Americans love to spend. Shopping is a top tier leisure activity for many people and it’s from this that phrases such as “retail therapy” and “shopaholic” have been coined. We live in constant envy of our buddy with the new Acura, the girl on the treadmill next to us with the nicer MP3 player, or the co-worker who went backpacking in the Alps on his last vacation. We always want what we don’t have. This would not be a huge problem if it weren’t for credit cards however. The ability to buy now and pay later makes it very tempting for lots of people to spend beyond their means, only to end up in financial trouble when the bills start to arrive.
If you are wondering how American culture became so obsessed with possessions, money, and credit cards, you’re not alone. Countless books have been written on the subject, and many of our spending habits are under examination by psychologists. Compulsive shopping is finally receiving the serious attention it deserves, rather than simply being dismissed as a being a personal choice.
To answer the question as to how we got to this point, one simply has to go outside and look at the world around them. Advertisements are everywhere, from billboards, to stadiums, to schools. Magazines, websites and television are also filled with ads, bringing us to a point where it’s impossible to live without being exposed. Credit card offers from all the major credit card companies constantly fill our mailboxes, promising us we can get everything we want, and not mentioning what will happen should we decide not to actually pay for it. Contributing to our lust most significantly, perhaps, is the above-mentioned desire to want what our neighbor has, or more importantly, what we don’t have. We feel that our lives would be that much better if we had a plasma TV or a designer dress.
In order to help solve this problem, it is vital that the consumer be aware of what they can and cannot afford, and not to let having a credit card influence their decision. Many people have never received serious education on credit cards and how exactly they work. This is a problem that needs to be addressed in our society, especially as major credit card companies start targeting teenagers and younger with special cards. Cards from major credit card companies get kids started at an early age, hoping they will sign up for the mature cards as soon as they’re old enough.
We also have to become more aware of the lifestyle that we can afford to live with our given income. Many people would still be in debt if they made $150,000 instead of $50,000 because they would feel entitled to spend more since they earn more. Spending habits for people with small incomes are sometimes no different from those of people with large incomes. It’s important that we know exactly where our money goes, because it would likely turn out that many of the purchases we make are frivolous and don’t pay off in the long run.
It is very difficult not to get caught up in the consumerism and desires of our society, but having solid money management skills will help you keep yourself afloat. This is not a problem that will go away overnight for our country, but as individuals, we do have control over the financial choices we make.