THE HABIT OF SAVING^275compound interest, would have grown to the sum of $94,000 at the
time this lesson is being written.
I have never been a victim of any of the usual habits, such as gam-
bling, drinking, or excessive entertaining. It is almost unbelievable that
someone whose habits of living are reasonably moderate could spend
$47,000 within a little over ten years without having anything to show
for the money. But it can be done!
I recall one occasion when the president of a large corporation sent
me a check for $500 for an address I delivered at a banquet given for
the employees, and I distinctly recall what went through my mind when
I opened the letter and saw the check. I had wanted a new automobile
and this check was exactly the amount required for the first payment. I
had it spent before it had been in my hands thirty seconds.
Perhaps this is the experience of the majority of people. They think
much more about how they will spend whatever they have than they do
about saving. The idea of saving, and the Self-Control and self-sacrifice
that would be needed to do so, is always accompanied by thoughts of
an unpleasant nature. But oh, how it thrills one to think of spending.
There is a reason for this, and it is that most of us have developed
the habit of spending while neglecting the Habit of Saving, and any
idea that seldomly frequents the mind is not as welcome as the idea
that frequents it often. In truth, the Habit of Saving can be made as
fascinating as the habit of spending might seem, but not until it has
become a regular, well-grounded, systematic habit. We like to do things
that are often repeated, which is but another way of saying what the
scientists have discovered: that we are victims of our habits.
The Habit of Saving requires more force of character than most
people have developed, because saving means self-denial and sacrifice
of amusements and pleasures in scores of different ways. For this very
reason, one who develops the savings habit acquires, at the same time,
many of the other needed habits that lead to success, especially Self-
Control, Self-Confidence, courage, poise, and freedom from fear.