Fair Plight: Arguing About Money Can Be Replaced With Full Disclosure

You can read story after story, study after study and in the end, you’ll see that other than infidelity, money is the root of most relationship issues and subsequent separations as a result.

Thinking about money and financial planning, you might not assume that the art of saving money and spending correctly would be enough of a catalyst to drive a wedge between two people, but that fact is more predominant now than ever.

And even if you have money and your income is substantial doesn’t mean you’re completely in the clear, either.

The reason money is such a problem has to do with two very important aspects of it as it relates to relationship: fighting and different mindsets about money.

The arguing tends to be a byproduct of money, especially if things aren’t going so well. If your spouse loses his or her job, you might find yourself stressing rather than rethinking your budget and expenses. Arguing and fighting about money should be replaced and supplanted with a frank, honest conversation about how you’re going to remedy the problem with the simple swipe of crossing off expenses you no longer need.

If an individual in a relationship takes issue with cutting expenses, that can be a huge difference in putting together a united front and tackling money head-on or having one person carry around huge amounts of resentment as a result of having to go without a particular want.

Having a calm, less combative argument also will lead to being more productive and finding a result that will get you in a better state financially and emotionally.

As for the two conflicting mindsets, this also isn’t going to do you any favors if you or your partner aren’t even close to being on the same page money wise. If one of you is a frivolous spender and has never lived within a budget, while the counter to that is a strict, more meticulous way of tracking your income and expenses, you might have a hard time dealing with money. The general rule of thumb is to let the more financially adept person budget, but also make that process a team endeavor. Just because you’re good with money and have always had a budget doesn’t mean you should eliminate the other person from having a say, either. And try not to shoot down what they say, either. You should, as the one who is in charge of the finances, talk them through your logic but also be sure not to dismiss them at every turn.

Money might be the root of all evil, but it also is extremely bad when it comes to how you and your significant other battle back and forth over what money goes where instead of coming to terms with a plan that works for all parties involved.