[This is the third post in the guest author experiment at this blog. Click here and here for the previous guest posts. Feel free to contact me if you are interested in contributing as a guest author.]
One of the most often-repeated advice in the blogosphere is to “live like a broke college student, after college graduation.” The idea is that by reining in your expenditures (broke college students don’t have many!), you will be able to put you bigger paycheck towards savings or debt repayment.
I don’t want to blow my first paycheck(s) on new Pottery Barn furniture, a shiny MINI-Cooper, or really expensive shoes. Well, I do want all of those things, but I know I should save instead. Still, the broke-college-student routine will be hard to pull off - I’ve realized that as I got older, my tastes have definitely taken a turn for the better (i.e., more expensive) things in life.
When I was in middle school, $25 was my limit for a pair of pants. Now I’ve pluck down $100 for trousers from Banana Republic (though I try to look for sales). I considered a $4.50 bucket of KFC popcorn chicken a treat in eighth grade; now I am willing to spend $50 at a restuarant with cloth napkins and something called “ambience” (but only on special occasions, I promise!).
I don’t think I am wildly extravagant, and I’ve certainly not gone into debt paying for a lifestyle. When I leaf through Vogue and see a $4,000 Badgley Mischka dress, I still feel an appropriate shudder at the price tag (and awe at the resplendent beading). But it’s a bit disconcerting to watch my tastes develop and realize that my wallet needs to expand correspondingly. Must… control… impulse.
I guess this is the “lifestyle inflation” that Jonathan at Mymoneyblog warned about. Follow my blog at wellheeled.wordpress.com to read more posts on how I resist (or not).
P.S. Last but definitely NOT least, I want to say thank-you to Golbguru for letting me guest-post, and to his readers for reading!
About the author: Wanda has been writing her own blog “Well-heeled: climbing the networth ladder in heels” since April 2006 and has been an active reader on this blog. She is also into yoga for attaining inner zen. 
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I agree with you totally. I always felt that as the older we get our tastes change. When I was in college, my favorite place to eat was always Taco Bell . Now it’s a seafood restuarant in my local area.
It’s hard to delay gratification, when you know you have the money to pay for it.
But, as long we kept our debts low and live below our means. We will be fine.
I agree with this lifestyle inflation thing as well. I can still remeber a time when I was happy with a filled gas tank and a happy meal.
Those days were great.
Wanda, I think every sane woman would need a sugar daddy to pay for that $4000 dress.
I guess when you are done living “like a broke college student, after college graduation” and the paychecks come rolling in, who knows, maybe you’ll be doing more than window shopping at Jimmy Choo’s.
Been there, done that. It’s worth the sacrifice…. Good luck!
That is very true…:) and I think it’s ok because lifestyle inflation is a sign of progress.
Problems arise when there is a lifestyle inflation without a paystub numbers inflation :).
Thank you too for writing this guest post
My mom makes fun of me for this all the time. She says that up until the time I was 12, the only place I ever wanted to eat was McDonalds. Then, my parents introduced me to prime rib, and it was all downhill from there!
since i’m still in college and 20… i think my perspective is relevant…
*wink*
the reason why Taco bell was okay “way back in the day” was because it was all you could afford. it was the cream of the crop compared to the 99 cents store which was conviently across campus….
but it seems that the more options you have avilable, the more chances to drop you cash in other venues… like resturants…
You go on a date in middle school… taco bell is accepted… but because society is “spend spend spend”… you won’t see a 28 year old single guy taking a girl to a taco bell for a date…
unless its drive thru on the way to a concert or something…
Very cool design! Useful information. Go on!