“Keeping up with the Joneses” used to mean having the same size TV, not the same vacation Instagram stories.
Our parents rocked the ’70s with 12% savings rates, cash-only spending, and the wild idea that luxuries were actually special.
Now we’re out here with 3.8% savings rates, subscriptions everywhere, and restaurant meals so normalized we forget they used to be birthday-level events.
The difference? They fixed things instead of replacing them, shared tools with neighbors, and waited to buy stuff instead of one-clicking everything.
Adopting a ’70s money mindset doesn’t mean going full Little House on the Prairie.
It means bringing back spending friction:
- use cash for fun money
- wait 48 hours before big purchases
- learn to fix your own stuff
- recognize that your seven streaming services aren’t actually “needs”
The irony is that wanting less actually gives you more freedom than endless consumption ever could.
