As a result of that journey you become an expert in delayed gratification. Delayed gratification is exactly what it sounds you put off what you truly want in order to have that later in life. The problem with doing that when you are on a journey such as to become a doctor or a lawyer is that it could take up to a decade before you were able to truly experience the fruit of your work.

The process of delayed gratification is not a healthy one. It creates an inability to handle your finances correctly as a result of not having finances. That is unless you are prepared. As a result of delayed gratification a lot of physicians or lawyers experience extreme lifestyle creep upon entering their professions where they were actually paid like professionals.

While it is a natural reaction to want to reward yourself for your hard work, we have to keep our in goal in mind. Financial independence is that goal.

At some point in time you will experience lifestyle creep. It will happen with subtle changes in your income. With every 1-2% increase in your salary that goes unnoticed and unplanned for, you will start to slowly live a more extravagant life. As you notice more money in your take-home pay, you’ll unnoticeably spend more. That is how lifestyle creep occurs.

No one is immune to lifestyle creep. In fact, I have struggled with lifestyle creep in the past. I am not afraid to admit that. I grew up very poor with little money so it’s very hard for me to allow myself to live in any way similar to the environment in which I was raised. It’s a psychological thing for me. Thus lifestyle creep is a psychological thing for us all. To combat this, I developed a few rules for how I treat lifestyle creep.

1. Remember it’s OK to live your life. You earned this money it’s OK to enjoy it. 
2. 50% of every income increase goes to savings. The other 50% you get to enjoy.
3. Don’t live like a pauper to pay off your student loans.
4. You only have one life to live don’t spend it worrying about paying your student loan’s off all your debts off in one year two years three years etc. Spend your life comfortably but not excess while preparing to become financially independent.
5. Have a financial plan and stick to your budget.

Delayed gratification sucks however it’s a byproduct of getting to where you are in your life. Don’t let the rebound effect of delayed gratification a.k.a. lifestyle creep throw off your goal of financial independence. I listed out my rules but they might not work for you. Figure out the financial rules which work for your life and live by them. My rules prevent lifestyle creep while also letting me enjoy the fruits of my labor. Because at the end of the day YOLO.