Tell your LBYM 'conversion' story here

[grasshopper]

Spell check is your friend.

It gets worse when "speed" typing in a forum. Easy to fat finger something and I don't always type exactly what I was thinking, especially trying to multi task.

 

[Amethyst]

I used to let such things bother me, but when it became acceptable to use "decimate" (kill one-tenth) to mean "devastate" (destroy everything) I grew resigned. Now I just laugh at the whole mess - bad use of words or punctuation, and people who bridle at bad word use (especially when they, themselves, make mistakes).

Besides, I went back and read a novel I had adored when I was in high school, and realized the author (whom I had considered the greatest writer ever) didn't know the difference between "lie" and "lay"; nor, obviously, did his editor.

Amethyst

Had to be a joke. I laughed because "their, there, they're" drives me crazy. Almost as much as "its and it's."

.

 

[imoldernu]

1942... potato peel soup.

 

[Major Tom]

I think it is about 99.999% probable that it is a joke.

On reflection, I see you are most likely right. My first reaction on seeing it was that it was a genuine mistake, which would have been even funnier, given the circumstances.

 

[NW-Bound]

I used to let such things bother me, but when it became acceptable to use "decimate" (kill one-tenth) to mean "devastate" (destroy everything) I grew resigned...

Forever, people who work in the digital signal processing field have been using "decimate" to mean "throw away most, and keep only a fraction" when talking about their "decimation filter". This is exactly the reverse of the original meaning of the word. I wonder if these engineers were the culprits who started this misuse of the word. It is likely, as engineers tend to be terrible writers and worst abusers of languages.

Well, to tie in to the thread topic of LBYM, I would say that it's because engineers are frugal in their language usage. They can use one word to mean different things, or invent new words from what they know instead of searching for a proper existing one. How does one create an adjective or an adverb out of a noun? They have got a universal rule nailed down, at dismay of English majors. And to make it worse, they do not seem to care, as the listeners or readers actually understand what they mean. And if it works, they just keep doing it. Most LBYM'ers stress function over form, oui?

 

[mickeyd]

Was there a moment that you 'woke up' regarding the benefits of LBYM?

Nope.

As far back as I can remember back in kiddom I recognized the value of spending less than I had. My folks were married in the 1930's and often spoke about "back in depression days" so I must have equated all of that with simple arithmetic and lived accordingly. It's worked out well for me so far.

 

[KMyer]

+1

Nope.

As far back as I can remember back in kiddom I recognized the value of spending less than I had.

I'm a product of around ten generations worth of PA Dutch culture. I remember vividly that my grandma had a drawer full of used, but empty, bread bags so that she wouldn't have to buy sandwich bags. My grandparents owned a handful of farms at one time so my grandma definitely didn't need to do this, but she wanted to. We have all become more like our grandparents since 2008.

I'm glad I was born into this culture.

 

[haha]

I used to let such things bother me, but when it became acceptable to use "decimate" (kill one-tenth) to mean "devastate" (destroy everything) I grew resigned. Now I just laugh at the whole mess - bad use of words or punctuation, and people who bridle at bad word use (especially when they, themselves, make mistakes).

Besides, I went back and read a novel I had adored when I was in high school, and realized the author (whom I had considered the greatest writer ever) didn't know the difference between "lie" and "lay"; nor, obviously, did his editor.

Amethyst

It was a ritualized punishment in the Roman Legions for certain very serious offenses. Like you say, it required the death of every tenth soldier.

Decimation

Ha

 

[freebird5825]

No conversion ever really happened. I was always short of money, and understood that w*rk was required to solve that problem. Mom was barely scraping by herself, to cover high property taxes and keeping me fed and in private high school. No 'deadbeat dad' laws existed in those days, so child support was infrequent and incomplete.
So I weeded gardens, raked leaves, babysat, shoveled sidewalks, then graduated to being a PT mother's helper, cleaned houses, pumped gas, and got the best paying j*bs I could find to cover college costs not taken care of by scholarship, grant, or W*rk Study...yadda yadda yadda.
Once I got to the point where my salary was generous, the lifetime habit of saving (by default) continued. I just kept doing that.
When I was suddenly widowed in late 2004, it was not my husband's pension or life insurance that carried me through losing more than half the total household income.
It was my life savings at age 46, already in place, serving as a safety margin.
Once the financial dust settled, I FIREd at age 48.

