Lessons Learned from A Christmas Carol

Posted by Mike Smith :: December 25, 2007 @ 8:27 am

There are some stories that we can listen to time and time again without growing weary of their message. Allowing that message to influence our habits is more challenging. On Christmas day, I ask all of you to consider the messages in Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol to see how they might influence your lives, both financially and personally.

The story has multiple themes with varying degrees of emphasis. The two most important ones, in my opinion, are that money can’t buy happiness and that drastic change may be necessary to alter our fate.

On the first point, we see the argument from both sides. Not only do we see a man whose great riches cannot prevent his misery, but we also see a poor family that finds happiness in each other despite their financial hardship. How often is this evident in our own lives? Once Christmas day arrives, we realize that the gifts we have bought rarely bring more enjoyment than the time spent with those we give the gifts to.

On the second point, we see that only by modifying his attitudes and behavior was Ebenezer Scrooge able to cause change. It often takes a clarifying moment to realize the error of our ways. Have you had your epiphany yet? It may take a major event for us to change our mindset. For Ebenezer Scrooge, it was seeing his past joys, the reality of the current world, and the grim future that awaited him. For others, the moment of clarity may not come until they hit rock bottom.

You can learn from these scenarios to save yourself the pain and suffering that reaching such a low point can cause. Take a first step towards a better financial future and start applying the tips we’ve shared on this blog every day. It’s never too late to make a fresh start. Consolidate your credit card debt with a P2P loan from Lending Club. Use social lending to help make a difference in other peoples’ lives while you improve your own state of affairs.

As I’ve said many times in the past, there are certainly much more important things in life than money. Money is, however, a necessary part of our lives and a means by which we can enjoy more intangible pleasure like time with family and friends even more. The strain that a poor financial situation puts on all aspects of our lives exists regardless of whether or not we acknowledge its presence. I urge you to make a positive change in your financial life. You’ll likely see improvement in many other areas of your life as well. I sincerely wish all readers of this blog a Merry Christmas and a New Year full of new possibilities in all aspects of their lives.