I have this tendency to joke about my love for shopping and it's crippling effect on my finances. Case in point my post on lovables and how I openly declare that my love for shoes may just bankrupt me one day. Well the joke is on me and the day of filing for bankruptcy might not be as far off into the distance as I may have imagined...Yikes!
So as a young up-and-coming, as most employment studies will have you think, I have been dabbling in investing. I started off small for savings purposes and the further along I progress careerwise, my investment needs will change. Enter my financial advisor, a charming young man, with a good head on his shoulders and a sound understanding of markets and economic trends. Over the last couple of years he has helped me save quite a lot of money which I have used to travel, furnish parts my apartment and some other cool stuff.
I recently brought to his attention my current credit card debt situation which might I add is bordering on frightening. He advised me that my debt is completely counter-productive to whatever investment plans I have. In effect every cent I am putting away means very little if my overall debt is ranging in the same bracket. Now I know most of you are thinking WTF??? This blog is supposed to be about fashion and style not Economics 101, but wait there is a method to my madness, keep reading.
A large part of how I got into this debt shame spiral was because of the reckless, irresponsible use of my credit card when shopping. The other part is the Y.O.LO. mentality that was hammered into my psyche for most of 2012. I would shop when I was feeling emotional... and I mean all kinds of emotions, happy, sad, neutral, calm, stressed you name it. Obviously not good. My rock-bottom moment came when I went in search of a good pair of heels to wear to a wedding I was invited to. I came out of the mall without the said pair of shoes and instead a R1000.00 jacket and a nail treatment kit which also cost a pretty penny, all of which I did not need. I still don't have shoes for this wedding...
In the weeks prior to my rock-bottom moment, a four-letter word helped send me into the deep abyss of credit card hell...
So now I am sitting with a situation on my hands. My advisor has come up with a strategy to get me debt free in three months, sounds good right? Well it obviously comes at a heavy price. I have to use a large chunk of my investment savings as well as every last cent of my entire disposable income for THREE whole months to settle my credit card. That should give you an indication of the dire financial straits I am in! That means no shopping at all, no dinners, no movie dates, no concerts, nothing... for three whole months. I feel like I am in a bad reality TV show chronicling my journey to debt-free redemption. There will be tears...
The point of this post is not to highlight my financial woes but rather highlight the fact that in your endeavours to stay stylish and fashion forward, do not put yourself in a financial predicament. Know your financial boundaries and stick to them. If you are not yet in the Christian Louboutin buying leagues, do not tempt yourself into buying shoes that cost more than 6 months of your salary! Try your utmost best to stay away from the credit trap.There is clearly truth to the old adage that cash is king. Being fashion forward should not result in you having to live on dry toast and black, sugarless tea for dinner night after night.
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