Budget Nerds

#88 - Swim Fins and Why You Shouldn't Compare Yourself to Others

Apr 17, 2024

Swim fins analogy - don't compare yourself to others financially, hidden advantages in life influencing circumstances. Avoid comparison, focus on your own financial journey. Celebrate small wins with YNAB and appreciate community feedback.

35:36

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Quick takeaways

Avoid comparing financial situations with others due to unseen advantages and financial privilege.

Balance acknowledging financial privilege with hard work in evaluating one's financial journey.

Deep dives

Ben shares his analogy from the YMCA swimming experience

Ben shares a story about his YMCA swimming experience, where he noticed an older lady outswimming him, leading him to reflect on comparison and financial privilege. He realized that just like in swimming, people may have unseen advantages in finance, highlighting the importance of not comparing oneself to others.

Introduction

2min

YMCA Activities and Swimming Pools

6min

Comparing Financial Journeys

7min

Swimming Fins and Aquatic Adventures

5min

Swimming Fins and Financial Privilege

10min

Celebrating Small Wins with YNAB

5min

In today's episode, Ben shares a story about swimming at the YMCA. One of Ben's favorite forms of exercise is swimming laps at his local YMCA, and while it's a great solitary form of exercise, sometimes you can't help but notice how your pace compares to others in the pool. One day Ben started swimming laps only to notice an older lady absolutely hauling in another lane. Which was... discouraging, to say the least. However, as she was exiting the pool Ben noticed she was wearing swim fins, and her blazing performance began to make sense.

This woman had a huge advantage, but it was hidden under the water. In the waves and froth of the water, Ben couldn't see it. It's a good analogy for financial circumstances. For the most part, we only see the outward indicators of other people's financial life -- the things they can afford to buy, the places they can afford to live -- and even those obversations can be greatly skewed if those people are buying things with debt! It's important to realize that other people have different advantages in life, and those can significantly influence their financial circumstances. So Ben urges you not to compare yourself to others, because you don't know what advantages they've had, and you can't see their full financial picture from your standpoint. As the saying goes, comparison is the thief of joy!

Share your YNAB wins with Ben and Ernie!

budgetnerds@ynab.com

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