You like to spend money, your partner likes to save. How do you co-exist?
What most of humanity can agree upon, without too much
debate, is that most of us quite like having money. As much of it, in fact, as
possible and then some more. But spending all that money can be the tricky
part. The tightwads amongst us are inclined to be extra careful with handing
out the greenbacks while the spendthrifts are maybe too liberal with those
crisp, new Gandhijis. This isn’t a problem until these two radically
different types of people have to live in close proximity and learn to coexist.
That is when the sparks can really fly. And so, of course, we need a book that
can teach us something about money and the psychology that drives the
propensity to either hoard or splurge. Enter Scott Rick’s Tightwads andSpendthrifts, which the publishers say is ‘a revolutionary guide to
navigating the financial aspects of real relationships.’
‘Tightwads and Spendthrifts is a science-based guide to understanding and transforming how we manage money, both on our own and in relationships. Building on his original research, and surveying a vast body of interdisciplinary work, the book will help you understand your own financial psychology and how it plays out in your relationships. Can tightwads and spendthrifts live together in harmony? Rick says ‘yes,’ but not without first asking hard questions about whose opinion should count most when making a financial decision. After all of the issues have been aired, he tells readers how to create a gameplan for navigating financial decision making that both ‘tightwads’ and ‘spendthrifts’ can rely on for a happy life together,’ says the publisher’s note. We’ll note here that Scott Rick, the author of this book, is a marketing professor at the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business and has a PhD in behavioral decision research from Carnegie Mellon, where he was a National Science Foundation graduate research fellow. If there’s anyone who’s amply well-qualified to write a book about money and how it affects our relationships, it should be Prof. Rick.
In the introduction to the book, the author notes that arguments over money are particularly corrosive in a relationship and that spouses who believe that their significant other spends money in an irresponsible manner may well choose to go their own separate ways over this issue. Infidelity is still the number one cause for divorce but fighting over money might be a close second, the author says. In order to properly understanding and hopefully resolve money-related issues between partners, the author suggests the first step might be to understand your own self and figure out whether you’re a tightwad or a spendthrift. For this, Rick has provided a tightwad-spendthrift scale and encourages you to rate yourself on this scale by answering a few simple questions. Once that’s done, you will have a better understanding of your money mindset and will perhaps be able to learn to get along with someone who doesn’t share your values when it comes to spending money. The book is aimed at helping the reader explore the complex psychology of mental makeup in money matters, learning to modify our save-vs-spend behaviour, making money matters work when a partner is involved, financial translucency (as opposed to complete transparency) and how to use it to our advantage in relationships, and finally, teaching our kids about money and how to handle spending.
Here’s a caveat: Don’t assume this book is an extended piece of financial advice or a casual discourse on money matters from an elderly, well-meaning uncle (or aunt, for that matter). Over 180 or so pages, the author delves into ‘heavy’ subjects like the principles of behavioural economics and how these affect a person’s propensity to spend or save, how our inherent mental makeup affects how we view a particular transaction (what one person deems an essential, useful purchase may be classified as a complete waste of money by his or her partner, if the two people think in different ways), how our spending may be driven by our expectations of the future, the human need (or, in some cases, the relative lack of it) to indulge in luxurious experiences every once in a while that make us feel good, and differing perceptions of the opportunity cost of money that we spend. There are detailed, in-depth discussions on each of these topics and the author tried to steer the reader towards an improved understanding of money, and how spending behaviour affects relationship dynamics.
Those find it challenging to navigate the minefield that money matters can sometimes be, and who struggle to find an equitable solution to getting along with a partner whose fiscal behaviour is radically different from their own, may well find this book useful. Yes, money makes the world go around but tightwads and spendthrifts must learn to get along if the world has to go around smoothly, and for that, this book does serve a useful purpose.
Tightwads and Spendthrifts is available on Amazon
‘Tightwads and Spendthrifts is a science-based guide to understanding and transforming how we manage money, both on our own and in relationships. Building on his original research, and surveying a vast body of interdisciplinary work, the book will help you understand your own financial psychology and how it plays out in your relationships. Can tightwads and spendthrifts live together in harmony? Rick says ‘yes,’ but not without first asking hard questions about whose opinion should count most when making a financial decision. After all of the issues have been aired, he tells readers how to create a gameplan for navigating financial decision making that both ‘tightwads’ and ‘spendthrifts’ can rely on for a happy life together,’ says the publisher’s note. We’ll note here that Scott Rick, the author of this book, is a marketing professor at the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business and has a PhD in behavioral decision research from Carnegie Mellon, where he was a National Science Foundation graduate research fellow. If there’s anyone who’s amply well-qualified to write a book about money and how it affects our relationships, it should be Prof. Rick.
In the introduction to the book, the author notes that arguments over money are particularly corrosive in a relationship and that spouses who believe that their significant other spends money in an irresponsible manner may well choose to go their own separate ways over this issue. Infidelity is still the number one cause for divorce but fighting over money might be a close second, the author says. In order to properly understanding and hopefully resolve money-related issues between partners, the author suggests the first step might be to understand your own self and figure out whether you’re a tightwad or a spendthrift. For this, Rick has provided a tightwad-spendthrift scale and encourages you to rate yourself on this scale by answering a few simple questions. Once that’s done, you will have a better understanding of your money mindset and will perhaps be able to learn to get along with someone who doesn’t share your values when it comes to spending money. The book is aimed at helping the reader explore the complex psychology of mental makeup in money matters, learning to modify our save-vs-spend behaviour, making money matters work when a partner is involved, financial translucency (as opposed to complete transparency) and how to use it to our advantage in relationships, and finally, teaching our kids about money and how to handle spending.
Here’s a caveat: Don’t assume this book is an extended piece of financial advice or a casual discourse on money matters from an elderly, well-meaning uncle (or aunt, for that matter). Over 180 or so pages, the author delves into ‘heavy’ subjects like the principles of behavioural economics and how these affect a person’s propensity to spend or save, how our inherent mental makeup affects how we view a particular transaction (what one person deems an essential, useful purchase may be classified as a complete waste of money by his or her partner, if the two people think in different ways), how our spending may be driven by our expectations of the future, the human need (or, in some cases, the relative lack of it) to indulge in luxurious experiences every once in a while that make us feel good, and differing perceptions of the opportunity cost of money that we spend. There are detailed, in-depth discussions on each of these topics and the author tried to steer the reader towards an improved understanding of money, and how spending behaviour affects relationship dynamics.
Those find it challenging to navigate the minefield that money matters can sometimes be, and who struggle to find an equitable solution to getting along with a partner whose fiscal behaviour is radically different from their own, may well find this book useful. Yes, money makes the world go around but tightwads and spendthrifts must learn to get along if the world has to go around smoothly, and for that, this book does serve a useful purpose.
Tightwads and Spendthrifts is available on Amazon
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