Yes, there have been a few incidences when I had indulged in
stupid fights with friends over money. However, those were the times when we
barely had money since we were in college and everyone was quite clingy about
the meager cash they had. We could not help but accept the fact that we all
were short of cash at all times, so we had to demarcate the lines about how we
would split the expenses anyone made in the group. Splitting the costs were the
early lessons in life that I was lucky to have in life.
Traveling with
friends
There was one road trip to Coorg when I traveled with three
other friends. We often had clashes about who would spend for what, the members
of the group would look here and there whenever it came to paying the bills,
and the fuel for the car was often a bone of contention among us. When we
returned, we all had bitter memories to share. The next time, I decided that I
would travel with friends who were of one mind about spending money at least;
we could deal with other things easily.
We planned for a road trip to Mahableshwar, for which we had
to book Self Driven Car in Mumbai,
and I had made it clear that I would pay only if everyone will not behave
miserly later. When my friends laughed about it, I got the signals that I would
not face any problem with budgeting with these guys. I paid for the car rental,
someone else paid for the hotel booking, etc. and we all divided the costs
later.
Petty cash
I like to convey it to my friends every time on a road trip
that we should contribute a couple of thousands, which one person will handle.
And this cashier deals with all the expenses that we have to make. He pays the
food bills, toll taxes, and all other small expenses. We all just chill and
have fun on the road trips, without thinking about who will pay this bill and
that one.
Using mobile apps
Since the day I have been using Splitwise, the finances with
my friends have been sorted like never before. This simple mobile application
lets me divide the expenses with my roommates, friends, and even family.
Whenever I have to go for a weekend getaway, we mention our expenses in the
common mobile app, which is Splitwise in our case. When we return from the
trip, it shows the net balance that each member has to pay to each other.
Sorted!
Just by being clear and careful about money matters, I have
organized the finances well with everyone who is in my closed circles. It
certainly adds more value to any relationship when you don’t have to worry
about something as significant as money, which of course gains more importance
when you don’t pay heed to it. After having some of the most amazing road
trips, I look forward to many more of them.