 

[old woman]

My parents were raised in the depression so knew to watch money. Mom had a little piggy bank to store dimes and used them to buy important things. She was usually saving to buy a dress but then one of the kids needed shoes so she didn't have a new dress for years. I started working at 7 for about 50 cents a day so knew how hard it was to earn money. I worked the rest of my childhood and didn't ever buy anything on from the snack wagon on the farm because they wanted 10 cents for a can of pop. I was making a few cents a pound for picking green beans I wasn't wasting it on something I didn't need. Christmas and birthdays I usually got a dollar and saved it and saved my pay. When I was 18 I had $50 saved, I was rich. I saw a tv show where they gave away a million dollars when I was about 13. I remember thinking the interest at the bank was enough I would have more money every year than my dad earned and knew just what I would do if I got the money.
Then I left home with my $50 and found a job and place to live but since I didn't own anything but one suitcase of clothes I spent my entire paycheck. I wanted a TV but they were about $100 for a 12in black and white and I only had $10 in savings. Dad cosigned for a credit card for me but the limit was $50 so I didn't get anything until after I was married. I couldn't really save while married, he would spend it but I wanted to save. He didn't want to be in debt so we didn't have credit cards. The minute I divorced him I started saving and investing and now have saved $658K, no consumer debt only a mortgage.

 

[mickeyd]

Mom had a little piggy bank to store dimes and used them to buy important things.

This just jogged an old memory from waaay back.

We kids in the family all had ceramic piggy banks when growing up. We were taught (i guess) to save our little bit of money in the bank.

I learned from my two older sisters that the only may to get the change out of the bank (without breaking it) was to try to fish out coins one-at-a-time via the upside down piggy bank's coin slot with a nail file or butter knife. I think that must have somehow taught me that is was good idea to make getting at the coins a difficult task. Sorta like a penalty for early withdrawal.

 

[healthyandfun]

2 Important Events

This may not be exactly what you had intended, but.......I had always been a frugal sort, but two events had a strong impact in helping move to FI. Reading Your Money Or Your Life by Joe Dominguez and Vicki Robbin and following their income tracking system made me reorder how I spent and kept track of my money. I have followed that system since 1994 and it is one reason I will soon reach FI.
The other was more of an AaaHa moment. I had saved a bit of money and invested in mutual funds. As an educator, I decided to work summer school to pay for a new air conditioner and resupply my emergency fund. It really crimped my style of having time to travel in the summer and was a long six weeks. On the last day of summer school I received the quarterly statement from the mutual funds, and the account had increased more than I had earned working for six weeks! It showed me that I could have my money make money for me rather than to go out and work to make money. After that experience, I became much more dedicated about LBYM and increased my savings.

 

[ERhoosier]

Never had a LBYM 'conversion', just always a desire to build/maintain a financial cushion & eventually RE.

 

[redduck]

Wallowing in sin and sorrow, I was walking along a dusty road near Damascus. Suddenly I beheld a blindlingly brilliant light...

Since then I have reigned in splendor, by reining in my spending

The rest is history.

Ha

I think there may be medicine for this.

 

[truenorth418]

I was in my early 30s and earning a good salary but not much to show for it. At the same time, I saw many of my work colleagues aged 40 and above getting pushed around by senior management or laid off. I figured I needed to create a more sustainable lifestyle for myself. At about that same time, someone recommended I read Millionaire Next Door. After I finished that book I developed a 10 year LBYM budget to become financial independent and here I am.

 

[Exterous]

Mine is a bit of a two part story.

Part one: Gew up in a LBYM household. Never really sunk into me why we did that though. Then in college I mismanaged credit card debt. It was only a couple thousand dollars and not to terrible in the grand scheme of things (and I always made my payments) but it got me much more serious about finances and I started understanding why we had lived the way we did. So I started down the LBYM path and my wife (fiancee at the time) followed shortly thereafter. I don't LBYM as much as some though and the reason is in part 2

I am right now more interested to read stories of people "kicking it up a notch" in their retirement.

Part 2: My parents were great at LBYM. Took very few trips, bought used cars and drove till they fell apart, furniture older than they are etc etc. They had big plans for retirement though. Then just three months after my dad retired he was diagnosed with cancer. Their Europe cruise was cancelled. Their RV trip coast to coast had to be cancelled. My dad will never be able to get his medical clearance to attain his dream of getting his pilot's license now. He might never get to be healthy enough to take any of the trips they had wanted to take together.

So now its about efficient application of money instead of more substantial LBYM. We may save a bit lower than average for this forum but we do make sure to take trips together and do not delay gratification for everything. We love to travel and we may spend a lot of time figuring out the best way to mix points, miles and sales for our trips but its a fine line to walk. My dad often tells me he regrets not being able to travel with my mom more...

