Hip Hop & Money part 3: Conscious Account
“We’ll buy a lot of clothes when we don’t really need em
Things we buy to cover up what’s inside
Cause they made us hate ourself and love they wealth” -Kanye West
What I remember most about watching music videos is noticing the carefree lifestyle that entertainers became accustomed to with their newfound wealth and status. This was my motivation. I didn’t grow up poor, but I never got all the things that I wanted and felt that a straight A, stayed out of trouble, parent-pleasing child deserved. This was the start of my financial troubles. I am not a believer that money can’t buy happiness.
What I took from watching videos and following the lifestyles of my favorite celebrities was that I should never deny myself of the things I want. With this mindset I wasn’t saving, I was constantly over drafting, and I had a high-interest credit card that I used without care or concern. Having the means to purchase material things don’t necessary equate to happiness but they can contribute to an overall better well-being. In my experience, earning more money and having a higher expendable income has contributed to my happiness because I can do the things I need to do AND the things I want to do. I can bring balance to my life. I can now say yes as an adult.
What’s missing in the narrative that hip hop paints, is the circumstances. Us regular Joes and Janes are living with means way below our famous celebrities. We simply cannot do what they can (especially when they are gifted a lot of things for free). Trying to keep up is fruitless. What we can do is strive for careers that afford the lifestyle we want to have and live within our personal financial means of happiness. What we can do is work hard until we reach the income level to afford our level of comfortability.
When I began to work on my finances I wanted everything to be cheap because I thought that’s how I would save money. Cheap isn’t always better. Let’s take a $20 blouse that I wore twice then forgot about. The cost of happiness for that blouse is $10. (20/2=10) Now let’s take my favorite shirt that I’ve had for years. I purchased this shirt 5 years ago for $100 but I have worn it at least 100 times. The cost per happiness for that shirt is $1. (100/100=1) Financially, it cost me more money to purchase the cheaper shirt it versus investing in a more expensive, higher quality shirt that I still have years later.
When saving or planning to splurge ask yourself three questions. 1). Will it create a memory or lasting impact? 2). Will this allow me to invest in myself and broaden my horizon? 3). Will I miss the money spent in order to do what I want? If you’re answer to any or all of these questions is no, reconsider your decision or think more about the choice you’re about to make. The money you possess is yours. The happiness you possess is yours. The life and legacy you choose is yours. These decisions should not be made in vain to live a lifestyle you can’t fulfill. Happiness is an investment and deserves a budget of its own.
-Chantelle