Tiết kiệm giản đơn

tiền để mua hạnh phúc, tranh cãi vì tiền thì nói làm đếch :)

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Dear Dan,

My partner and I are students (sinh viên), and we have very different approaches (cách tiếp cận rất khác nhau) to dealing with money (về (ứng xử với) tiền bạc). My policy (chính sách) is to spend less than I earn and invest my savings (tiêu ít hơn kiếm được và tiết kiệm cho dài hạn) for the long term. But my partner feels that since we will both be earning more money after we graduate, we should spend freely now and enjoy the moment (vì ra trường sẽ có nhiều thu nhập hơn, nên giờ chi tiêu thoải mái và hưởng thụ từng khoảnh khắc (cuộc sống)). Is there any way to avoid fighting about this issue?

—Mathieu 

The bad news is that our preferences about spending and saving can be difficult to change (sở thích/ưu tiên về chi tiêu và tiết kiệm khó mà thay đổi). That’s why most divorced couples name finances as one of the major reasons for their split (nhiều cặp vợ chồng li di vì vấn đề tiền nong). The best way to avoid that fate is to recognize that you and your partner can’t change each other. Instead, you should minimize areas of conflict (giảm thiểu vùng xung đột).

Try setting up a joint bank account (tài khoản ngân hàng chung) in which you can both deposit your paychecks. Use that account to pay shared expenses such as rent and utilities. In addition, you should each have individual accounts for discretionary spending, into which you can transfer a fixed amount from your joint account every month. That money can be used for spending or saving as you see fit. You may still disagree, but this way you’ll only be arguing about the smaller amounts in your individual accounts, which limits the size of the problem. And remember, the goal of money is to buy happiness. If you keep fighting about it, what’s the point?

Bài trước: Làm sao để quên người cũ?