Once in a while, we read an article that asks us to sell what we don’t need. The benefits are obvious because we can get some cash for the items that are otherwise sitting in our house and taking up space. While this is great advice, perhaps an even better one is for us to stop buying anything that we don’t need in the first place.
Now, I know how hard this is as I’m a victim of impulse buying too. We tell ourselves how much we really need that particular item and eventually we end up taking it home. So for those having difficulty controlling themselves, try these two tactics.
Setup a Buy Period of the Month
When I really want something, I will tell myself over and over again why I want to take the item home and why owning it is so important. I will go to a store and look at the actual merchandise, and I will end up really wanting to pull my credit card out. Therefore, I’ve created a rule for myself where I’m only able to buy things over $75 on the first 7 days of the month.
I was amazed at how effective this strategy is because once I let the decision sit for a few weeks, the urge to spend subsides. What’s even more amazing is now that I know I can only buy in the first 7 days, I can usually get through the wait period even if I wanted something during the first 7 days to give myself more time to think about the decision.
Buy On Sale or with Coupons Only
Some items are on sale constantly while others can be bought at a store that always issues coupons. Whenever I want to buy something that I know can be bought at a cheaper cost than what’s listed, I tell myself to wait until I see a coupon or sale from the store that carries the product. As with the beginning of the month rule, the idea is for me to wait. Once I wait a few weeks, I usually don’t want to buy it anymore. If I still end up making the purchase, it is much more likely that I will actually put whatever I’m buying in good use.
As you can probably tell, both these tactics help because they require me to wait. Once I can last a few weeks without the item I want to buy, the time I spent dreaming about ownership lessens and my desire for buying it decreases. This gives me much more time to determine whether it’s a real need or just a want, and the end result is that I keep more of my hard earned money.
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{ read the comments below or add one }
When I want something I serch it online.
Then I buy it by putting it into the cart/basket.
I leave it there, usually I never order the stuff, I never finish the purchase but for me I bought it by putting it into the cart. I never returned to really buy the stuff, obviously I did not really need it!
My wife and I do the coupon thing. There’s only a couple stores we buy from, and those stores all send coupons regularly in the mail. So if we or the girls need new clothes or somthing, we wait until some “20% off everything” coupon shows up in our mailbox. None of us are allowed to buy anything w/o such a coupon. It’s great for making us wait and re-think purchases, and if we do decide that we really need something, then we get X% off, every time!
If it’s over $100 item, it goes on a list inside my cupboard door. If it’s still on the list in a year, I will buy it. That gives me plenty of time to think about whether I really need it and really want to spend that much on it.
And yes – I’m cash only.
Sometimes during that year, I will find one at a quarter of the cost, or less, at a garage sale and I’ll allow myself to buy it then. And sometimes, family or friends have a spare one they are parting with. Getting the word out that you are looking for something specific helpsalso. As does freecycle sometimes 🙂
I agree. Use cash only.
I have waited for sales/coupons but have never limited purchases to a certain time of the month. That’s a good idea.
It might also be helpful to limit the number of times you go to the store each month, so that you aren’t tempted by the merchandise as often.
One technique my wife and use is to only use cash. While we have credit cards we rarely use them. When you use cash it hurts more to spend and thus keeps us from overspending.
Hope this helps.
Greg