Margins
Edwin Friesen
Maybe like me, you have typically thought of margin as the white space around the perimeter of the page. Margins and white space in general make pages appear more orderly, more inviting and easier to read. Margins are also wonderful spaces for noting reflective insights. A page full of text and no margin seems cluttered and busy.
I recently attended a seminar entitled Mental Health: Stress, Overload, Burnout which added another meaning to the word margin. The presenter, a local doctor, suggested that many of our ailments are stress related and stress is often caused by living over-committed lives, lives that have no margin. He applied the concept of margin to four areas of our lives – physical energy, time, money and emotional energy, a concept popularized by a book entitled Margin by Richard Swenson. Margin is that discretionary space in our lives that gives us some additional reserves to draw on when life squeezes us as it will from time to time.
Though I had interest in the effects of overload in all four areas mentioned, I had a particular interest in the idea of margin in connection with money. I know from personal experience that when every dollar is spoken for even before it is received, it can make our financial lives very stressful. Living without any financial margin can also add significant stress to marriage and family relationships. Even small, unforeseen expenses can torpedo the best of financial planning if there is no financial margin.
To have financial margin does not mean being rich. It simply means that not every dollar is spoken for – that some money is set aside each month so that when unforeseen expenses crop up, as they will from time to time, we can take them in stride. Even small amounts in saving can be lifesavers. Consider, as part of your monthly allocations, putting aside $25 or $50 a month towards a goal of having a 2-3 months income reserve to draw on when unforeseen expenses arise or there is a temporary loss of income.
Financial margins don’t just happen. They are intentionally created by systematically putting aside some money on a regular basis for this purpose. Maybe you can cut out some discretionary spending – cable, a daily drive-through coffee, a more modest vacation, a few less magazines each month, delaying the purchase of a newer vehicle, a few less rounds of golf, a few less paid entertainment events. Put those savings into your margin account. You might also consider using a portion of your annual tax refund to give your margin account a head start.
In addition to reducing stress, and having some financial reserves for unexpected expenses, living with financial margin may have another benefit. Having some discretionary money available will also enable you to practice spontaneous generosity as unexpected needs and opportunities come up.
In a culture where busy-ness is mistaken for spirituality and where possessions are regarded as symbols of significance, it is easy to get swept into the vortex of going ever faster but feeling less and less fulfilled. Don’t fill your life page from corner to corner. Leave some margin. You will enjoy life more and so will the people around you.
First published in 2007.