Money Values Quiz

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1. When a sales clerk gives you too much change, you:

.                                a. Pocket the change.

.                                b. Point out the error and return the excess.

.                                c. Donate the excess to charity.

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.        2. When a neighbor gets a new car, you:

.                                a. Think it should have been you who deserved it rather than your neighbor.

.                                b. Think it's great that your neighbor was able to buy it, and wish her well.

.                                c. Don't give it a second thought.

.                                 

.        3. When you read about young kids shoplifting comic books, you think:

.                                a. It's only child's play, and they'll grow out of it.

.                                b. It's terrible, and they should be punished.

.                                c. It's too bad they got caught.

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.        4. The state lottery is up to $25 million, so you:

.                                a. Withdraw money from your savings account to buy tickets to increase your odds of winning.

.                                b. Spend the same $1 you do every week for fun.

.                                c. Don't do anything because you need your money for other things.

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.        5. Your credit card bill has a balance that you can't pay in full, so you:

.                                a. Continue to shop and don't give the bill a second thought.

.                                b. You charge only absolute necessities until you've paid off your bill.

.                                c. You charge up a storm because there's still a way to go on your credit limit.

   6.  A portion of your town is damaged in a storm. Fortunately,                your house is okay, so you:

a.        Are glad you've been spared, and that's that.

b.       Donate your time and money to helping your neighbors.

c.        Increase your homeowners insurance.

   7. When you were young, you broke a neighbor's window and had to pay for the repair. When your child asks you about it, you:

a.  Deny it.

                            b. Acknowledge it and encourage your child to learn from your mistakes.

                c. Minimize the event, saying it was a long time ago.

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8.        You want a big-screen TV (who doesn't?) so you:

.                                a. Buy it on credit and worry about how you'll pay for it later.

.                                b. Save up for it.

.                                c. Use the money you'd been saving for your child's college fund to buy the TV.

If you are taking this class with a spouse, please use this as an opportunity to learn about each other. Take the quiz separately, and then compare answers when finished. If you have markedly different views when it comes to values, you should discuss these differences and find a way to arrive at some common ground. Differences in values and money does not have to be a thorn in your relationship's side. If you are open and flexible with one another, it is possible to find a place to meet and share together in a spending plan.

                                                                               Personal Story

Kyle and Camille both work part-time and go to graduate school full-time in Boston, Massachusetts. They are just beginning their life as budgeters and decided to share some of their experience with you. Camille says:

When my husband and I decided to make a budget, we realized it was going to mean changing the way we thought about money and spending.  Before we started budgeting, we used money to help make our lives more convenient at the moment.  For example, we would come home from a long day at work, and neither of us wanted to cook, so we would go out to eat.  When we were bored on a Saturday night we would spend money on a movie.  When we felt like we needed something like clothes, new haircuts, make-up, books, etc. we would just go out an buy them.  No questions asked.  By the end of the month, we would be completely out of money, and our hopes of ever saving enough money to make bigger purchases, like family vacations, seemed impossible.  When we created a budget, it helped us to realize that there was more to our finances than what was in our bank account at the moment.  Budgeting helped us to see the big picture of our finances, and helped us to understand what we needed to do to meet our goals of paying off credit cards and going on vacation.

Let’s talk some more about Money and Values

Why do you think you spend your money the way you do? If you and your spouse were both given $50, would you spend it differently? Why? Well, because people are different, people have different ideas about what is important.

The deep-seated beliefs you have about what is important and special are called values. Your values are created from your experiences growing up, at home, at school or church, and in your community. All your life you have had and will have choices to make. Whether you know it or not, you make these choices based on your values. And your values are used when you have to choose how to spend your money.

Let’s take another quiz on money and values:

Instructions: The following statements are arranged in pairs. Read each pair and write down the number of the statement that you consider more important to you, personally. Be honest with yourself. Each statement will appear several times. Even if the decision is hard, don't skip the responsibility of choosing. Remember, life is full of choices.

It is more important to me:

1 – To have people like me.

3 – To be able to do the things I want to do.

____________________

8 – To have as many of the good things of life

as I can.

9 – To be able to do things well.

_____________________

4 – To do new and different things often.

8 – To have as many of the good things of life

as I can.

_____________________

4 – To do new and different things often.

6 – To contribute to the happiness of my family.

_____________________

1 – To have people like me.

7 – To do what is right according to my beliefs.

_____________________

2 – To do things for my family and others.

8 – To have as many of the good things of life

as I can.

_____________________

2 – To do things for my family and others.

9 – To be able to do things well.

_____________________

2 – To do things for my family and others.

5 – To have friends.

_____________________

3 – To be able to do the things I want to do.

6 – To contribute to the happiness of my family.

_____________________

5 – To have friends.

6 – To contribute to the happiness of my family.

_____________________

3 – To be able to do the things I want to do.

9 – To be able to do things well.

_____________________

1 – To have people like me.

8 – To have as many of the good things of life

as I can.

_____________________

4 – To do new and different things often.

9 – To be able to do things well.

_____________________

7 – To do what is right according to my beliefs.

9 – To be able to do things well.

_____________________

1 – To have people like me.

6 – To contribute to the happiness of my family.

_____________________

3 – To be able to do the things I want to do.

4 – To do new and different things often.

_____________________

1 – To have people like me.

4 – To do new and different things often.

_____________________

3 – To be able to do the things I want to do.

5 – To have friends.

_____________________

6 – To contribute to the happiness of my family.

7 – To do what is right according to my beliefs.

_____________________

6 – To contribute to the happiness of my family.

9 – To be able to do things well.

_____________________

6 – To contribute to the happiness of my family.

8 – To have as many of the good things of life

as I can.

_____________________

2 – To do things for my family and others.

3 – To be able to do the things I want to do.

_____________________

7 – To do what is right according to my beliefs.

8 – To have as many of the good things of life

as I can.

_____________________

4 – To do new and different things often.

5 – To have friends.

_____________________

2 – To do things for my family and others.

4 – To do new and different things often.

_____________________

2 – To do things for my family and others.

6 – To contribute to the happiness of my family.

_____________________

5 – To have friends.

7 – To do what is right according to my beliefs.

_____________________

1 – To have people like me.

2 – To do things for my family and others.

_____________________

4 – To do new and different things often.

7 – To do what is right according to my beliefs.

______________________

1 – To have people like me.

5 – To have friends.

______________________

5 – To have friends.

8 – To have as many of the good things of life

as I can.

______________________

1 – To have people like me.

9 – To be able to do things well.

______________________

3 – To be able to do the things I want to do.

7 – To do what is right according to my beliefs.

_____________________

5 – To have friends.

9 – To be able to do things well.

_____________________

When you have written down one number for each pair, count how many times you chose each number. Write this number down.

Now you are ready to rank your choices. Find the statement and number you chose the most times and put No. 1 next to it. Write No. 2 next to the statement you chose the second highest number of times. Continue to rank all the statements.

Your choices should be a clue to some of your values. Look at the statements you ranked No. 1, No. 2, and No. 3. You decided these were the three most important values from the list of nine. Are they what you really want them to be? Do they indicate some characteristics that you would rather not have?

We will now show some personality characteristics that are related to the nine value statements. Check to see what characteristics match the values you ranked as important for your life.

Statement Number		Your Rank
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.