I really love that this sub exists and all the tips you amazing people have been pouring into it. I wanted to share a way of thinking I adpted a long time ago that works for me.

One of the best ways to evaluate your day to day spending decisions is to plan a camping trip. I read once that you can live "3 minutes without air, 3 hours without shelter, 3 days without water, and 3 weeks without food", which is a great survival rubric, but if you want to enjoy your camping outing you should throw in 'socail interaction' and 'entertainment' too, and probably have a few other things with you.

We have a tendency to think about our money in terms of, well, money. Currency. Cash, credit, debt, etc. I think that model breaks down in the lower echelon and it's better thought about in the above categories. It's not useful for the working poor to think about their 401k (just yet, you'll get there!), when you are much more concerned with putting food on the table and keeping the table under a roof.

• Shelter

• Food/Water

• Entertainment^*

• Social/Family Interaction^*

• Transportation

• Medical attention when required.

^* People can argue with me about these two - for most depriving them of entertainment and human interaction would be needlessly cruel.

So, instead of trying to plan financially, does it help you to think about optimizing these things, and considering things outside of these 5 things as luxuries, for now? Do you have those 4 things currently? If not, can you see a path to getting them?

To extend our camping analogy, how would you plan for a 2 week trip in the summer?

Well, I'd need a tent or tarp - if I buy one, I'll have it, which is nice, but if it rips, I'll also need to have a repair kit. If I rent one from a local camping store, I don't have to maintain it, I'd just probably have to pay a little extra if it gets damaged.

I like breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and a snack some days but not all. 2 weeks is 14 days, so 14 of each of those. I'd probably get bored of the same thing for 14 days straight, so I'll introduce a rotation, but we don't need to make this complex. I could do 5 pasta meals, 5 rice meals, and 4 canned soups. 7 oatmeals, and 7 packs of pop tarts. Snacks can be trail mix, but we only need 7 of those, since I don't want a snack every day. By this plan we can know to buy pasta and rice in bulk - it won't go bad, and I need a lot of it, but trail mix in smaller quantities. Since, I'm getting less of it I can splurge and get a really nice snack, I'll enjoy more.

Might get a bit boring out there, I can bring a book, a deck of cards, and a journal or pair of binoculars. There certainly won't be a TV. Similarly, need a med-kit. And my family will be worried, so I need my phone. I'll also need to get to/from the campsite, so need gas in the car, and to check the air pressure.

Remember, we're hiking in a good mile or so, so we don't want to carry extra stuff, unless we know we're gonna need it. It can be easy to overload your backpack with nice-to-haves, or scared-not-to-haves.

Now, repeat that for camping 3 months in the winter... ...

What's my point? It's easy to get paralyzed by indecision when making big life choices, and not see the broader impact they have on your life. I get around that by 'planning for camping'.

Whether I'm deciding if I want a pricier rental apartment, or to suck it up and save to buy, or if I'm in the store about to buy a new stuffed toy for my niece or nephew, I take it though this lens. If I truly hate my apartment, and it's going to ruin my entire experience, then it is worth it to 'rent a better tent', or else the whole trip is ruined. But if I can make do with the tent I have, I don't need a new one just yet. And if I were my nephew, I might really want that toy, now, but by the time I've hiked it in and out, I might resent that my uncle just bought me more junk, and didn't drop another $5 in the jar for my college, or taught me how to play pinochle.

Do I really need health insurance? It might be easy to say, "I'll make due." But would you go out in the woods without a simple medical kit in your pack? Don't be crazy.

One thing that isn't on this list. Work/Job/Employment. You job is something you do to get money to get these other 4 things. That may seem like a weird distinction, but growing up, and even in my social circles today, I see that misconception again and again. Work can definitely be more than just a means to an ends, but it doesn't have to be, and you are certainly not beholden to your employer. You do good work for them, they pay you. There is a certain amount of professionalism and respect you should bring to the workplace. But you do not owe your employer for the grace of employing you. And you are put on this earth to live your life and enjoy your camping trip. Not to be something for anyone else.

Life is your camping trip. If you treat it as such, you'll find you spend more on the things that matter, and less on the things that don't, and can discern between the two. You'll also find that if you keep at it, you'll eventually work your way up to better camping gear, but it will come from analyzing what you have and having goals for what is the next piece of gear you want to upgrade. Do you need a bigger tent, or a better sleeping bag, etc.

Also, campsite rule #1: Leave things better or the same as you found them. It'll help out the next person.

Please, go ahead, destroy my feel good analogy. It helps me. I hope it helps you.

edit: 'work your way up to better camping gear' sentence added.