What Does Your Spending Say About You?

By: Stuart Knight (Founder and CEO) | March 4, 2025

George Clooney's Broadway debut

Let’s go deeper with a question and have a self connection shall we?  Here it is. 

Are you conscious when you spend money?  Let me explain.

I think George Clooney is a fun actor to watch, and I’ve always liked the movies he’s been in. And from what I can see, he’s a pretty good guy outside of the world of film.  So, when I saw that he was starring in a new theatre show called Good Night and Good Luck in New York City, I thought I’d buy tickets.  Which I’ve now discovered is the equivalent to re-mortgaging your house. 

When I got to the website, I noticed that the show is taking place in a very big theatre, and that the cheapest ticket for one person is $150.  That’s right, for $300, myself and my partner can sit in one of the very back rows in this big theatre to watch an interesting play with actors whose faces we won’t be able to make out.  And one of those people on stage happens to be one of the most famous actors in the world.  Again, his name is George Clooney, and if he were to be replaced by someone with equal talent, but whose name you’ve never heard, the pricing would be very different.  

Now, at this point you might be wondering what the cost is for tickets closer to the front of the stage?  Well, if you want to SEE the faces of the actors, it’ll cost you $800 per ticket, which would now be $1600 for myself and my partner to have a little date night.  So, to put this in perspective, sitting at the back of the theatre is about as much as it costs for us to enroll our son in the spring league for his recreational soccer team.  To sit in the front row is about half the amount of money we would spend to take the family to a resort in Mexico for a few days.  From that perspective, I can’t justify buying tickets to this show.  No matter where I sat, I can’t see the value matching the value I place on others things.  

And this is something I’ve always explored in my life.  Before doing something, I ask myself what value does that thing have?  And I don’t think it’s a money thing.  Because if money was no object for me, would I change my mind and think sitting in the front row of this performance now has the value of $800?  I honestly don’t think so, because I would still imagine all of the other ways I could spend that money in exchange for something of much greater value.  And I don’t judge the person who does think the experience is worth $800, but I would want to ask that person what it is exactly that they value.

Does the storyline of the script move the person so much that it dramatically impacts their life?  Are they an actor themselves, and the experience has the potential to inspire them to go further than ever before with their career?  OR do they perhaps value the feeling they get from being close to someone famous, or maybe the status they feel from sitting in such a prestigious seat?  These are questions I think we have to ask ourselves.

For me, it’s only when we ask ourselves these deeper questions that we get to understand ourselves on a deeper level.  Personally, when I ask myself these kinds of questions, I often feel embarrassed, because I catch myself doing things for all of the wrong reasons.  But I’d rather go through that embarrassment, so that I can have a chance to grow, rather than convincing myself I’m doing something for reasons that aren’t even true.

Every time we choose to spend money on something, we are given the opportunity to make a declaration of what we value in life.  We get to say I value living close to nature, I value the status my car gives me, I value adventure, I value being seen at the hippest restaurants, I value healthy food, I value wearing name brands, etc. It’s a moment where we say to the universe, this is what I care about.  This is what matters most to me, so please set me up to experience more of that kind of life.

And yes, I do value seeing a great actor in a great play, but when I ask those deeper questions, I realize that at a certain price, I place greater value in other things.  Look, you worked hard to make that money, and I encourage you to spend it in a way that is aligned with what you truly want, and not what you think you want.

Much love,

Stuart

PS. P.S. When you’re ready to have more meaningful conversations in your life, I encourage you to become a member of The Human Connection Group.  The only investment required is your time (only once a month).  Sign up for free HERE.

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