HOARDING IS WRONG
Save cash, but enjoy life
THIS week we’ll talk about a personality type called the hoarder.
Such people save every cent and keep every item of clothing and food – rubbish too.
Hoarders live and operate on what I call scarcity mode. They always anticipate a catastrophic shortage of stuff and therefore hang onto everything.
They have a fear for spending money, so they hoard it.
There is a huge difference between hoarding things and saving money. Saving is good, hoarding is sick.
Hoarders do not save. They are obsessive collectors of things. They collect money, clothes, furniture, cars, screws, coffee bottles, cookie tins and every other thing that they can lay their hands on. While collecting stuff sounds fine, obsessive collection is a problem.
This reminds me of an old couple I once knew, Uncle Louis and Auntie Bettie, who lived in my complex.
I did not realise then that they were hoarders. It was only when I learnt about money personalities that I realised what obsessive collectors they were.
They had a few very old cars. Some were parked in the double garage and others in the complex wherever there was space. At the time I thought the cars were “classics”, but I soon discovered that they were junk that cost more in parking space than they were actually worth.
I occasionally took the couple along when I went shopping and they would always buy the cheapest items. They could afford better quality, but to them spending was seen as wasteful.
The couple was in their mid-to-late eighties and Uncle Louis was very ill. I would visit them often to see if they needed anything.
Of course Auntie Bettie would offer me tea and serve it in her tea set, which was as old as the couple’s only son. He was just over 50 years old.
Sadly, Uncle Louis died and Auntie Bettie had to move into an oldage home. She asked me if I could help her sell some of her stuff because she was moving into a much smaller place.
I agreed to advertise the stuff on the Internet for her. I put my details on the Internet as I was a bit weary of conmen calling her.
I was shocked when I saw all the old rubbish that the couple had accumulated. They had a sewing machine that Auntie Bettie bought when she was in her early 20s – it was more than 60 years old.
No one was interested in buying it and it was not in working order. There were no spare parts avail- able to repair it either.
There were calls for some of the furniture such as the ball and claw wardrobe and a few other antiques.
Auntie Bettie’s son collected most of the stuff and only heaven knows what he did with it. The poor lady thought she had valuable items when in fact she did not.
The following are some of the signs of hoarding:
Do you freeze to death in winter because you fear that using a heater will leave you penniless?
Do you close the water in the shower, wash yourself and then use a little water to rinse yourself simply because you fear that it might affect your bank balance negatively?
Do you only drink tea or coffee at work, where it is free? Are you still wearing bell bottoms because you see buying new clothes as a total waste of money?
Do you cling to ancient things because you believe they are valuable?
Is your food rotting in the fridge and you don’t give it away?
There is no right and no wrong money personality. Each one has its strengths that can help make great financial decisions.
Saving money is good, but so is spending it – it’s called living and enjoying life. – winnie@winniekunene.co.za