Ramit Sethi discusses how growing up with messages of scarcity (e.g., "we can't afford that") can create enduring spending habits even after financial situations improve. He notes that while people focus on saving, they rarely address how to spend consciously and enjoyably despite having the means.
So think about when you grow up hearing, we can't afford that, we can't afford that. One day when you have actually a pretty decent amount of money, a lot of people still tell themselves, we can't afford that. So they still go on the same type of vacations they would have gone on 15 years ago. They still tell their kids, we can't afford that. But we look at the numbers. Actually, you can afford that and a lot more. But everybody talks about how to save and nobody talks about how to spend.
