How saving less can help you save more (yes, you read that right)

by. Sarah Greesonbach

Life is full of troubling paradoxes. Whether you call it a Catch-22, opposites attracting, or simply “Things that don’t make sense,” this phenomenon can spill into relationships, educational institutions and even national policy.

Well, now you can add finances to that list.

The basics of personal finance always seem to start with save, save, save. Even if you’re only saving a small safety net, it’s still the first step in many financial education courses, like Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace program and Suze Orman’s tips and advice, just to name a few.

Which is why when I consciously started saving less and ended up with more money, things got really weird.

Saving is always the first step… but should it be?

I am one of those repeat offenders who can save $1,000 a hundred times…. and still never seem to have any money in the bank.

There’s always some pressing reason that we need to transfer that money out of savings. Maybe an important car repair comes up, or we need to buy groceries but a freelance check hasn’t come in yet.

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