Provocative Wave for Men

Lessons to Learn From the Great Depression

If you’re worried about the economy, here’s some good news to set your mind at ease: Most people who lived through the Great Depression say that things aren’t nearly as bad now as they were in the 1930s and they’re confident we’ll survive these tough times, if we remember some lessons learned during the Depression years. We found these on CNN.

• Lesson #1: Never carry debt. During the Depression, the idea of running up credit card debt – or any kind of debt – was unheard of. If you couldn’t afford to pay for it upfront, you didn’t buy it. Simple as that! In fact, as things got more desperate, saving became second nature for anyone lucky enough to be earning money and nobody borrowed money without having a clear plan for how they’d pay it back.
• Lesson #2: Be self-reliant. When President Franklin D. Roosevelt started his New Deal in 1933, families were encouraged to grow gardens and raise chickens. They also learned to keep a freezer full of meat for the winter, and to keep storage containers full of basic ingredients like water, flour, rice, and pasta. Because home-made food is always cheaper than anything you can buy in a grocery store and a home-cooked meal is far more satisfying than this Depression-era staple: stewed squirrel brains!
• Lesson #3: It’s okay to be a packrat. Just as people saved their money and food, they also held on to any item with potential value – like fine silverware, old clothes and shoes, sewing tools, or rare family keepsakes. That way, they’d have something to barter with in case money ran short.
• Lesson #4 is for business owners: Work hard, regardless of your status. During the Depression, nobody was “too good” to earn a living. Women worked just as hard as men and rich and poor people alike worked to grow businesses, and get the economy moving again.
• Lesson #5: Always dream big. In the 1930s, many families were forced apart – as mothers and fathers scattered in search of jobs. One thing that kept people going through the toughest of times was faith. Faith that they’d build a better life for their family, discover their mission, and stick with it no matter what.