Jean Chatzky Quotes

By definition, saving - for anything - requires us to not get things now so that we can get bigger ones later.

Be careful not to compromise what you want most for what you want now.

Pray a little more, work a little harder, save, wait, be patient and, most of all, live within our means. That's the American way. It's not spending ourselves into prosperity or taxing ourselves into prosperity.

The city has to do what any citizen or family does, when you have a dream. You tighten your belt. You sacrifice some luxuries. Above all, you don't waste a dime.

The main reason for people's lack of success is their willingness to give up what they want most of all, for what they want right now!

Delayed gratification is a sweet lesson whose teacher knows the best is not right now, it is yet to be.

Just because you can afford it doesn't mean you should buy it.

Never spend your money before you have earned it.

I believe in practicing prudence at least once every two or three years.

Time is your friend; impulse is your enemy.

I have not thrown my money away on unnecessary things in my life, so I'm okay.

No one wants to be patient. No one wants to wait for anything. They want it right now - that instant gratification.

The chief cause of failure and unhappiness is trading what you want most for what you want right now

Giving up on our long-term goals for immediate gratification, my friends, is procrastination.

I'm careful with money.

People know that you can't spend more than you have.

I've discovered that I've never had much respect for money, and that has meant that money has ended up ruling me a little bit more than it should have. So I'm trying to learn - at this late stage in life! - to actually control that.

I know that you've got to watch how you spend all the dollars. That's not the easiest thing to do. That's not what people think is the most fun thing to do, but it's the right thing to do.

A budget tells us what we can't afford, but it doesn't keep us from buying it.

A simple fact that is hard to learn is that the time to save money is when you have some.

In my experience, those who make the biggest fuss about not spending much at Christmas are generally the ones who buy what they want and eat where they want 12 months a year.

I think it's kind of nice, in this day and age of instant gratification, that you have to wait for something.

If you can't pay for a thing, don't buy it. If you can't get paid for it, don't sell it. Do this, and you will have calm and drowsy nights, with all of the good business you have now and none of the bad. If you have time, don't wait for time.

Think of the long view of life, not just what's going to happen today or tomorrow. Don't give up what you most want in life for something you think you want now.

I'm not ridiculously wealthy, but I don't squander money either.