Have you ever had one of those moments where you had to hide a single purchase from your spouse because you know that they’ll get mad if they saw how much money you spent? That already counts as financial infidelity. And it’s something that you never ever want to do in your marriage.
What is ‘financial infidelity’?
In a nutshell, financial infidelity is the act of lying about purchases, bank accounts, or money matters from your spouse. What’s so scary about financial infidelity is that it can start small, such as starting your own credit card account for emergencies, and then suddenly turn into something larger, like starting to lie about how much money you make, making large purchases without you husband or wife’s knowledge, etc.
In some cases, it can even start because of gambling addiction, something that can not only ruin the gambler’s life but also put his entire family at risk of losing not just their money, but sometimes their car, their home, and everything else that they own.
Being dishonest with money matters in your marriage simply isn’t something that should be tolerated, and it’s important for couples to deal with financial problems and concerns as a couple, and they should be honest with each other when it comes to spending.
Trust and honesty are important in your marriage
In order to avoid financial infidelity from ruining your marriage, it’s important to establish an environment of trust and honesty in your marriage.
Both of you should be transparent with each other regarding your spending, and it’s up to the both of you to rein in any bad spending habits that you might have. Remember, once you get married and have a family, the money that you earn will no longer be for your personal use, but for your family.
A good way to be responsible about your money would be to have a weekly meeting about how you will be managing your expenses for that week. Allot a budget for transportation, for daily needs, payment for bills, savings, and any emergency purchases, and discuss it with your spouse.
It’s important to be honest when it comes to listing down your expenses, and also try and see if you might be spending too much of your budget on one thing.
Financial problems might be a touchy or difficult subject to talk about, even with your spouse. But you need to remember that once you got married, you’ve already promised to share your life with one another, so there’s no reason to be dishonest with your partner regarding money matters.
*This article first appeared on theAsianparent Philippines
Source: babble.com
READ: Couples, here are 3 types of infidelity apart from sex!