Love and money
Are you one of those couples who NEVER fight about money? If you are, then you are indeed very very lucky. Most couples I know will usually have at least some squabbles about money and how it is spent. I am one of such couple.
It is really different when you are single and worry free. All your money earned belongs to you and you alone and you do not really need to account for it. Once you are married, engaged or involved in a relationship, all this will change.
For one, you need to account for the money you spend. This is so that there are no accusations of who spends more on what. Pooling the money together also helps to put into perspective what the current household expenses are and how much is set aside for emergency funds and savings or investments.
However, before putting all that together, a good honest talk is needed. This is so that we are able to understand each other better in terms of what is expected. Me, for example, is someone who likes to plan ahead and therefore all my expenses and savings are done with an objective in mind. My other half, however, thinks that so long as the sun rises tomorrow, all is well and life (and money) will roll by. Needless to say, his thinking makes me extremely nervous and in the beginning, we had endless squabbles and arguments over it. However, after understanding a little bit more about his upbringing and values, it helps me to respect his views and now, I decide to work with it rather than to argue and fight over it.
After understanding what is expected, then putting together a little budget on paper will help manage the household money much better. It also helps with being transparent about all the money that is circulating. But, as usual, good things are more difficult to do. I have been procrastinating this for the longest time although I have the objectives in mind, I have never gotten around to doing it up on a paper, mostly it is done on the back of an envelope. Hmm … got to start this soon.
I guess after all said and done, we have to know what our objectives and priorities are and what is our timeline to achieve them. Sometimes, we ourselves are not clear and may even underestimate it. This is where engaging help from financial planners would be good. I believe for the sake of the relationship and the family, we need all the help we can get.
May we all find love and happiness … and a little more money sure won’t hurt!!!
