#32. Spend your earned money immediately or save it for future?
My mom used to tell me:"You can only spend money once." What she meant is that if you spent money frivolously, you might really need it later and regret your earlier careless spending. After several years of managing a small amount of my own money, I have come to the conclusion that my mom was right, saving is better than spending.
No one knows what tomorrow will bring, the only thing we can do is to try to be prepared. When disaster strikes, perhaps a sudden illness in the family, having money on hand can mean the difference between life and death. When opportunity knocks, a surprise acceptance to a top university for instance, money is needed for tuition, board, and books. This is not to say that one should not spend any money because they have to prepare for every possible contingency. It simply means that one should not spend recklessly without having a substantial amount of money to guard against an unpredictable future.
The importance of saving money when young cannot be overstressed. This is because young people can tolerate higher-risk, higher return investments, and can let their investments mature longer, allowing interest on savings to compound. If invested well, $5,000 today could become $20,000 in 15 years. This concept is so powerful because the investor does not have to work for the money, the money works for the investor. Saving is not only a bulwark against an unpredictable future, it is also a way to generate future wealth.
At last, while it is true that spending money can be enjoyable, it is not the only way to have fun. The idea that we must always be consuming things in order to have a good time is a lie told to us by advertisers. These companies tell us that only when we drive the right car, wear the right clothes, and drink the right beverages will we be truly happy. In reality, each person determines the standard of his/her own happiness. For my part, I have decided that creating things, writing, painting, making music, is what truly makes me happy. The amount of money I need to spend doing these things is almost nothing, but the happiness they bring me is immeasurable. I would prefer to save money for unavoidable expenses and enjoy life by being a producer, not a consumer.
32. 马上花掉挣来的钱好还是为将来攒钱好？
我妈妈曾经告诉我：“你只能花一次钱。”她的意思是，如果你无节制地花钱，以后你可能会真正需要它，而且会为你先前随手花钱感到后悔。管理了几年我自己的一小笔钱后，我得出结论：妈妈的话没错，存钱要比花钱好。
没人知道明天会发生什么，我们惟一能做的事就是试着做好准备。当灾难来临时，例如是家人一场突然的大病，有钱在手可能就意味着生存与死亡之间的差别。当机会来敲门时，例如意外地被一所顶级的大学所录取，就需要钱来支付学费、伙食费和书本费。这并不是说因为人要准备应对未来的意外事件而一点钱都不花。这仅仅意味着一个人不该鲁莽地花钱而不留下一笔数量充足的钱来绸缪不可预知的未来。
在年轻时存钱的重要性怎么强调都不过分。这是因为年轻人可以承担高风险、高回报的投资，并且可以让他们的投资期限更长，使他们的利息能以复利计算。如果投资合理，今天的5000美元15年后就可以变成2万美元。这个概念如此有力是因为投资者无需为钱去工作，而是钱为投资者工作。存钱不仅是预防不可知的未来的防波堤，而且是财富增值的一种办法。
最后，尽管花钱确实会很有乐趣，但那不是惟一取乐的方法。我们必须一直消费来获得快乐时光的观点是广告商对我们撒的谎。这些公司告诉我们，只有我们开上够派头的汽车、穿上够靓丽的衣服、喝上够档次的饮料才是真正的快乐。实际上，每个人都可以定义她或他自己的快乐标准。对我来说，我觉得制作东西、写作、画画、创作音乐是真正使我高兴的东西。做这些事我需要的花费很少但是它们带来的快乐却是不可估量的。我喜欢为不可避免的花费攒钱并作为一个制造者而不是消费者来享受生活。
- frivolously ［ˈfrivələsli］ adv. 轻浮地，愚昧地
- tuition ［tu:ˈiʃən］ n. 学费
- board ［bɔ:d］ n. 膳食费用
- recklessly ［ˈreklisli］ adv. 鲁莽地，不顾一切地
- substantial ［səbˈstænʃəl］ adj. 坚固的，充实的
- bulwark ［ˈbulwək］ n. 壁垒，防波堤
- immeasurable ［iˈmeʒərəbl］ adj. 不可估量的
- compound ［ˈka:mpaund］ v. 以复利计算
- mature ［məˈtuə］ vi. 到期