inflation .. gold and silver breakout , page-9

Some wisdom in that piece particularly about save to spend rather than borrow to spend.

I would add that only life's losers borrow to spend. they usually also play pokies and buy lottery tickets and then smoke to absorb the stress of life.

Some quite income poor people like my parents saved to spend and ended up comfortable in retirement if poor.

If done in a timely and controlled fashion, borrowing to invest (which is tax deductible around the world) to create the investment wealth to provide the spending later works very well but requires deferred gratification.

Saving to invest is commendable but runs the risk in terms of a big investment like housing of inflation outstripping your ability to keep up with the deposit, hence borrowing for a house combined with saving to invest in equities has worked for decades.

I quite like the tithe system of setting aside 10% of the gains you make from your hotcopper trading tips for reinvestment or repaying borrowings before spending other gains (after tax). I confess I spent nearly all the gains I made in the first 10 years on women and then I got married and reinvested them, but then gave nearly all of it to my ex-wife later. Fortunately lady luck and lack of marital stress has helped me restore my fortune.

It is of interest that in a study of very young children offered two items of confectionery and told they could eat one but if they did not eat the second they would be given another in ten minutes all those who could resist eating the second went on to become succesful adults, while the rest joined the ranks of the underclass. it is not a genetic trait, but a combination of your developed personality and your upbringing. The ability to defer reward ought to separate us from rats (except I think one experiment showed one reason rats are so successful is some can learn that ability too).