BB Grey–musings

Daily writing prompt

Write about your approach to budgeting.

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“Ballin’ on a Countdown: The Fine Art of Going Broke Strategically”

Another version of this game is called Die Broke—same strategy, different branding. The idea is simple: when you die, you should have nothing left. Makes sense, right? You can’t take it with you, so why not spend it all while you’re here? The trick, though, is timing. If you go broke before you die, well, you played the game wrong. If you die with too much, then you shortchanged yourself—you could’ve lived more, given more, or at the very least, ordered the expensive bottle of wine a few more times.

I remember the board game Go for Broke as a kid. It was like the anti-Monopoly. Instead of amassing wealth and crushing your opponents, you raced to spend every last dollar before anyone else. The challenge was outsmarting good fortune and avoiding the unexpected cash windfalls life threw at you. A totally different take on the same dilemma—how do you maximize life before the game ends?

In real life, I seem to have unknowingly played Go for Broke on hard mode. Business owner? Check. Father of three? Check. Put all three through college? Check. Survived a divorce, two weddings, and the 2008 financial crisis? Oh yeah. Work in the trades as a carpenter/home builder? You bet. If there were a leaderboard for burning through money in meaningful ways, I might have a high score.

The interesting thing is, when I talk to my kids about their best memories growing up, it’s never about what I spent on them—it’s about what we did together. And that reassures me that I played the game pretty well. That said, I do sometimes lie awake at night wondering—what if I live to be 100? What if inflation keeps doing… whatever the hell it’s doing? What if healthcare costs skyrocket? Honestly, at that point, does anyone ever really have enough?

But worrying yourself to death doesn’t help much, and it certainly doesn’t fit into a Go for Broke strategy.

So here’s my take:

Spend (experience) like you’re going to die tomorrow. Save like you’re going to live forever.

Finding the perfect balance? That’s the hardest part of the game.