Could Acquired Needs Theory Save You Money?

by Lynn Bulmahn

Do you have expensive acquired needs that you could easily do without? It pays to understand the difference between an acquired need and an actual necessity so you can stop shelling out money for wants disguised as needs.

In one of the Tightwad Gazette books published over 20 years ago, a contributor wrote to author Amy Dacyczyn that she thought baby formula was an “acquired need.” Since there was a more natural, and free, way to nurse an infant, this young mother considered commercial baby formula an unnecessary “want.”

Often, people are convinced that some convenience, product or service is necessary when it isn’t. Called an “acquired need,” it is actually a want and not something we can’t live without. By paying for such conveniences, we waste money for things that are optional.

Let’s further explore how acquired needs theory can save you money.

Wants vs. Needs

I recently was reminded of the wants versus needs debate. A friend still has a home phone. I have a cell phone and one at work. Thus no need for a landline. A home phone would be an acquired need.

Many high school students rarely crack a book anymore. They’ve been given video games and almost unlimited access to streaming TV and social media, which consume their time. With such items, is the young person’s education (and his eventual ability to earn a living) helped or hindered?

I believe the latter is true. Such items are “acquired needs” and consume their time. Acquired needs is not just monetary: Consider what a huge struggle it will be for a poor reader to obtain a higher education or high-paying job.

I used to pay nothing to watch television. My old TV could pick up six or eight over-the-air stations with a converter box and rabbit ears antenna. There were enough programs to fill up an hour or two each night. I check out free DVDs at the library when I want to view a movie. And a lot of free programming is available via the Internet.

Paying for cable, streaming services or satellite is an acquired need.

Evaluating Acquired Needs

Acquired needs are not just electronic. When I worked downtown, the landowners charged us all to park. Most employees went along with this, not realizing on-site parking was an “acquired need.”

There was an unused plot of land a block away, and Leo, an older worker, told me he’d parked there for years. I did likewise, thus saving hundreds of dollars over a decade. Hey, I needed the money a lot more than the parking lot owners did!

Living in the country, Frank and Nell found that they’d have to pay extra to obtain trash pickup outside the city limits. This was an acquired need they could skip. How? They reduced the amount of garbage by recycling and composting most of it. A trash compactor did the rest. They occasionally took filled compactor bags to their other property in the city, where they were required to pay for garbage collection whether or not they regularly used it.

It pays to understand the difference between an “acquired need” and an actual necessity. People don’t need to shell out money for a “want” disguised as a “need.” Do you have expensive “acquired needs” that you could easily do without?

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Reviewed November 2023