5 Things Facebook Can Teach You About Money

Facebook. You either love it or you hate it. Or you hate it. Or you really hate it.

Really, Facebook’s not all that bad, but you have to learn to take it (or your “friends” who are on it) with a grain of salt.

Yeah, you might think it’s one big time-waster—and it can definitely be that—but you can actually learn a lot of lessons from Facebook.

Don’t believe us? See if this changes your mind.

1. It's pointless to compare.

Sally just posted about her trip to Cancun. Mark just gloated about his awesome raise at work. Paul just posted a photo of his new BMW (probably leased). Everyone’s life is so perfect, isn’t it?

Actually, no, it’s not.

When it comes to life and money, remember that everyone’s Facebook version of themselves is always better than their actual life. We all want to show off or exaggerate the “better” part of our lives. On Facebook, that’s where the comparison trap comes into play. Be comfortable in your own skin.

2. You won’t like everything.

We’re talking about getting out of debt here. Or consistently investing each month. Like those annoying over-the-top political posts on Facebook, your experience getting out of debt and socking away a good chunk of change each year won’t always be fun. You might not want to press the “like” button every morning.

You’ll have to make sacrifices. You’ll have to spend less. You’ll have to be disciplined. That might not always be exciting, but it’s worth it.

3. Surround yourself with positive people.

When you have annoying “friends” on Facebook, what do you do? You either unfriend them or hide them from your feed, right?

If you’ve got a bunch of haters in your life and you’re surrounded by a bunch of so-called friends who make fun of you for trying to get out of debt, then you need to dump them like a bad habit. If they can’t respect your decision, then you don’t need to be around their negativity. Take a break from those “friends.”

Related: 7 Types of People Keeping You in Debt

4. Other people will be happy to spend your money.

Look over to the right side of your Facebook page. Ever notice those ads? Those people would love nothing more than for you to click on their link and buy something from them.

That’s advertising, and there’s nothing wrong with it. But when it comes to your precious dollars, you have to choose which, if any, marketing voices you will listen to. If you don’t come up with a game plan for your money, those companies will.

5. The buck stops with you.

Your Facebook profile is what you make of it. Nothing gets on there without you clicking the Submit or Upload button. If you upload a picture of yourself drunk and passed out, you only have yourself to blame. If you write a mean-spirited status update that ends up going viral, you only have yourself to blame.

With your life and money, you reap what you sow. If you continue to make bad choices with your money, those decisions will eventually catch up with you.

Are you getting the theme here? You are in control. And there’s no better way to control your money than living on a budget. When you name every dollar coming in and going out, you’re in the driver’s seat. And it’s not hard to get started.