4 Unwritten Rules You Probably Followed If You Grew Up Poor
Written by
Rebecca Neubauer
Edited by
T. Woods
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Unfortunately, there are a whole set of unwritten rules that come with growing up poor. Whether these rules concerned the activities you couldn’t participate in, how to spend and save money or even how to speak to people, you may have learned them from a young age.
1. No Extracurriculars
Unfortunately, if you grew up poor you probably had to forgo many class outings and field trips that came with a fee. You probably didn’t even bring the permission slip home, because you didn’t want your parents to feel bad about saying no.
The same goes for paid sports programs, summer camps and anything extracurricular that came with a cost. If it was free, it was fine, but if you had to bring money in to join, you had to pass.
2. Buy a Little Bit at a Time
Whether it was buying gas, groceries, or other necessities, you had to buy a little bit at a time. There was an unwritten rule against filling your gas tank fully, because then you could run out of money for food.
It made more sense to buy groceries in smaller amounts, more often, rather than stocking up. Bulk buying was out of the question. Even if a smaller amount was a “worse deal,” it was probably the way to go so you could keep as much cash on hand for other expenses as possible.
3. Take Care of Everything
For many people, replacing an item of clothing they ripped or an electronic they broke is no big deal. But when you’re poor, you need to take care of everything you own, because there are no backups. This unwritten rule applies to shoes, dishes, gadgets…everything.
And you’d wear your clothes and shoes until they wear out, then probably repair them with duct tape and patches before replacing them with used or handed down items. If a toy broke, well, you just had to come up with something else to entertain yourself with.
4. Don’t Talk About Your Goals
One of the biggest unwritten social rules about being poor was to not talk about your aspirations with people in the same financial situation. Your family or neighbors could think you’re stuck up if you say you want to go to college for a degree, or have a good-paying career, or even simply move out of your home town.
People sometimes take someone’s aspirations as a judgement on themselves or their lifestyle. So it was better to just keep quiet about your goals.
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