Comments by "SmallSpoonBrigade" (@SmallSpoonBrigade) on "9 Lifestyle Changes That Let You Feel Rich At Any Income" video.

When I first moved out, most of my stuff was 2nd hand. Over time, I replaced it with stuff that was mostly on markdown at a significant discount. Lately, I buy mostly new, but it's mostly quality stuff to replace that stuff that I had previously and the stuff I had previously goes to a 2nd hand shop for redistribution. I do think that people should realize that there's a fairly nice stuff that can be had 2nd hand and that if they just replace the stuff that they use so much they wear out, they can save a lot of money on things that weren't contributing anyways.
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This week, the company I work for screwed up the paychecks, resulting in them being taken back before being redeposited later in the day. Because I've got my ducks in order, I was able to temporarily transfer money to cover the withdrawals that I knew would come out that day and avoid over drafting the account. Unlike many of my coworkers, I didn't need to stress as I've got nearly a month's worth of earnings in my emergency fund and I have already set aside the money to pay the current month's bills. As long as the company doesn't avoid paying me for a month, I'd be fine. I do kind of get how my coworkers would be in a mess. We don't make much money normally and housing expenses around here are a lot. I'm fortunate to be paying below market on my rent to a relative, but I've also been extremely frugle. I buy most of the things that I get on clearance, I'm not afraid to accept 2nd hand items and to buy from the local thrift shop. I've got pretty good taste and as time has gone by, I have a place that has gone from looking like a college student's to one that is actually pretty nice. The key is being willing to accept stuff that's basically just functional and safe, and set aside a few dollars as you can to buy nicer and then wait until there's a sale to replace anything that isn't a legitimate emergency.
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@happyglowup7736 I've become a fan of 3 checking account finances. One for personal spending on anything I want to buy. The only rules are that I can't overdraft the account, borrow from another account or have shame for that spending. Another for expenses that I know are coming, but may take time to process, so the money in my other checking accounts is what's available and not specifically spoken for. And the last is for my general household adulty spending that hasn't already been automated. It sounds more complicated than it is, but with an alert to tell me when the balance drops below what I expect to pay out through the month, I can mostly just leave it alone as all those expenses either have an automatic transfer to cover them from each paycheck or I personally transfer the money when I agree to pay for it. Once I got used to it, it really helped my panic over money kick in at an appropriate time. I get to see the money getting low before it really gets low as all my crucial bills are already accounted for.
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Yes, but then you're paying for extra space that could be used for other things. Life is full of tradeoffs.
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@BoringTroublemaker That's a lot less common than you're making it out to be. The only way that would be the case would be for somebody to be spending more than they make on essentials. That definitely does happen, but it's not common and no matter what you do in that situation you're screwed. To not have an emergency fund means that you're either just starting out, or things are already out of hand. Sure, for some people $5 a paycheck is legitimately a lot of money, but even at $1 a month towards the emergency fund, you should be able to break free of payday loans and the like. Sure, it would take years to build up a proper emergency fund, but any emergency fund is better than none.
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