I’m setting up a bank account for the sole purpose of having another account attached to it that can hold my renter’s deposit. Classic German red tape. In theory, the initial account is free — but only if I have 700 euros going into it each month. In practice, I already have more bank accounts than I would like, and the administrative effort would cause several major headaches.
As I was brainstorming how to manage this financial game of musical chairs, I realized: I can just pay the 4.50 euro fee each month and save myself considerable headache. Is it the ideal setup? No. But will the 54 euros each year cost me any sleep? Well, also no.
Ironically, the way I arrived at this conclusion is by asking myself: “What would I do if I were rich?” The obvious answer was to just pay and not worry about it. It was only when I added up the annual costs, however, that I saw: “Oh! I can already afford to do that now.” In that sense, I’m already “rich.”
Rich is relative, and chances are, you’re not giving yourself enough credit for what you’ve already achieved. Whatever your potential to use money to make small issues disappear, use it! Don’t keep thinking like you did five, seven, ten years ago, especially if your income has gone up.
Only you can decide what things are worth to you, and just because you will spend where others won’t does not make those choices bad decisions. A millionaire with a penny-pinching mindset is no richer than a six-figure earner who spends all her money and then some on her lifestyle — both are trapped, one in their mind, the other in their belongings.
Rich is relative. Where are you rich, and how will you use that power?