Enjoy Life Now or Save for Later -- How to Do Both

Is it true that we have to deny ourselves now in order to have what we really want later?  Is instant gratification always bad and delayed gratification always better?

These two common messages seem to contradict each other:

• Enjoy life later.  In order to be successful or build wealth, you have to delay gratification.  Skip the party so you can study.  Don't buy the latte, but put that money into savings or invest it.  You should never indulge in instant gratification.

• Enjoy life now.  Don't wait for later, because you never know if you'll have tomorrow.  You only live once, so instant gratification makes perfect sense.

Which idea is right?

My answer might surprise you.

I actually agree with both ideas.  If you read this blog often, you'll see that I send both messages.  Live frugally and choose simplicity – but also find joy every day!

How is it possible to both enjoy life now and plan for a good future?  Can we really do both?

Yes we can!  The key is to make your life great today without destroying your future.  You can find ways to live happily now without jeopardizing happiness and success tomorrow.

9 tips for combining these two philosophies

1.  Pay attention to simple pleasures.

Frugality doesn't have to be boring or restrictive if you use your imagination.  A bike ride, a picnic, working at a hobby, playing a card game, smelling the roses, gazing at the moon, talking with a loved one, watching a beautiful orchestral performance on YouTube – I could list a hundred fun and simple pleasures, and you could list a hundred more.  This is how you enjoy life now without spending tomorrow's funds.

2.  Practice creative deprivation.

Rather than inflating your lifestyle every time your income increases, and turning what used to be an infrequent splurge into something more common, keep your treats special by keeping them rare.  Let yourself anticipate, appreciate, and savor events and indulgences instead of turning them into an everyday routine.  This doesn't mean you never do anything extravagant, but you don't make it your daily behavior.

Related article:  4 Ways to Overcome Lifestyle Inflation and Life Free

3.  Rediscover what you value.

When extravagance becomes routine, we may spend a ton of money shopping, eating out, traveling, redecorating, etc. without really enjoying or appreciating all of it.  And if we stop to think about it, we might realize that we're busier, working more, and not making time to do the things we really want to do.

It's important to figure out what's really important to you.  It might not actually be all of the expensive stuff.  For example, my list would include my husband, kids, and grandkids; reading; writing; spending quiet time in nature; singing; listening to music.  Guess how many of those things cost a lot of money?

4.  Learn to do what you love for less.

I love the theater, and I have friends who feel the same way.  However, their goal is to visit New York every couple of years and see a great show on Broadway.  I see three or four shows every year at Broadway Sacramento – 40 miles away and far less expensive, in a beautiful theater with excellent professional casts and amazing production values.  They often comment about how lucky I am to enjoy my theater fix so often.  (It's true I won't see Denzel Washington and Jake Gyllenhaal in Othello.)

There are dozens (probably hundreds) of ways to enjoy what you love while paying less than full price.  I'm not advocating this as a way to do or buy an ever-increasing amount of stuff, justifying it because you're getting a lower price.  But if there's a way to get what you need and love for less, that leaves more for meeting your long-term goals.  It's a win--win.

5.  Make people a priority.

We pay lip service to this, but often our choices don't look like it.  Our conversation, social media, and how we spend our time, energy, and money may look like we value gadgets, clothing, travel, home décor, cars, and even our hair styles more than we value the people in our lives.  This is something to think about carefully.  If we make people a priority, we don't need to spend much to enjoy life.

Related article:  5 Signs That You Might Love Things More than People

6.  Find time for yourself.

Make time every day to be alone.  This is time for self-care, prayer or meditation, reading, journaling, or simply for quietly enjoying a comforting drink.  It gives more meaning and pleasure to your life, rather than being in a constant rush with no time to think or pause.  Think you can't make the time?  Check out these 15 ways to free up an hour a day.

7.  Reward your successes.

When you pay off a debt, reach a savings goal, declutter a room or a closet, lose 10 pounds, or reach another goal you've set for yourself, celebrate!  You're moving closer to the future you envision for yourself, and you should celebrate that today.  It doesn't have to cost a lot – it could be as simple as buying a bouquet of flowers from the grocery store, giving yourself a manicure with a new nail polish, visiting an art gallery, listening to some of your favorite music, or enjoying a bar of organic chocolate.

8.  Volunteer.

Want to feel great about yourself and your life?  Do something for others.  Search online for opportunities in your area or visit volunteermatch.org.  You don't have to take on a long-term commitment, like coaching a team for your town's recreation league.  You could help once a month at a food bank or animal shelter.  You could ring a bell for the Salvation Army during the holidays or read aloud to children in the hospital.  You could help out in your church's nursery or visit a senior center.

9.  Slow down.

You can't enjoy life now if it's always rushing past like a movie on fast forward.  Do you ever think about how quickly a week, month, or an entire year flies by?  And we don't notice until it's over.

The future will arrive, but we don't need to speed it up so much that we miss experiencing our lives now.  Eat slower, drive slower (leave a few minutes early), and try to do just one thing at a time.  You won't be less productive.  In fact, you'll do work of higher quality, with more attention to detail and less anxiety and stress.  Do less to accomplish more.

Sometimes you can have it all.

Enjoy life now and save for later.  You can do both and make the most of every day.

Too many of us get up, go to work, take care of the chores, pay the bills, and go to bed, waking up to to it all over again the next day.  We're getting by, but we're just going through the motions.  We might not feel much freedom or sense of control, and we often lack energy or excitement.  Our way of dealing with the tedium is not to deal with it, so we scroll, click, post, like, binge watch, shop, dream about a getaway, or consume some junk.

It seems we would rather escape than wake up and live.

The good news is that it's possible to create a life from which you don't want to escape.  My book, Simply Happy,* was written to help you do that.  I aim to enlighten, encourage, and even goad you into choosing more joy.

We can mold our habits and even our brains toward positivity and happiness, and Simply Happy will show you how to change the way you look at the world.

* This blog is reader-supported.  If you buy through my links, I may earn a small commission.