It really depends on the person . My siblings and I grew up poor , in a rural area . Not foodstamps poor , but freeschoollunch poor . When I got my first job at 16 , I saved every cent I made . I hated the idea of being poor when I ' m older , not able to afford new shoes for my kids , etc . My younger brother , who had the exact same upbringing as me , got a job when he was 18 and spent every cent . He was constantly buyingtrading old cars and trucks , buying recreational vehicles like 4 wheelers , dirt bikes , jetskis , fishing boats , etc . He was completely reckless with his money and by the time he got married , he was starting with zero no savings . It ' s weird how people who grow up closely together can develop differently . I didn ' t want to be poor as an adult so I saved all of my money . My brother thought that he was deprived of fun stuff by growing up poor so overcompensated for it as an adult .