Making the money CONTINUED 3. You need to appreciate all the ways money matters in our society. Money matters in our society for several reasons: A. Money allows us to purchase the things we need for survival. Imagine you have to move to a new city and to get a job. You don’t know anyone and have almost no money. What would you need to survive? Money is what allows us to acquire and maintain those things. THINK ABOUT IT: List all the things you need for basic survival. B. Money promotes comfort in our daily lives and gives us choices. Beyond our necessities, money is the tool that allows us to choose how we want to eat, where we want to live and how we want to dress, earn, be educated and enjoy a different lifestyle. Money makes the difference between what we need and being able to afford what we want. THINK ABOUT IT: List all the things you want on a daily basis to add comfort to your life. C. Money establishes our boundaries. Like it or not, the amount of money that we have access to (including our ability to obtain credit and accumulate debt) defines the boundaries within which our lives are lived. THINK ABOUT IT: What would happen over time if your group of friends always picked weekend activities that required more money than you had to spend? Or what if you have more money than your best friend? LESSON 1 | WHY DOES MONEY MATTER? | 7