Celebrating Failure

This semester, I made a plan to save money. I’m a spender. I spend money sometimes recklessly and irresponsibly, so I made a plan to save money this summer. I failed miserably, however. I began the summer by putting $2,000 in a savings account. However, things just kept happening that required big purchases. However, I also didn’t necessarily make better decisions when it comes to spending. My savings account has since dwindled a little bit.

I learned that you don’t save money just by putting money in a savings account. Choices are what make you save money, not savings accounts. Just because you have the money set aside doesn’t mean that you’re going to make smart fiscal choices. It requires discipline to do it, too. Eating out less is a huge component to this.

In general, I’m disappointed by my shortcomings in this area, but I also learned a valuable lesson – saving money is hard, but it isn’t impossible if you just discipline yourself. This class changed my perspective when it comes to risk-making. After reading Berry Gordy, Jr’s autobiography, which was an assigned reading, I learned that even someone as successful as him has made poor fiscal decisions, but it hasn’t stopped him from having an incredibly successful music career. I’ll admit, I don’t handle failure well. It shakes my confidence, and that’s something that I’m working on. However, after taking this class I now see that failure doesn’t make or break you. The experiences that failures give you are unrivaled, and I believe those lessons are invaluable.