<prompt> Human: When I was in college I was always very concious of my spending habits, but it was mostly due to not having any extra money. Now that Im out of college and have had a good job engineer for a few years Im trying to find the line between making smart financial decisions and budgeting myself to the point of not enjoying life. I mean, I went to college so I wouldnt have to worry about where my next meal would come from and so I could afford to have a house and family right? You know, the middle class dream.I bought a house about a year ago, and recently decided to finance a new vehicle instead of driving the same old car I had in college. The car still runs fine, but wasnt meeting my needs since it was a small 2 door. Sure, I could have sucked it up for another 5 years and made car payments to myself instead of to the bank with interest, but would have hated those 5 years every time I needed the vehicle for more than just getting myself from point A to point B. Its hard to maintain a house when nothing can fit in your car.So where is the line between living smart and being miserable for it, and spending way too much just because you think you deserve it for all your hard work in college?Edit: By New vehicle I really mean it was new to me. Its a 2014 model with factory warranty.  <response>: How do you balance the line between making smart financial decisions and penny pinching?That is the point of a budget. You first ensure that every need category is fully funded at the necessary levels. This is housing, transportation, food, retirement savings, etc. Once you have those taken care of then you decide what you value and where you want to put the extra cash you have. Perhaps you will decide to allocate it to vacations or to a larger entertainment budget or to getting that new car that you dont need but do want or to your retirement accounts so that you can retire earlier. What choices you make there will depend on what you value and what you want. 