Flickr/splorp
I clearly remember the very first thing I ever saved up for: a Sony Sports Walkman. I already had a walkman, but its vintage was questionable, its branding unrecognizable and, because my parents had bought it for me, its price was undoubtedly “reasonable.” Oh, and it totally wasn’t “shock-proof” and “waterproof.”
The problem was, the Sony version cost $65. For someone who only got a couple dollars per week of allowance, coming up with that much money wasn’t easy. Lucky for me, it turned out to be gratifying. Once amassed in $1 and $5 bills, $65 makes for a very impressive stack of cash. The kind that I was inclined to keep under the pillow, so that I could pull it out and flip it through my fingers like some casino high-roller. I began to do that frequently enough that I think my Dad finally took pity on me and chipped in the last $10.
So, although it took what felt like a very long time, I finally got my Walkman. But I got something else too: A very positive experience, the kind that probably helped me develop a better attitude about saving. Read more in my new post on WiseBread.
