9 Life-Long Traits Of People Who Were Raised During Hard Economic Times
Growing up when times are tough has long lasting effects on you.
Dodokat / Shutterstock People carry their childhood experiences into adulthood. They absorb their parents’ attitudes and approach to life. Some people follow the same path as their parents, while others make a decision to break family patterns. The life-long traits of people who were raised during hard economic times are deeply-ingrained, manifesting in subconscious ways.
Finances are often framed as a practical matter, yet people’s mindsets around money are always impacted by emotions, especially if they experienced financial trauma. Building self-awareness helps people unpack their relationship to money. The more they understand the underlying reasons for their money mentality, the more they’re able to make informed decisions and achieve financial freedom.
Here are 9 life-long traits of people who were raised during hard economic times
1. They have financial anxiety
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Financial anxiety is a life-long trait of people who were raised during hard economic times. Experiencing financial instability in childhood is inherently destabilizing. People who grew up with enduring economic hardship often feel like they’re waiting for the next bad thing to happen. They worry about aspects of the future that they can’t control, like losing their job, falling behind on rent, or having a medical emergency that drains any savings they have.
Their family’s struggle to survive shaped their perspective on the world as an unforgiving place. People who were raised during hard economic times are always pushing back the rising tides of their anxiety, just trying to stay afloat.
According to a survey from the Global Financial Literacy Excellence Center, there are three major factors that contribute to high financial anxiety and stress: High debt, lack of assets, and money management challenges. Financially anxious people were less likely to own a home, make investments, or plan for retirement, keeping them stuck in the cycle they grew in.
2. They’re more empathic
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Being empathic is another life-long trait of people who were raised during hard economic times. They understand the ongoing struggles of being financially insecure, which lets them see other people’s struggles through a compassionate lens.
Various psychology researchers have found that facing adversity leads to a greater sense of empathy. One study noted that people whose socioeconomic situation worsened were more likely to extend support to other people in need, despite their own tough times. They displayed higher levels of empathic concern, which involves feeling sympathy and compassion for other people.
High empathic concern inspires more than understanding. It inspires people to take action and offer support to alleviate someone else’s hardships. While economic adversity is a destructive force, it can foster empathy, leading people to go out of their way to nurture others.
3. They’re self-reliant
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Self-reliance is another life-long trait of people who were raised during hard economic times. They channel the lessons they learned as kids into everything they do, taking a DIY approach to running their household. They acquired basic maintenance skills, so they can fix the leaky faucet and repaint their bedroom themselves, without having to hire outside help. They can look at their half-empty pantry and whip up a gourmet meal, so they don’t have to shell out money for delivery.
Having financial planning skills is another aspect of their self-reliance. A study on financial well-being found that individual financial health depends on three specific factors: financial literacy, mental budgeting, and being able to exhibit self-control around spending.
The study described mental budgeting as “the cognitive process that people use to organize, evaluate, and keep track of financial activities.” Mental budgeting helps people keep track of their spending, set goals for the future, and make financial decisions.
Being self-reliant when it comes to money empowers people who were raised during hard economic times. It provides them with a sense of agency and the feeling that they’re in control of their financial future.
4. They’re risk-averse
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Being risk-averse is a life-long trait of people who were raised during hard economic times. They hold tight to any sense of financial security they have. They avoid taking any big risks with their money and they approach investing with caution, prioritizing stability over everything.
James R Langabeer Ph.D., Ed.D., FAHA, a leading behavioral researcher and Professor of Psychiatry/Behavioral Science and Emergency Medicine at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, touched on the topic of doom spending, which he described as the phenomenon of people spending money in the moment to soothe their worries about the future.
Doom spending is rooted in their fear of impending financial concerns and their uncertainty about what their long-term financial picture will look like. This is an innately risky action, and it’s highly unlikely that people who were raised during hard economic times will spend money in an indiscriminate way.
5. They’re frugal
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Frugality is a life-long trait of people who were raised during hard economic times. They pay close attention to how they’re spending money and avoid unnecessary expenses. When they do buy things, they focus on how well-made the product is, because they only feel comfortable putting money toward items that last.
People who were raised during hard times make the most out of everything they own. They wear clothes until they’re threadbare and hold onto household appliances that were made decades earlier. Prioritizing their savings gives them a sense of financial security. Their frugal nature often means they don’t eat out at restaurants and they don’t care about owning the most cutting-edge tech gadgets.
From the outside, it might seem like their frugal lifestyle is devoid of joy, but they’ve learned to take pleasure in the little things that they don’t have to purchase.
6. They value community
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A life-long trait of people who were raised during hard economic times is putting value on having a tight-knit community. They know that no one can get through hardship alone, which is why they give to others and ask for support when they need it.
Research from the Urban Institute found that 42% of households indicated that they would expect “all the help they need” from nearby family members if they were facing financial distress. People who have a solid support network experience a lower rate of hardship, which indicates just how important people’s relationships are for their ability to maintain economic well-being.
Having strong coping skills is less about demonstrating independence than it is about accessing the emotional and economic support that someone’s surrounding community provides.
7. They’re resilient
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Being resilient is a life-long trait of people who were raised during hard economic times. They’ve spent a lifetime building up their inner strength, which allows them to believe that they can weather any storm. They give themselves grace when they’re facing financial struggles and they know they can bounce back, because they’ve done so before.
The authors of a research article published in the International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences defined resilience as “a dynamic process wherein individuals display positive adaptation despite the experiences of significant adversity or trauma.” The study noted that resilience isn’t a one-time-only experience, but rather, a dynamic process that changes with time.
A key part of how people maintain resilience in hard economic situations is educating themselves on financial issues. Making informed choices helps them access a sense of stability, even when it seems like the larger world is spinning out of control. Financial literacy contributes to people’s resilience, and being resilient allows people to withstand longstanding economic crises with grace.
8. They’re minimalist
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Having a minimalist aesthetic is a life-long trait of people who were raised during hard economic times. They believe in bare surfaces and owning as little as possible. They regularly clean out their closets and cull their belongings because they don’t want to accumulate excess.
They see their possessions as a means to an end, physical items that allow them to survive, but they don’t assign them any more meaning than that. They fully embrace the idea that less is more. They value simplicity and draw their sense of contentment from other areas of their lives.
Their happiness isn’t defined by what they own. For people who were raised in hard economic times, being minimalist is an anti-materialistic approach that saves money and keeps their homes from becoming cluttered with things they don’t really need.
9. They’re grateful for what they have
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Holding deep gratitude for what they have is a life-long trait of people who were raised during hard times. They feel no need to measure what they own against what anyone else does. They have a roof over their heads and warm clothes and nourishing food, and that’s completely enough. They channel their gratitude every day, taking stock of what they’re thankful for.
Financial coach Pegi Burdick shared that the messaging people receive about money directly affects their spending habits.
“How we spend money and why is not random,” she explained. “It comes from issues in our childhood. Some of these are visible… Others are more subtle like messages about feeling unworthy.”
“Feeling undeserving is one of the biggest distorted belief systems we inherit,” Burdick revealed. “The underlying, age-old scars that push you to buy things you don’t need are tough to sort out, let alone heal.”
People who were raised during hard economic times are continually working on healing, which affords them the gratitude they draw upon to feel fulfilled.
Alexandra Blogier, MFA, is a staff writer who covers psychology, social issues, relationships, self-help topics, and human interest stories.