WEBVTT - Second Cup: Invest this in your memory bank

0:00:03.440 --> 0:00:07.680
<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of iHeartRadio.

0:00:09.119 --> 0:00:15.000
<v Speaker 2>Good Morning. This is Laura, Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.

0:00:16.000 --> 0:00:20.080
<v Speaker 2>Today's tip is to consciously think of spending money on

0:00:20.160 --> 0:00:26.040
<v Speaker 2>certain experiences as making investments and happy memories. It is

0:00:26.079 --> 0:00:28.960
<v Speaker 2>not quite the same as investing money in the market,

0:00:29.800 --> 0:00:33.239
<v Speaker 2>but in terms of living a satisfying life, it is

0:00:33.320 --> 0:00:38.559
<v Speaker 2>not a bad idea either. So the title of today's

0:00:38.600 --> 0:00:42.959
<v Speaker 2>episode comes from a wise grandfather I know of. When

0:00:43.000 --> 0:00:46.639
<v Speaker 2>he gives cash gifts to the young people in his life,

0:00:46.680 --> 0:00:50.600
<v Speaker 2>he tells them to invest this in your memory bank.

0:00:52.200 --> 0:00:56.360
<v Speaker 2>I really like this idea. By now you have probably

0:00:56.440 --> 0:01:01.280
<v Speaker 2>heard the advice that spending money on experiences tends to

0:01:01.280 --> 0:01:05.800
<v Speaker 2>make people happier than spending money on things. There is

0:01:05.840 --> 0:01:08.399
<v Speaker 2>a lot of gray area between the two. Of course,

0:01:09.280 --> 0:01:13.920
<v Speaker 2>a car enables you to have various experiences, so does

0:01:13.959 --> 0:01:19.680
<v Speaker 2>a tent. Correspondingly, a cheap pair of shoes might ruin

0:01:19.720 --> 0:01:23.200
<v Speaker 2>an experience if you get a lot of blisters, so

0:01:23.480 --> 0:01:26.280
<v Speaker 2>you would be happier paying up for the good ones.

0:01:28.080 --> 0:01:32.000
<v Speaker 2>That said, the grandfather's advice gets at the connection between

0:01:32.000 --> 0:01:37.920
<v Speaker 2>experiences and happiness. When you have a good experience, you

0:01:38.000 --> 0:01:42.720
<v Speaker 2>create a memory, just as investments can grow in value

0:01:42.760 --> 0:01:47.960
<v Speaker 2>over time. Your experience and the subsequent memory becomes more

0:01:48.080 --> 0:01:52.720
<v Speaker 2>valuable as the days and years pass by. I have

0:01:52.800 --> 0:01:56.280
<v Speaker 2>certainly seen this in my own life. When I was

0:01:56.320 --> 0:02:00.080
<v Speaker 2>in college, I studied abroad in Australia and chose to

0:01:59.880 --> 0:02:04.240
<v Speaker 2>spend money on traveling around that country, more money than

0:02:04.280 --> 0:02:08.880
<v Speaker 2>I had ever spent on anything before. But those memories

0:02:08.919 --> 0:02:14.640
<v Speaker 2>are completely irreplaceable. Now I have made more money, but

0:02:14.720 --> 0:02:19.079
<v Speaker 2>with the busyness of life, I haven't been back to Australia.

0:02:19.760 --> 0:02:25.000
<v Speaker 2>That was a good investment in my memory bank. When

0:02:25.040 --> 0:02:27.920
<v Speaker 2>you have money that is not already designated for a

0:02:27.960 --> 0:02:32.600
<v Speaker 2>necessity like rent, or groceries or retirement, consider whether you

0:02:32.639 --> 0:02:36.280
<v Speaker 2>can invest the money in your memory bank. Is there

0:02:36.320 --> 0:02:39.880
<v Speaker 2>an experience that you would enjoy while it lasts and

0:02:40.080 --> 0:02:44.120
<v Speaker 2>enjoy looking back on. Maybe you've always wanted to take

0:02:44.160 --> 0:02:47.800
<v Speaker 2>your kids to the Grand Canyon. A trip there will

0:02:47.840 --> 0:02:51.400
<v Speaker 2>probably give you a lot more happiness than a new couch.

0:02:52.560 --> 0:02:55.880
<v Speaker 2>You'll have fun while you're there and enjoy looking back

0:02:55.880 --> 0:03:00.280
<v Speaker 2>on the memories. Or perhaps you're a foodie and you've

0:03:00.320 --> 0:03:02.480
<v Speaker 2>been dying to go to a restaurant in your town

0:03:02.520 --> 0:03:06.400
<v Speaker 2>that you keep hearing rave reviews about so try it.

