We live in a world of Buy Today, Pay Tomorrow, and tomorrow
and tomorrow after that. Gone are the days when you had to
save up for something. Today you can buy things with monthly
payments, credit, post-dated checks, loans and overdraft.
And the better you are at paying off your debt, the more
credit (read: debt) you're allowed to have. Forget Cash and
Carry. We're into the long haul.
Now this has its advantages, of course. You don't have to
wait until you can afford something to have it. And if you
need money for an emergency, G-d forbid, or for something
you need right away, or to finance a simcha, a car or
a new home, no problem. However, there IS a problem.
There is a universal rule that money attracts [subtracts]
money and debt attracts [adds] debt. The more debt you have,
the more debt you get as you sink into the morass of
indebtedness, from which there is little hope of escape
unless you win the lottery.
If I'm painting a bleak picture, it is because I myself am
on the canvas, having painted myself into a corner. I have a
great credit rating; my friends trust me for my integrity,
and the credit card company gleefully extends me more
credit.
In the old days, our parents saved up for something, paid it
off and then got it. That way, they didn't get into debt.
But today you can acquire numerous purchases, own them, and
not even have any idea of how you're going to pay for the
full amount.
We've got to reverse the spiral. It's the only way. Of
course we can't do this overnight. Step by step, let me make
a few suggestions:
1. Don't get into any more major debt if you can help it.
It's a recession, I know, and people aren't making enough to
cover their living expenses, but try.
2. Amalgamate your debts into fewer ones. The fewer debts
you have, the less in debt you are, in a matter of speaking,
and the better you know where you stand.
3. Pay cash or cash-checks. Take as little as possible on
your credit card and pay everything in one payment. Work
towards phasing out your credit card except for things which
require credit cards, like renting a car or ordering
something long distance. I see little old ladies with a
thousand shekels in their hand go to the post office and pay
their city taxes or electrical bills in cash. They can't
change the way they used to do things. Good for them. [They
had better be careful, though, in carrying around cash, as
they are easy prey for unscrupulous people!]
4) Same with checks. Phase them out. Just having them adds
service charges and you don't see your money dwindling out
of your account.
5) When you take out money from the automatic bank machine,
take out only what you need. Don't take a little extra just
in case. You'll spend it. Keep emergency money in a cookie
jar at home and use it only in emergencies. The same way you
wouldn't touch your tzedoka box for anything else,
don't go near the cookie jar except if you're really in a
pickle [laughs, please].
6. As you use cash more, your overdraft should decline,
hopefully.
7. If you must borrow money, borrow from a gemach, a
friend, a relative. Not the bank. Paying interest creates
more debt.
8. Besides your cookie jar of emergency money and your
tzedoka box, go back to saving up for things, but not
in a bank account. Save in your home. Use a shoebox or jar
or coffee container and save up nickels and dimes or half-
and shekel pieces. [Save ALL of your half-shekel pieces, for
example.] Set a goal and save for it a little bit each day.
If you find you use the money to cover some unexpected
expense, you're still ahead because you didn't get into more
debt to cover it.
9. Reward yourself for your self restraint. I have started
saving ten percent of whatever money I stopped myself from
spending. That money can be fun money and if you save up a
few shekels, treat yourself to something. Teach yourself
that you can still get what you want without getting into
debt.
10. Don't succumb to all that wonderful credit people offer
you. There's no such thing as an easy payment. Also, don't
sign up for standing bank orders (horaot keva) for
ANYTHING. You have less control over your money that way.
11. This new system has also extended to giving charity. You
can sign a bank order or make monthly payments on your
credit card to any number of worthy causes. I don't, G-d
forbid, want to stop anyone from giving charity, but you can
give the 12 payments you've pledged in one lump sum or write
yourself a note to send a monthly check to your favorite
cause. If the above system helps you, be more generous and
consistent in giving charity than just having one bank
commitment and one credit card payment for tzedoka.
Give the rest in cash. It seems kind of paradoxical to go
into debt to give charity.
12) Apropos, there ARE people who do go into debt to
tzedoka. They write themselves little notes about how
much they owe tzedoka. I don't know, but I prefer
being in debt to the bank than to Hashem.
Find another solution. An idea could be giving tzedoka
every day instead of the end of the month. So if you earn,
say, 5,000 shekels per month and you have to give 500 to
tzedoka, give 17 shekels every day instead of waiting
till the end of the month. [Ed. note: Best of all: a tip
from our own Torah and commentaries: Aser -- te'asher.
If you want to get rich, and most of us certainly want to
get out of the debt rut, maaser all money FIRST, as
soon as it comes in. Set it aside as your charity fund and
dispense from that. Make it a rule to never borrow from that
money. And be generous with the tenth. You will see that it
pays off. It's guaranteed!]
Finally, if you have trouble staying out of debt, you can
always renege on your payments. That will kill your credit
rating and you won't be able to get any more credit.
[Laugh.]
Credit is a good thing to have, but it's a better thing not
to need it. There are very few things you can only afford if
you buy on credit, like a mortgage, but everything else can
be bought outright by saving. A debtor is a slave to his
debts. Better to be free!
