Column Chronicles: Rid yourself of money stress

Rid yourself of money stress

Frank Cotolo
July 27, 2023

It does not matter how much money you have because any amount causes stress in some ways or others. We asked economist and part-time fowl surgeon Rip Cashflow for some tips on ways to get relief from money stress.

SRN: Is there a good way to shop online so you don't overspend?

RIP: Nope. Clicking the mouse is addicting and sometimes a person buys something just to click the mouse and guess what? They have to buy what they click on.

SRN: So don't click or don't buy online?

RIP: Both. Or use that pad thing where you tap instead of click. No one gets addicted to tapping.

SRN: What about loose change?

RIP: Put all of your loose change in a big bottle and when it's full, have a contest. Charge people a dollar to guess the amount of cash the change equals. Tell them they'll win the cash if they are right. After they guess, say, "Sorry, wrong," and keep doing this and you'll be able to make a few bucks. I find that making money relieves the stress caused when you need it.

SRN: Home repairs are expensive and cause lots of stress.

RIP: You said it. What I do is evaluate the chances of being injured by things in the home that need repair and if you think the thing that should be repaired won't hurt you or your family or visitors badly should it bust then put off getting it fixed. Or get house insurance and health insurance so you're covered for anything that happens with the thing in disrepair.

SRN: What about saving money?

RIP: Don't. Life is short and it has been sung from way back in the olden days that if you ain't got nothing then you ain't got nothing to lose.

SRN: That's easy to say.

RIP: Sure is. Try it.

SRN: If you ain't got nothing then you ain't got nothing to lose.

RIP: Told you. Say, you wouldn't have a few bucks on you so I could get some dinner, would you? I know, I know, I forgot to mention asking for loans you never have to pay back. Relieves money stress big time.

Frank Cotolo can be found hosting the talk and interview programme Cotolo Chronicles. You can send him an e-mail at this address: frank@148.ca.