Money—Just Another Tool

Do you know how to use a computer? How to make a long-distance phone call? How to drive a car?nnThose probably seem like insulting or stupid questions. In today’s world, it would be rare to find someone who doesn’t know how to use these common tools. nnNext question—do you know how to manage money?nnFor many people, the answer to that question is likely to be, “What money?” Or, “Sure, I could manage money if I had any.” Or, “I’ll worry about that someday if I ever win the lottery.”nnMost of us aren’t used to thinking about money in the same way we think about computers or cars or telephones. Yet, just like those other conveniences, money is a tool. You can get along without learning how to use computers or cars, but your life will be easier if you know about them. In the same way, you can get along without learning how to manage money. If you do learn about it, though, you can make your life much easier.nnProbably the biggest misunderstanding people have about money is that you don’t need to know how to manage it until you have some. That kind of thinking is backwards. Unless you know something about money, you aren’t likely to ever have much of it.nnAnother misconception many people have is that paying attention to how money works means you are selfish or greedy. Not at all. Learning to manage your money wisely is just one more way of managing your life. When you can use money sensibly as the useful tool it is, you are much more capable of taking care of yourself—and you can also take care of your family or anyone else you are responsible for.nnIt’s a mistake to think that having money will make you happy. It’s just as big a mistake to pretend that money doesn’t matter. Having money doesn’t make you a better person. Not having money doesn’t make you a better person, either. Money—or the lack of it—doesn’t have anything to do with who you are as a person. It’s simply a tool.nnThink for a minute about the things you can do if you have that useful tool, a car. You can drive yourself and others in your family to work, to school, to the grocery store or to the doctor. You can easily haul a bunch of groceries or anything else you need to carry. You don’t have to spend a lot of time walking, wait for a bus, or work around the schedule of somebody else who can give you a ride. Because a car is such a useful tool, it’s important to keep it maintained and take care of it so it’s there when you need it.nnNow think about some of the things you can do if you have enough of that useful tool, money. You can pay for the groceries you need, heat your house in the winter, and go to the doctor if you get sick. If your car breaks down, you can fix it. You can help other people when they need it. You can get an education. You can take care of yourself and your family. Because money is such a useful tool, it’s important to take care of it so it’s there when you need it.nnHaving enough money doesn’t necessarily mean being rich. I know a few people that most of us would consider rich. I know a great many more people who aren’t rich, but who live very comfortably. They have enough because they have learned to manage what they have.nnOne man I know has a huge pile of credit-card debt and lives in constant financial chaos. He’s always moving on to a new job, and he’s always trying to get out from under his latest financial crisis. He says he hates having to think about money. He just “doesn’t want to be controlled by money.”nnWhat this man has never learned is that the way to avoid being controlled by money is to learn how to manage it. In the world we live in, it’s just not realistic to try to avoid dealing with money. Refusing to learn about money isn’t going to make your life easier, it’s going to make it harder.nnLearning to manage money isn’t really all that complicated. You don’t have to be a college graduate or a math whiz to do it. You just need to learn a few basic rules and skills, and numerous articles and books are available to teach you those skills. Once you begin learning them, you can start to understand and use money as the valuable tool it is.nn