Half an Hour

The Mild Wife and I make spreadsheets. It's just one of those things that we do. There was a time when I probably would've contested whether this was true, but as time has gone on and more spreadsheets have "magically" appeared in our lives, it's become harder and harder to dispute. I mean, we were talking about a wish list, and a spreadsheet popped out.

The most obvious place where this comes up, though, is with our monthly budget. I mean, we're literally talking about trying to make sure numbers match up. Even if I didn't love spreadsheets quite as much, this would be one scenario where it'd just make sense to use this particular tool. There are lots of numbers to track, and we want to keep an eye on how much we're spending. This seems like a classic case for a spreadsheet.

Well, given how prevalent they are in our lives, this also means that I've gotten used to seeing some of the numbers. In very simplified terms, I track monthly payments like mortgages, incidental spending, and total debt. It's not at the level of a financial planner, but it does give us a sense of how our payments are making a difference.

So if we put in an extra $50 towards our mortgage, how does impact the interest that we have to pay from here on out? How much did we save this month? How much discretionary money do we have every month? I think you get the idea; it's supposed to give us an idea of where our money is going, and what impact that particular spending will have on our budget.

On a nuts and bolts level, this is really helpful for managing this month's expenses and budget. However, because we've built a spreadsheet, this also means that we can imagine what-if scenarios for the following months. I can start to calculate what would happen to our mortgage if we spent an extra $50 towards our mortgage every month from now on. I can also plan for a big expense if I know it's coming sometime in the future. Essentially, I can start imagining the future in terms of our finances.

Now, this might seem very matter-of-fact, but this is where my imagination usually starts to kick in. Well, what if I got a raise next year? If interest rates dropped, should we refinance? If we do that, how much would we save every month, and how much more would we pay in interest? There are all sorts of scenarios that become possible at that point, and my brain likes to consider a good number of them.

Honestly, I don't really have a great reason for why I do this, but I do. In fact, I've done it enough times now that I started to notice the pattern. I would sit down, pay bills, and then spend an extra thirty minutes or so playing with those numbers. After all, I just finished clearing our debt for that month, so then I start thinking about what happens in the months that follow.

I don't think that exercise has ever led to drastic changes in our budget, so in many ways, this is an exercise in goofing off. But it just feels like a good use of time to me. To a degree, it makes me feel comfortable with those numbers. I have something of an instinctive sense of what's possible, in part because I do spend those thirty minutes playing with the spreadsheet. That, and I get to imagine a bigger house, retiring younger, or splurging for some item or another. Why not dream a little?

All that said, I don't think I'm going to stop playing with those numbers any time soon. On balance, I think it's good for us. Still, I can't help but chuckle about the flights of fancy that that editing that spreadsheet entails. Who knew that spreadsheets could be a tool for sparking joy?