Do you really need another pair of shoes? What’s wrong with the appliance you already have at home? These may seem like logical questions to ask yourself before purchasing an item, but impulse buying isn’t about logic. Impulse can be costly. Here are my 5 tips and tricks on how to curb your impulse buying.
- Ask yourself three questions. 1. Do I need it? 2. Can I buy it cheaper/ second hand? 3. Can this money be better spent elsewhere i.e savings, a holiday, clearing debt? Having this mindset is a great way to avoid buying unnecessarily, and to remind you of your financial goals.
- Give yourself a 2 week period to think about the item before you buy it. Taking yourself away from the shops, spending a little time weighing up the pros and cons, and then making a rational decision about whether you need it, will stop you making unnecessary purchases.
- Steer clear of online shopping sites. If you don’t want to spend, stay away from temptation.
- Do not carry credit cards in your purse/wallet. The buy now pay later mindset is a bad habit to get into and a harder one to end. If you don’t carry your credit cards on you, then you can’t splash the cash on unnecessary items.
- Have a strict budget. Set yourself a weekly/ monthly budget for anything other than essential bills and living costs. Adhering to this budget will help you prioritise money and spending.
If you are an impulse buyer, then changing your habits may feel like a battle. As long as you go into stores with your logical head on, and follow the 5 tips above, then you should be much kinder on your finances.
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I think enforcing a waiting period on non essential buys is so helpful! My wife and I stopped our Amazon Prime membership, so no more free 2 day shipping. It’s much easier to ignore the impulse buys when I know they won’t show up for a week, week and a half, and I start thinking about whether I’ll still need/want whatever it is then. Most of the time, the answer is no!
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It is so important, especially with large cost items. Everyone I speak to who does this, always says the same thing… we didn’t really need it, so we didn’t buy it in the end. 🙂
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Reblogged this on Sensibly Frugal Living and commented:
To coincide with my latest IGTV video, I wanted to re-share my post from 2019 on how to curb impulse spending. With shops opening and restrictions easing in the UK, we may feel the urge to splurge, but follow these tips to try and curb the urge.
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