How to stop impulse buying once and for all

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

You can block credit cards and avoid your favorite stores, but it's still wrong to spend money. This advice doesn't address the real cause of impulse buying. It's all about willpower.

Financial planners advise creating a distance between the incentive (the urge to buy the item you don't need) and the response (the buying decision). It is necessary not only to avoid this urge or deal with its consequences, but to overcome it at the root.

Postpone the purchase for a while

The best way to test and build your willpower at the same time is to force yourself to wait. To do this, use the 1,000 rubles rule. When you want to buy something that costs 1,000 rubles or more, postpone the purchase for at least a week. This will give you time to consider whether you really need this item. The amount can be absolutely any, it all depends on your income.

Give yourself time to make an informed decision that is within your budget.

In addition, this week you can look for profitable discounts or promotions on this thing in other places.

Of course, impulse purchases are not always expensive. Think about how much bullshit you bought while queuing at the checkout or browsing online. For these small purchases, use the 100/10 rule.

If you are in doubt about buying an item that costs $ 100 or less, do not spend more than 10 minutes thinking about it. If the product is more expensive than 100 rubles and after 10 minutes you still have not decided whether you need it or not, feel free to put it back on the shelf. Naturally, in this case, you can also choose the amount of your choice.

Remember your goals

When you are trying to save up for something specific, it is much easier to resist impulse purchases, because then you immediately notice that rash spending slows you down on the way to your goal.

This phenomenon in economics is called opportunity cost. It is a lost profit as a result of choosing one of the alternative use of resources and abandoning other opportunities. By denying ourselves a purchase, we seem to be making a sacrifice. And no one likes to sacrifice comfort.

When we save up for something, such savings turn into an alternative opportunity to spend money.

Therefore, it is much easier to control your expenses when you know exactly how the saved money will benefit you.

Plan your budget realistically

You cannot completely protect yourself from spending. Don't forget that money is a tool. They are made to be spent. And there is nothing to be ashamed of sometimes to please yourself with some kind of purchase. You just need to plan such expenses realistically.

Set aside a certain amount for pleasure purchases. Just don't overdo it. It should be enough for small expenses when you want to pamper yourself. By being limited to this amount, you will not be able to spend too much.

Try to spend only on what you love, not on what you like.

Divide your spending into two categories: what you like and what you love. For example, you enjoy spending money on clothes, but you love spending it on travel. Avoid spending from the first category. This will help cut down on impulse purchases.

You have more willpower than you used to think, it just needs to be strengthened. And this is especially difficult when it comes to finance. It takes a lot of work to apply these tips in life, but over time they will surely pay off - literally.