The ability to save has become increasingly complex in a context marked by inflation, rising rents and salaries that do not keep up with the cost of living. Added to this pressure are unforeseen expenses that can destroy any attempt to create an economic cushion. The comedian Ángel Martín has reflected on this point in a video on his YouTube channel, in ‘What Nobody Tells You’, where he has argued that one of the expenses capable of frustrating savings is, simply, having a dog.
Unexpected costs and pressure on the budget
The comedian has used his channel to address the factors that make saving at home difficult. He has pointed out that unforeseen expenses are one of the main obstacles, especially when you have pets. “If you have a dog, forget about saving. It’s impossible,” he stated, explaining that any veterinary incident can compromise the owner’s available money. In an ironic tone, he has cited interventions valued between 800 and 1,000 euros, and has assured that “the dog knows exactly the expense it has to cause”, it knows the exact moment in which it is going to get “an injury or something”, he adds.
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Limits of small investments and lack of real margin
Martín has criticized the idea that investing symbolic amounts guarantees long-term financial improvement. He has insisted that, to allocate 100 euros to a fund, it is first necessary to give up that money, in his words, “saving means not spending.”
He has also qualified the expectations regarding compound interest, explaining that “if you put in only 100 euros and forget about it, the most you will have in 20 years will be 800 euros.” He explained that “another thing is that you set aside 100 and although that is very intelligent, it means that you have to stop spending €100 and put it somewhere else.” He has maintained that the underlying problem for many families is that they barely have margin once they have covered basic expenses, something that also makes saving difficult when you barely make ends meet.
Stop unproductive expenses to improve financial health
Despite the humorous tone, the presenter has defended that saving is profitable if we act on the habits that generate the greatest economic loss. One of those habits that he mentioned is tobacco, clarifying that “stopping consuming it would avoid an outlay of 15 euros per week, which means 90 euros per month.” That money, “if you invest it in two sessions with someone who teaches you how to eat well, you will start to know what the hell you are buying, and that will immediately make you save a little more every time you go shopping, because you know what you are doing, and you are also preventing your body from being in shit when you reach 50,” he added.
Martín has insisted that, in his opinion, before filling a savings pot you have to detect “how many places you are really throwing money away. And if you need a clue, I am going to tell you that everything that is costing you money, and is screwing up your body and mind in the long term, is money that you are actually throwing away. And everything that generates well-being, learning and protecting body and mind is clearly an investment.”