DISQUS

Consumerism Commentary: Seven Zen Principles to Guide Your Money and Your Life

  • SteveDH · 4 weeks ago
    Simplicity huh? Let me see: Bank accounts 1, Investment accounts 4, Credit Cards 4, (two store cards kept because of discounts) Budget categories 6 (Taxes, Insurance, Out-of-pocket medical expenses, Services & Utilities, Food, & General Spending) "Stuff"? Not too much - Who are the Joneses anyway? Life balance? As Cheech (or Chong, I forget) would have said, "Work ...we don't need no stinking work".

    Enjoying retirement

    Great article, but I have to admit that simplifying my life got easier as my age and priorities changed. The earlier you can start the better though.
  • Lulu · 4 weeks ago
    While I, like many others, have too many accounts still I have simplified my finances tremendously over what they used to be in the past.
  • TJ Smith · 4 weeks ago
    Beautiful post. When I woke up to my spending issues last year, the first thing that became obvious was the need to simplify. I heard someone just the other day characterize the economic downturn as a cue to slow down and simplify our lives.
  • Kelly · 4 weeks ago
    Lovely post.
    I need to simplify all the areas of my life. This is a good reminder to do that in life and with our finances.
    7 savings accounts? Definitely time to simplify that!
  • Financial Samurai · 3 weeks ago
    Good stuff Flexo. You should have told me you were coming over to my house, because the Japanese Tea Garden in San Francisco is where the Financial Samurai resides!

    If you come back, I'll show you a couple new terms and some secret areas the public does not see.
  • Austin · 3 weeks ago
    Way to dive into personal finance in a unique way.

    I live in Japan and didn't even think about comparing zen gardens and pf!
  • Stephen Davis · 1 week ago
    Very interesting. My life improved greatly when I put into effect the simple principle of have the necessities and paying cash for everything. I have the best of everything but none the less, only what I need and use.

    Thanks for putting this out there for people.
  • alfomun · 1 week ago
    I think it's worth noting that the very first principle is keep your finances simple. That one alone is worth adhering to. The Japanese believe in beauty in simplicity and so do I.