Is “The Ice Cream Rule” Helpful?

Think about a big delicious bowl of ice cream. What could be more delightful during these stifling, humid months? Ice cream is gluten free, so our annoying friends can enjoy it. There are coconut milk-based varieties for the lactose-intolerant and low-sugar versions for the weight-conscious. Slap it between two cookies or in a cone, and you can visit heaven en route to wherever you’re headed.

No matter how much you enjoy your dessert, though, you probably don’t begrudge someone you love a bite, right? Sharing is caring! Even better, what if you were able to put aside that bite for yourself and enjoy it in the future?

You can probably see where we are — or, more precisely, Money Crush is — going with this. The “ice cream rule” encourages us to think about money like ice cream. One bite of a two-scoop serving is about 10%, and if you can convince yourself to put away 10% — without feeling like you’re depriving yourself of anything right now — you’d be in great shape!

Consistently putting away 10% of your salary toward a long term goal can make an enormous difference. In fact, 10% of your salary can make you rich over the long term if you invest it wisely and consistently. 10% of a bowl of ice cream isn’t very much. It’s no big deal. It’s only when you think things like “How can I ever save 10% of my salary?! That’s an extra X thousand dollars!” that you get overwhelmed and it seems like a huge amount. Yet many of us regularly spend more than 10% of our salary on things that we don’t even have any longer without giving it a second thought. The thing is, 10% really isn’t very much in comparison to the other 90%, no matter how big of a number you’re dealing with.

As Lifehacker puts it, “If you think about saving 10% of your income like you are sharing a bit with your future self, saving becomes a lot easier.” It is worth saying, though, that it’s easier to offer someone 10% of your ice cream while the serving in front of you is abundant and you get to see the satisfaction and gratitude in your friend’s face. It’s harder to take 10% of what’s in your bowl and put it in another bowl and put that bowl in the freezer. Not impossible, just a little more challenging.

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