Spending money as a young professional: How to become less stingy

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Buying flowers?

But they wither immediately!

As a curmudgeon you can find reasons to save everywhere.

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Secret Annex Productions / Getty Images

I recently needed a new clothes horse.

In the supermarket on my street there is a model for 22.99 euros, at Ikea for 5.99 euros.

Both were too expensive for me.

A clothes horse, that's just a couple of metal pipes, I thought, and anyway it's in the closet most of the time.

Isn't that even cheaper?

It went.

I found a model on Ebay classifieds for two euros; a student from a neighboring district sold it.

I was there in 45 minutes by bus or train.

There was some time for small talk on site ("Oh, are you moving out?").

The way back was even longer, the clothes horse kept popping open and I was sweating with the effort.

When I got home, I wasn't so sure I had gotten a good deal.

Spending money has to be learned

It's a rush: you have to learn how to handle money first.

I often hear from other people in their twenties that they are spending too much.

I have the opposite problem: I've been working in a permanent position for three years.

And yet I still live like I did during my studies.

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