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During my time at school, I was never taught how to manage money — that one thing that often determines how well your day is going to go. I have since learned that money cannot make you happy, but it certainly helps to soothe unhappiness.
Looking across the people I have known, there have been those with plenty who constantly complain they have no money, and others with very little who have been remarkably generous. Wealth and financial comfort are clearly not the same thing.
Even at university, balancing the books did not feel especially important. It was only with my first proper job — a student placement — that responsibility began to bite. I wanted to fly occasionally to see my then girlfriend in Germany. I still had to eat, keep a roof over my head, and get to work. These were, unmistakably, grown-up problems.
Around 1982, my system was simple. I withdrew cash for:
- my lodgings
- my food
- my travel (daily)
- my fun (mostly beer)
I paid by credit card for:
- flights
- rail travel to visit my parents
By watching my bank statements, I could ensure I stayed in the black. My salary was paid monthly in arrears, so I kept a weekly check that the money going out was not exceeding the money coming in, with a monthly review and correction using the statement.
The number of transactions was small and visible. Saving was not really a priority — I was, by my own admission, a boring student. With today’s tuition fees and living costs, student life has become far more serious, far earlier.
I am not sure exactly where I stand on financial wisdom, but keeping a watchful eye on where your money goes is hard to argue against. It prevents unpleasant surprises. This is not about saving or wealth accumulation; it is about recognising where money comes from — usually obvious and insufficient — and where it goes, which is always too much. The outgoings are where things become problematic.
In our household, bills arrive via credit cards, debit cards, and online payment services such as PayPal. We have monthly subscriptions, annual subscriptions, annual payments, monthly payments, and cash withdrawals. The complexity alone makes attention necessary. Monthly income must cover not only monthly expenses but also annual fluctuations. Performing regular audits requires planned effort and time.
Pop Goes the Weasel
Balancing your books can be thought of as managing a leaky bucket. The precious resource you pour in is your net salary. The challenge lies in finding and defining the holes.
For most of us, the holes are of our own making. Feeling defrauded rarely helps; more often it is a way of avoiding uncomfortable recognition.
Cash Alzheimer
Unless you live in a country such as Norway — which already appeared largely cashless when I visited in 2016 — cash withdrawals represent the largest grey area in understanding where money goes. Cash use seems to induce a form of amnesia.
My wife and I can withdraw cash at our local supermarket. We might as well burn it on the spot, because only the almighty knows where it ends up. Reducing the need for cash improves your ability to understand where your money goes. This inevitably means more lines on your bank statement — but far fewer excuses for the unknown.
Kids and Cash
An unobtrusive drain on cash comes from the daily needs of children — school supplies, expenses requested by the school, snacks from the school shop, outings. These are not things to be begrudged, but they happen. We forget them until they occur, and usually the wallet contains little more than that last fifty-euro note.
Keeping the House
These are the costs we often resent because they feel unavoidable:
- rent or mortgage
- water, gas, and electricity
- liability and buildings insurance
- landline telephone (if still needed)
The only real options here are to shop around and periodically question what you are paying for. Third-party and buildings insurance, in particular, can hide unpleasant surprises and unnecessary expense.
Round, Round, Get Around (I Get Around)
Transport costs include season tickets for public transport, car payments, maintenance, and fuel — electricity included. This category has a remarkable ability to disguise entertainment spending, particularly for enthusiasts of a specific mode of transport.
Cheat Sheet: Subsidies and the Tax You Pay
This explores what happens to your gross salary once taxation and subsidies have taken their share.
Money Used to Entertain You!
Smartphones, tablets, contracts, PCs, and their software belong here — at least in an honest accounting. Entire years of our lives can be found quietly entertained away by these devices.
Perhaps you replace a device every four years, but annual updates are marketed as irresistible. The suggestion is that you will somehow fall behind — or drown — if you do not comply.
This Is the Land of Subscription (…and of Confusion)
Your PC, tablet, and smartphone act as portals into this strange land.
In Germany, advertisements often end with the words “und jetzt bestellen” — “and order now” — which implies a one-time action. More often, it means your bank account will be quietly plundered each month by a sum that initially feels harmless. That sum frequently increases substantially after twelve to twenty-four months. If you are not watching closely, you will miss it. Two years pass quickly as an adult.
Subscriptions are often spread across multiple devices and payment methods, dispersing their true cost until everything eventually converges on your current account as a series of indistinct withdrawals.
Much like fitness studio memberships, subscription services frequently generate profit from non-usage. Online services cost providers more when they are heavily used and can even create capacity issues.
Cancelling a subscription invokes the Innerer Schweinehund — the inner beast we must overcome before finally clicking “cancel subscription.” This task is rarely completed in seconds.
It is not the cost of a subscription that is the problem; it is the unconscious accumulation of them, which can sum to an unreasonable proportion of net income.
Subscribe to one service at a time, use it thoroughly, then move on. You will not always have the latest entertainment from every provider, but you will get there eventually.
Enjoying Hungry Without Getting Hangry
The sensation of becoming hungry and then enjoying a good meal is one of life’s great physical pleasures — and it happens roughly three times a day. Food is a cost, but if we allow it — and I think we should — it is also a form of entertainment.
A review of eating habits from a financial perspective can yield unexpected insights.
📖 Series Roadmap
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- Balancing the Books (23.04.2026)
- Money Makes the World Go Around (23.04.2026)
- Framing (23.04.2026)
- ###### (07.10.2025)
- ###### (14.10.2025)
- ###### (04.11.2025)
- ###### (11.11.2025)
- ###### (18.11.2025)
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