Be ruled by your purse.

Meaning: Financial constraints should dictate your decisions and discipline your ambitions more than mere desire.

Origin: From 'A Dictionary of English Proverbs and Proverbial Phrases' (1870). Public domain.

More proverbs about Wisdom

• Wrinkled purses make wrinkled faces. — Poverty and financial hardship leave visible marks of stress and worry upon a person's ap…
• Anything for a quiet life. — Compromising principles for peace often costs more than the temporary harmony it buys.
• Small rain lays great dust. — Gentle persistence dissolves entrenched problems that seem immovable through force alone.
• Self do, self have. — Personal effort yields personal reward; what you accomplish yourself remains genuinely yo…
• Short reckonings are soon cleared. — Quick settlements of debts prevent disputes and preserve relationships before resentment…
• White silver draws black lines. — Silver's brilliance requires contrast; purity and darkness define each other's value.

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