Monday, June 15, 2009
Recession Benefit – More Family Time and Better Health
Times are tough but there are actually positive side-effects of a sluggish economy. In my last post on this subject, I talked about how a recession helps strengthen our connection with the community. A lot of people are also noticing benefits for themselves and their families.Many families are staying home more often, which means we’re spending more of that elusive “quality” time together. Board-game purchases are up, so we’re cutting back on expensive entertainment, and opting for popcorn and a board-game instead. If we do venture out, more of us are going camping in place of a luxury vacation – marshmallows anyone? So depending on your point of view, cutting back might just mean enjoying and appreciating simple pleasures with the ones you love.
If we can learn how to manage our stress, there are health benefits too when money is tight. Rather than eating out, maybe we can start cooking more of our own meals. Instead of shopping, we can go for a walk or bike ride. We can take the kids to the park instead of the movies. According to some studies, a one-percent increase in unemployment traditionally lowers a country’s death rate by half a percent.
When times are tough, we’re forced to take a closer look at what’s really important to us and sometimes we’re inspired to make some positive changes for the better. This is the same philosophy we have at Simplify - our services and our quality customer service exist so that busy families can simplify and focus on what really matters!
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2 comments:
I know this experience all to well. Fortunately, it's not because of the current recession, but because my husband went through a nearly unbearable period of unemployment (7 months!) in 2007. But the upside of that very long dry spell was the amazing connection he built with our children and the time we were able to enjoy as a family. Plus, we learned so much about living frugally, but still living well.
Thanks for sharing your experience Michelle! We're familiar with it as well, and have been choosing to focus on the benefits - my husband got so much more comfortable with being with both kids and taking them out on his own. We also realized how wasteful we were (i.e., buying things new instead of used or borrowing them, eating out when we had food in the fridge, etc.) and I don't know that we could go back now!
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