YOLO living

Sometimes when I wonder whether to address a topic here on the blog, I go with “clusters.” What I mean is, I’ll see or read something and think, “Huh. That’s interesting.” And then, unconnected to the original source, I’ll see something else on the same subject and think, “Maybe I should write something about this.” Clusters.

Often, of course, the coverage is clustered solely because it’s a topic trending in the news; and that’s why I’m discussing today’s subject: YOLO living.

YOLO, as I’m sure you know, is an acronym for “You Only Live Once.” It’s been trending lately as a rather despairing response to high costs of living and low wages, and the frustrations that people – especially younger adults – feel with an economy that’s against them.

YOLO living is exemplified by reckless spending on unnecessary items (including travel) because, hey, you only live once. It’s often referenced in contrast to the nose-to-the-grindstone attitude of earlier generations.

Consider, for example, this video about a young woman complaining about her $8 coffee while drinking $8 coffee. I can’t embed the video here, so I transcribed it. She says:

“So as I’m sitting here, sipping this $8 coffee, I’m just wondering if I’m the only girl living in the delulu land, because I cannot afford this $8 coffee. I honestly can’t afford s***. I can’t afford my car, my house, groceries … I mean, like, how can this coffee be $8 when minimum wage is literally, like $8? So excuse me while I just continue to live in the delulu land while I continue go get my coffees I can’t afford, because I’m going to continue to live and dig myself deeper and deeper and deeper into a gigantic financial hole because it cost too much to f***ing live. Thanks for coming to my TED talk. Bye.”

Don is the one who brought this video to my attention by asking, “How much does coffee cost per pound these days?”

I had just been to the city for my once-a-quarter Big Shopping, so I knew precisely how much coffee costs. “I just filled up some bags with fresh-ground coffee at Winco for $8 a pound,” I replied.

That’s when he pointed out this video on the $8 coffee, and we speculated how many coffee drinks could be made with a pound of ground coffee. Short answer: a lot.

But hey, you only live once, right? Why shouldn’t this woman enjoy her expensive coffee? Everyone deserves a little treat now and then.

The problem, I’m speculating, is the $8 coffee is not just “now and then,” nor is it the only thing she recklessly spends money on. As she admits, she’s “going to continue to live and dig myself deeper and deeper and deeper into a gigantic financial hole because it cost too much to f***ing live.”

I sense her frustration. I sympathize with her frustration. But how will it end? The debt won’t go away just because she’s frustrated and angry and feel she deserves the occasional treat.

Now consider this article: “Economists are sounding alarm on ‘YOLO’ credit bubble.” The author writes, “A growing percentage of Americans are becoming reckless with their spending, fueling what one economist calls a ‘super duper’ credit bubble. In a note to clients, economist David Rosenberg of Rosenberg Research warned that Americans are taking on too much debt to buy things they really don’t need. He calls these people ‘YOLO spenders,’ which refers to the catchphrase, ‘You only live once.’”

The article goes on to document the amount of credit card debt people are taking on, reaching all-time highs, and points out the obvious dangers of splurging on credit when it can’t be paid off.

YOLO spending differs from survival spending. In this economy, a lot of people are maxing out their credit cards simply to pay their bills. I get that. I totally get that. In the past, we had crushing credit card debt due to the economic reality of raising a family on a very tight income. It took many years to climb out of that financial hole. In fact, those debt years left me with something of a pathological fear of owing money.

That’s why this YOLO spending strikes me as irrational to the point of madness. It’s one thing to max out a credit card because you’re desperately trying to keep your head above water. It’s a whole different thing to max out on YOLO luxuries. These spenders must know a day of reckoning will loom, right? If you can’t afford $8 coffees, maybe you should buy a pound of ground coffee for $8 and make your own beverage at home…?

While I understand – and sympathize – with the frustration expressed by the young woman in the video, I can’t help but feel there are better ways to go about enjoying the small pleasures of life without digging yourself “deeper and deeper and deeper into a gigantic financial hole.”

Debt is terrifying enough if it’s incurred simply for survival. But debt incurred simply to live it up seems like madness.

What advice would you offer this young woman, besides not buying $8 coffees?