0:03:07.639 --> 0:03:11.960
<v Speaker 2>You'll enjoy savoring the meal and joining in the conversations

0:03:11.960 --> 0:03:16.960
<v Speaker 2>with others who have dined there. Even smaller scale experiences

0:03:17.000 --> 0:03:20.400
<v Speaker 2>can be good investments. The money I spent taking my

0:03:20.520 --> 0:03:24.120
<v Speaker 2>kid's tulip picking at Holland Ridge Farms and eating at

0:03:24.120 --> 0:03:27.840
<v Speaker 2>the lobster roll truck park there one Saturday has created

0:03:27.919 --> 0:03:32.359
<v Speaker 2>lovely spring memories. Enjoy every time I look at those

0:03:32.400 --> 0:03:38.120
<v Speaker 2>bright photos. When you give cash gifts, consider encouraging the

0:03:38.160 --> 0:03:42.200
<v Speaker 2>recipients to spend the money to make memories. You could

0:03:42.240 --> 0:03:45.520
<v Speaker 2>even write the advice invest this in your memory bank

0:03:46.200 --> 0:03:49.560
<v Speaker 2>in your note accompanying the gift on the memo line

0:03:49.960 --> 0:03:54.520
<v Speaker 2>of your check, or the what's this for field and venmo.

0:03:55.960 --> 0:03:59.000
<v Speaker 2>If you give your kids an allowance, you could coach

0:03:59.080 --> 0:04:03.120
<v Speaker 2>them on spending money on making memories. Many families have

0:04:03.200 --> 0:04:06.840
<v Speaker 2>the norm of kids donating some of their allowance, saving

0:04:06.880 --> 0:04:10.680
<v Speaker 2>some of it, and spending some of it. You could

0:04:10.680 --> 0:04:14.360
<v Speaker 2>add an additional category for investing in your memory bank.

0:04:15.600 --> 0:04:18.120
<v Speaker 2>You might not know what your kids will come up with,

0:04:19.240 --> 0:04:23.800
<v Speaker 2>but the odds are good that it will yield some happiness.

0:04:25.080 --> 0:04:29.239
<v Speaker 2>As with a financial investment, investments in our memory banks

0:04:29.360 --> 0:04:33.880
<v Speaker 2>benefit us over time as the memories become part of

0:04:33.920 --> 0:04:37.640
<v Speaker 2>our identities. As you plan out your spending for the

0:04:37.680 --> 0:04:42.080
<v Speaker 2>rest of the year, maybe think of the discretionary categories

0:04:42.120 --> 0:04:45.680
<v Speaker 2>with this in mind. Some money simply has to be

0:04:45.720 --> 0:04:50.200
<v Speaker 2>spent on stuff that no one is excited about, but

0:04:50.440 --> 0:04:54.359
<v Speaker 2>some can be spent on other things. And when you

0:04:54.440 --> 0:04:58.280
<v Speaker 2>spend with the goal of adventure and memory, you are

0:04:58.400 --> 0:05:02.160
<v Speaker 2>far less likely to wind out up with buyers remorse.

0:05:03.920 --> 0:05:09.440
<v Speaker 2>In the meantime, this is Laura. Thanks for listening, and

0:05:09.560 --> 0:05:19.520
<v Speaker 2>here's to making the most of our time. Hey, everybody,

0:05:19.720 --> 0:05:21.839
<v Speaker 2>I'd love to hear from you. You can send me

0:05:21.880 --> 0:05:25.520
<v Speaker 2>your tips, your questions, or anything else. Just connect with

0:05:25.560 --> 0:05:29.960
<v Speaker 2>me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at Before Breakfast Pod.

0:05:30.600 --> 0:05:35.880
<v Speaker 2>That's b E the number four then Breakfast pod. You

0:05:35.920 --> 0:05:39.360
<v Speaker 2>can also shoot me an email at Before Breakfast Podcasts

0:05:39.480 --> 0:05:42.840
<v Speaker 2>at iHeartMedia dot com that before Breakfast is spelled out

0:05:42.839 --> 0:05:43.600
<v Speaker 2>with all the letters.

0:05:44.240 --> 0:05:46.320
<v Speaker 1>Thanks so much, should I look forward to staying in touch.

0:05:52.160 --> 0:05:56.200
<v Speaker 1>Before Breakfast is a production of iHeartRadio. For more podcasts

0:05:56.240 --> 0:06:00.760
<v Speaker 1>from iHeartRadio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcas Tasts, or

0:06:00.760 --> 0:06:11.080
<v Speaker 1>wherever you listen to your favorite shows. M