I don’t care who you are, you don’t have enough money to meet all your desires. World peace (for example) is very expensive. So we need to prioritize our expenses. It’s all fine and good to want a new phone with tons of digital service, a new car for one of the kids, a new TV, a cruise to the Caribbean, etc. But if you get a new phone AND a new car for one of the kids AND a new TV AND a cruise to the Caribbean, there is no money left. Financial institutions have made it ridiculously easy for us to borrow money and have all those things. But of course then we don’t have any actual money when we might need it.
So the trick is to decide you’re going to save $500 a month, or $5,000 a month, or $50,000 a month, whatever allows you to save for long term goals, and to have cash for emergencies. Then with the rest, prioritize. And once that money is used up, that’s it. Maybe it’s no new TV this year, or the kid is riding her bicycle for another semester, etc. Prioritizing makes it easier, as you will have the most important things, and know the things that aren’t possible yet, weren’t at the top of the list.