Hoarding can be a natural, almost evolutionary response to the possibility that one day, there might be a lack of something essential to your life. Some people do it with food, newspapers, books, or clothes. They all have a reason and however realistic that reason may be, the collection grows, takes up space, and potentially becomes more of a nuisance than a help.

But there’s another type of hoarding that gets looked over a lot, and that’s the hoarding of money. What’s interesting is that food and clothing are almost an evolutionary response to the basic things you would need just to stay alive. However, in our capitalist society, money is what allows you to get the things that keep you alive. With 401k’s and savings accounts, we have essentially adapted to a modern society by nixing our tendencies to hoard life-keeping things, and instead hoard this digital currency (in most cases, but I don’t discount paper money hoarders) that we can’t even see, that allows us to get anything our little hearts desire.

I’m a self-diagnosed money hoarder, and there are a few more symptoms you might see if you think you may be a money hoarder too.

Continue reading “Money Hoarding & How a Minimalist Mindset Changed my Conception of Volunteerism” →