When Money is No Object, What is the Object?

This post is adapted from YNAB’s twice-monthly newsletter, Loose Change.

I recently had the unexpected experience of standing in a room with a man who owns $270,000 music speakers. He is a successful author, and had been given the speakers as a gift for his writing (as have I been rewarded with branded water bottles for my writing).

The speakers stood over us like Easter Island statues as we talked. Eventually, over lunch, he turned them on and I waited for the choirs of heaven to pour out. The sound was… good. I enjoyed listening to Motown as we ate rice bowls, and while I am by no means an acoustic engineer, I wasn’t floored by a staggering difference in sound quality. (Audiophiles, strike me dead!)

I had some time to mull it over as I returned to my house and my daily work, thinking about why people spend money the way they do. What possible need could these speakers fill?

A few options as I see it (all of them assume you have many millions of dollars):

– You are a professional sound person and use this for work. It’s the equivalent of a graphic designer buying a huge Mac desktop computer—tool of the trade.

— You find special joy in listening to landmark albums like Glenn Gould’s recording of Bach: Goldberg Variations and you’re driven to have an experience that feels like you’re sitting next to the piano.

– Last option, you’re anxious that you might not have the best and plunking down $270,000 reassures your brain that, yes, this is the best. Buying these speakers soothes the fear that your subwoofer might be subpar.

It made sense to me suddenly, the fabulously expensive home stereo stores I used to walk by on Park Avenue in Manhattan. I wondered why, specifically, is there such a market for infinitely expensive home sound systems? And then it occurred to me that sound quality, like wine and art, is a highly subjective realm.

Most people want to consider themselves as having good taste, and no one wishes to look like a fool. So when you’re standing next to someone who’s an expert in wine or audio systems, aren’t you tempted to agree when they ask if you also can detect “barnyard” notes in this glass of Merlot or the “rich, honeyed” sound from that nice-looking speaker over there?

In guiding you to the conclusion that you have the best sound system, the expert can resolve a pain worse than listening to music out of your iPhone—the pain of having spent your money wrong. When you aren’t clear on what’s excellent, a big price tag can serve as a proxy for quality.

It might sound like I’m dunking on well-heeled wine or music lovers, but I’m not. One of the first jobs that I was unqualified to hold was as a waiter at a wine bar after college, where I learned a lot about wine. I still love a nice Tempranillo. And I relish the Thursday live broadcast from Carnegie Hall on WQXR (albeit through my comparatively pathetic $120 speaker). 

But there’s a difference between using your money to love and enjoy good things and using your money to dispel the anxiety that you might not have the best. One reason why there’s almost no ceiling on hard-to-measure goods like home stereos or wine is that, for people with enormous means, there’s always the promise of something better, something rarer that you might be able to get your hands on.

Maybe you’re a connoisseur, sampling Pinot Noirs from Oregon’s volcanic soil, which is great because you love the journey. But buyer beware, the search for the best is different than the search for something you love.

Worried about money? You’re not alone. Download YNAB, get good with money, and never worry about money again. It’s free for 34 days!

Good With Money: A Look at Real YNABers

Dennis, pictured here proudly celebrating four straight years of Michigan beating Ohio State in “The Game,” sent us some non-football related news about his life in Michigan as well.

As of last week, “I just closed on a new house! Goodbye to apartment life!” 

Dennis is a firefighter and realtor and has paid down over $30,000 of debt in the past two years. “My credit card debt was rising every month until I found YNAB in February 2023. I lived life without a plan. YNAB just clicked for me. Suddenly, I knew where my money was going and I wasn’t happy about it.

I fully committed to the YNAB fundamentals and am more than $30,000 better off than I was. I’ll even pay off the rest of my credit card debt THIS YEAR! I’m so freaking excited about it.”

‍What tradeoffs do you make to prioritize the important stuff?
‍“I stopped spending hundreds of dollars a month on board games and over a grand per month on dining out. I still buy games and dine out, but now I do it responsibly.”

‍What category most represents your values?
‍“My YNAB Membership category represents the mindset shift I needed to go through. Also, it’s representative of all the annual subscription services that USED to sneak up on me. Now I fund what I want intentionally and when the bill comes due, the money is already there!”

‍Anything else?
‍“I’m going to be positive in net worth for the first time since my divorce!”

Dennis also introduced YNAB to his girlfriend. “She slowly bought in and, two years later, she’s completely debt-free!”