Spending and Saving

Buying Time, or How I Learned to Spend Again

When I got laid off last December and had to curb my spending, there were some things that were hard to give up. I bitched about downgrading from a fancy gym to a utilitarian one. (Read Frugal Fitness for other tips.) I tried to convince my hairstylist to come to my house so I wouldn’t have to forego his services. I was sad about not sending my laundry out—and not just because I don’t like doing the wash. (Read I Miss My Dry Cleaner.)

But there were plenty of upsides to my new frugality. It was cozier to invite friends in for drinks than go out to a bar. It was fun and creative to craft a necklace out of a vintage brooch instead of dashing out to buy something new for a formal party. Though I hate negotiating, I convinced the cable and cell phone companies to give me discounts. I’ve always been financially responsible, but I felt especially virtuous in my new restraint and resourcefulness.

The downturn seemed to have a similar impact on society as a whole. It put the brakes on rampant consumerism. In record time, we have become less materialistic, less wasteful, less brand-obsessed. The savings rate has risen from zero to nearly 7 percent, the highest it’s been since the early 1990s. I’ve been hoping that the recession would be short, but have a lasting effect on our spending habits.

Economists say that the unleashing of pent-up consumer demand will lift us out of the recession.

A little more than a week ago, I accepted a three-month consulting gig. It inspired a mix of emotions: I was relieved to have a steady flow of income for a while. I wondered what it would be like to work in an office again. I worried about doing a good job.

But mostly what I  felt was an urge to spend, spend, spend.

What I’d thought was my new frugality turned out to be bottled-up desire to buy stuff. In fact, I wanted to buy more than I had before the recession. Financial virtue went out the window. I started pricing a new laptop. A cute beach tote. I thought about putting money away and investing in my 401(k), but after I had brunch with a friend who is lucky enough to help run her family’s company and buys herself the most beautiful jewelry, I also pondered buying a really nice ring. I started hailing taxis instead of automatically heading for the subway. “Let’s go out for dinner!” I said when friends rang. And this was before I’d even received one check.

Economists say that the unleashing of pent-up consumer demand will lift us out of the recession. In fact, Marshal Cohen, a retail analyst at market research firm NPD Group “believes the spending orgy of the last several years — and subsequent pullback — has made a big rebound inevitable,” says USA Today.

We all want out of tough times, but what will happen to what we learned? A story in the Chicago Tribune today argues that the Great Recession will instill frugal habits in children, just like the Depression did for our grandparents. I’m not so sure. If even a normally restrained spender like me is dying to shop, what’s going to happen when the jobs come back and America starts making money again? Could greed bring us right back to the bottom? I doubt that the recession will be long enough to change our thinking for good. I haven’t bought that laptop yet, but it doesn’t seem to have been long enough to change mine—except maybe for the worse.

Tags: downturnaround, new frugal, shopping, spending, Spending and Saving, The Unemployed Life