 

[Lazarus]

My dad will never be able to get his medical clearance to attain his dream of getting his pilot's license now.

He can get a Sport Pilots license without a medical. You just have to have a valid drivers license to certify that you are medically fit.

 

[Exterous]

I appricate the sentiment of your post (and he is aware of the sports license) and we can certainly hope but the side effects of treatment and the low survivability rates of his cancer make even this very very unlikely (Perhaps 'never' was too strong of a word choice though. Highly unlikely then)

 

[computerguy]

I remember EXACTLY when LBYM kicked in for me.

I worked full time while attending college at night. After I graduated I went to work for a large computer company. By that time I was a bit older than the usual new employee and had a living standard based on a modest salary. My new job gave me a big salary increase. I was "rich" for the first time in my life.

I was sent to "boot camp" for new employees to learn the culture and technical focus of the company. I learned that Brooks Brother suits and black wing tip shoes were the preferred uniform. There was a lecture about personal finance. "Buy a new car and buy a big house" was the unmistakeable take away. What kind of car? A BMW! What kind of house? See where your colleagues live and buy a house in that neighborhood!

Most of my classmates accepted this direction immediately. I did not. It just seemed wrong. Following what I now know is LBYM, I bought a modest house in a modest suburb and continued to drive my Ford sedan. And I saved money. Lots of money. Over the years my salary increased substantially and I was transferred several times. I continued to buy houses for about 1/2 of what most employees had, etc. And continued to save the rest.

The rationale for the "buy a new car and big house" was that employees who were deeply in debt would work harder and longer. That might be true. I know that, unlike some of my coworkers, I never lay awake at night in terror that I couldn't make my mortgage payment on my mini-mansion.

 

[Lazarus]

I remember EXACTLY when LBYM kicked in for me.

I worked full time while attending college at night. After I graduated I went to work for a large computer company. By that time I was a bit older than the usual new employee and had a living standard based on a modest salary. My new job gave me a big salary increase. I was "rich" for the first time in my life.

I was sent to "boot camp" for new employees to learn the culture and technical focus of the company. I learned that Brooks Brother suits and black wing tip shoes were the preferred uniform. There was a lecture about personal finance. "Buy a new car and buy a big house" was the unmistakeable take away. What kind of car? A BMW! What kind of house? See where your colleagues live and buy a house in that neighborhood!

Most of my classmates accepted this direction immediately. I did not. It just seemed wrong. Following what I now know is LBYM, I bought a modest house in a modest suburb and continued to drive my Ford sedan. And I saved money. Lots of money. Over the years my salary increased substantially and I was transferred several times. I continued to buy houses for about 1/2 of what most employees had, etc. And continued to save the rest.

The rationale for the "buy a new car and big house" was that employees who were deeply in debt would work harder and longer. That might be true. I know that, unlike some of my coworkers, I never lay awake at night in terror that I couldn't make my mortgage payment on my mini-mansion.

Most of my peers are still at work for the same reasons.

 

[jon-nyc]

One thing that strikes me about this thread is how few 'conversions' there were. It seems that most respondents saved 30% of their allowance, baby sitting and paper route money as kids...

 

[travelover]

One thing that strikes me about this thread is how few 'conversions' there were. It seems that most respondents saved 30% of their allowance, baby sitting and paper route money as kids...

Good point. I was always a saver even as a kid.

 

[Major Tom]

One thing that strikes me about this thread is how few 'conversions' there were. It seems that most respondents saved 30% of their allowance, baby sitting and paper route money as kids...

Well, a lot of this stuff is learned behavior from an early age for many of us. My parents were frugal.

 

[jon-nyc]

edit: reply to travelover...

Not me. On balance I'd say I've been a better earner than saver in my career. Relating it to Friedman's permanent income hypothesis, I tended toward (mild) debt in youth, broke even in my late 20s, and massive savings later.


My parents were frugal too, but I think I was just optimistic about my own earning power.

 

[Bestwifeever]

One thing that strikes me about this thread is how few 'conversions' there were. It seems that most respondents saved 30% of their allowance, baby sitting and paper route money as kids...

I don't know that people would want to reveal their uncontrolled spending binges here, though.

Once I let myself be manipulated into buying an expensive bottle of cologne--I remember it was $110 at least 25 years ago. I don't even wear cologne as a rule. I felt so bad about it when I got home that I put it away and gave it to my SIL for Christmas (who had no idea what it cost).