends and neighbors who may not be in the same mode of planning for the financial future, as you are.  Their values may not be the same in that they don’t believe in saving.  Or their income might be much higher than yours, in which case they may have more left for expenses than you have.

One example where values can differ is how baptisms are celebrated.  Some believe in a big baptism celebration reasoning that it will only happen once in a lifetime.  This is especially true for the first child.  When you decide on a big baptism party, family members and friends will give you their thoughts on what you should have.  Some will say that you should have a special baptism dress, a special venue etc.  All of this will cost a lot of money and will certainly lessen your savings. Your baby will not even enjoy the baptism party.  He might even be uncomfortable through it.  These savings could start off your child’s savings plan that he will enjoy when he really needs it.

Those who have better money values would choose a simple quiet baptism.  You do not need to please your family and friends.  Even if they will contribute to pay for the baptism, you could just choose to keep their cash contributions as savings for your baby.  Of course, the cash contributions might not be given if you don’t have a baptism celebration.  If this is true, compare how much you would spend for a simple quiet baptism versus a big baptism. Will the cash contributions you expect more than cover the difference?  Perhaps, if you are sure you will not be tempted by family and friends to spend much more than your budget.