By Bill Quain
It’s the end of April, and that means financial literacy month is almost over. Now all we’re left with are the excuses! An excuse is a lame justification you come up with, so you don’t have to do something you don’t want to do.
This past week, I was talking to a friend of mine. He’s a very nice guy who needs to make some changes in his life. He and I discussed some of the things he might try. But as each alternative came up, my friend had an excuse for not doing it. Finally, I told him the following story, and he laughed because it was so obvious.
My wife is making beef stroganoff
I told my friend the story about a man who needed to cut his grass, but his lawn mower was broken. He walked next door to his neighbor’s house and asked if he could borrow the neighbor’s lawn mower. The neighbor’s reply? “I can’t lend you my lawn mower. My wife is making beef stroganoff tonight.”
“What does that have to do with me borrowing your lawnmower?” he asked. “Absolutely nothing,” the neighbor replied. “But, if I don’t want to do something, any excuse will do.”
After telling my friend the story, I wished him good luck with his challenges. He called me back a little later and told me that he had gotten the message, and that he was going to start taking action. I was proud of him. More than that, I was happy for him.
Getting past your excuses is always a tough thing.
10 Rules to Break and Make
In 1996, I wrote the book “10 Rules to Break & 10 Rules to Make: The Do’s & Don’ts for Designing Your Destiny”. It was probably the most fun I’ve ever had writing a book. I started my research on the book by asking everyone I knew about the common “rules” they live by. My friends and family gave me at least 50 rules﹘some that they wanted to make and some that they wanted to break. I selected my 10 favorites from each category, and then wrote the book.
One of the rules to break was “Accept only valid excuses.” There is no such thing as a “valid excuse!” Oh, there are some extreme examples, but they are certainly not an everyday occurrence. When people don’t want to do something, they will come up with all kinds of reasons not to do it.
How about you? As this last week of financial literacy month stretches in front of us, what excuses are you going to use so you don’t have to do things like keep a budget? Will it be “I don’t have time for that right now,” or “that app doesn’t work on my phone.” Maybe (if you are old–fashioned) you can complain that Office Depot was out of #2 pencils. It doesn’t matter. If you don’t want to do it, any excuse will do.
Favorite common excuses and my rebuttals
I asked Jeanne to help me dig back into the “Accept only valid excuses” rule to break chapter, so we could reread the top excuses people gave me over the years. Here are three of my favorites, with my rebuttal to each one:
- Excuse: The odds are against me.
Rebuttal: Yes they are, but would you have really done anything different if the odds were in your favor?
- Excuse: There aren’t enough hours in the day.
Rebuttal: Oh really? I got 24 hours yesterday; how many did you get? Do you realize that if you only got 20 hours yesterday, you died last night at 8 p.m.?
- Excuse: People like me never succeed.
Rebuttal: You are absolutely correct! We’ve been watching you, and people like you never succeed. So, stop being “someone like you,” and start acting like a successful person.
Facts will never overcome your excuses
Last week, I wrote about using a “why” instead of a “what” to teach people how to use financial literacy. During my life, especially during my time as a professor, I’ve rarely seen a situation where facts overcome emotions.
For example, you know that it’s a fact you shouldn’t talk on your phone while driving. But do you do it anyway? Maybe you are one of those people that has your cell phone hooked up to your car’s audio system, so you can talk and text “hands–free.” And maybe you’re even one of those people who say, “I’m not going to send a text to anybody while driving,” but then, gosh darn it, your friend sends you a text that has a picture of a cat wearing a funny hat. You have to respond, don’t you? Otherwise, it would be impolite! Suddenly, the “facts” are out the window, because you just must tell your friend how funny that cat in the hat was.
No excuses: Send me your excuses
Okay, now it’s your turn. How about sending me some of your favorite excuses? While you’re at it, how about creating a rebuttal for that excuse? Let’s have some fun with it. Our theme is financial literacy, but I’ll take anything you send me. (Let’s face it, I’m starved for attention!) Send your email to bill@quain.com.
As I say each week, “I’ll see ya in the papers.”
