Careless Spending Can Erode Income Gains Revisited

Careless Spending Can Erode Income Gains Revisited

From SML Planning Minute by Security Mutual Life Advanced Markets Team

May 26, 2026 · 7 min · Episode 385

About this episode

This episode revisits the impact of careless spending on income gains and offers strategies to combat lifestyle creep.

Careless Spending Can Erode Income Gains Revisited Episode 385 – If your income goes up over time, it doesn’t necessarily mean that you’ll be able to save more. If you’re not careful, “lifestyle creep” can make things worse. Here are a few ideas on how to fight back against lifestyle creep. More SML Planning Minute Podcast Episodes Transcript of Podcast Episode 385 Hello this is Bill Rainaldi, with another edition of Security Mutual’s SML Planning Minute . In today’s episode, we take a look back at one of our favorite previous episodes, careless spending can erode income gains. It may be counterintuitive, but sometimes doing better financially can do more harm than good to your savings. This is due to a phenomenon known as lifestyle creep. Lifestyle creep, sometimes referred to as “lifestyle inflation,” occurs when your spending increases as your income rises, turning yesterday’s luxuries into today’s necessities. Without realizing it, this slow increase in expenses can make it difficult to save money and reach your financial goals. Increases in online shopping, subscription services and food delivery can all be indicators of lifestyle creep. [1] The result is that…

People in this episode

Host: Bill Rainaldi

Topics covered

  • lifestyle creep
  • financial goals
  • savings
  • income
  • spending habits

Keywords

  • lifestyle inflation
  • impulse spending
  • buy list
  • financial planning
  • income increase

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Security Mutual Life

More episodes of SML Planning Minute

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the SML Planning Minute podcast page.