YOLO and FOMO Can Affect Your Finances and Delay Your Retirement

Learn to enjoy today … and tomorrow

Letting go of fears and preconceptions to enjoy every moment is the philosophy that identifies the new generations.

Today everything is very easy to access, and nothing is a secret. We see instantly through social networks what our circle of friends and family members is doing, where they spend their vacations, what places they visit to eat, how they dress, what they buy.

This new standard of comparison, coupled with easy access to shopping and credit, can make us feel the need to spend hundreds of dollars on a dinner party because of Yolo (You Only Live Once) or because it gives us FOMO (Fear of Missing Out). “Both are mindsets that reflect the normalization of impulse purchases that lead us to make bad financial decisions.

The YOLO and FOMO philosophies taught us to value the experiences of now but slowly limited us to plan for the future.

Today, money is for fun. To be able to show how we live. Although it is a fun lifestyle, it limits our options in the years to come.

A recent survey found that 48% of millennials spent money they didn’t have and went into debt to keep in touch with friends, and 66% of millennial generation workers saved nothing for retirement.

But according to data, surveys, studies, and reports from the Pew Research Center, more than 88% of millennials live in metropolitan areas and cities, in other words, they have the best access to public transportation and don’t have to spend a lot of money buying a new car. In addition, millennials have access to on-demand urban travel and transportation through apps and platforms such as Uber and Lyft. However, they do not need to take out a monthly lease or car loan.

But that story doesn’t stop there. According to Financial Finesse’s 2017 Generational Report, the millennial generation owes more than $1.1 trillion of the nation’s $3.6 trillion in consumer debt, and much of that is due to the shocking amount of student loan debt they carry. Debt repayment accounts for a large portion of this generation’s monthly expenses.

Too much YOLO and FOMO can get in the way of their lives in the years to come, where their income often drops dramatically or disappears.

YOLO and FOMO value experiences, and that’s great, but take it a step further, think about what experiences and what kind of life you want to have … the rest of your life.

Live Today Without Taking Your Eyes Off Tomorrow

Here are some ideas you can adopt to balance your fun today without putting your future at risk.

1 — Don’t Fall For “One-Time” Offers

Companies and brands love to convey a sense of urgency to us by suggesting that an item will soon be out of stock or that a promotion will last only 24 hours.

In doing so, they are appealing to our impulsive desires and activating our FOMO, believing that it’s now or never. But the promotion almost always misses an important detail. If the item is in demand, and it probably is, if it is something that many won’t, it will not be out of stock for long. And today’s 24-hour mega sale will probably happen again in a few months.

2 — Is It Really The Experience Of Your Life?

We always hear phrases about how short life is or how important it is to live in the present. These sentiments are meaningful but often result in unnecessary expenses.

Remember that your friends’ lives do not consist primarily of fancy meals and trips to the beach, although their social media may seem otherwise, they also need to work for the good things in life.

Take the time to consider what you want most and try to work towards that specific goal. Don’t let other people’s joy or tempting invitations distract you from your own aspirations.

3 — It’s Worth Giving Yourself A Whim

So many advertisements lead us to believe that indulging ourselves is a form of self-care. And while it is necessary to spend on things that make us happy, you don’t have to indulge yourself, not always.

This is why a budget is so essential. By limiting how much money you can spend on the things you want, you have the opportunity to pamper yourself now and in the future.

Before you give in to your impulses, it’s best to take a step back and remember that FOMO and YOLO are philosophies that distract you from the things that really matter to you.

Make a list of what you hope to achieve in the long term, next year, or over your lifetime, and review it whenever a desire arises that might ruin that goal.

Final Thoughts

Saving is not only a habit but also being able to achieve medium and long-term goals. Managing your money correctly has benefits, so having control over what you earn and spend is one of the best ways to make your money work; And if you add saving to that, you’ll have points in your favor.

Saving gives you security and peace of mind for the future and for unforeseen events. There is a false idea that saving is only for the rich, for those who have money left over and therefore can save, and obviously, that is not the case.

Saving goes hand in hand with any personal finance plan, regardless of how much you earn or whether you are doing well or not financially.

The first step is to know exactly what I am going to save for? For my future? For a specific object, be it a car or a house? For my studies? Having a clear goal for these savings helps us to know exactly what we are or are not doing to achieve it.