Minimalist lifestyle and impulse purchasing – 8 tips

No one is immune to making impulse purchases from time to time, no matter how frugal they are. However, the more you give in, the more damaging it can be to your finances. Discover these 8 tips to avoid impulse purchases.

Overspending

Overspending is a typical roadblock to attaining important financial goals like saving 10% of your gross income for retirement or accumulating a 3-month emergency cash reserve. Buying stuff you don’t need or spending more than you can afford can throw your financial stability off.

Rather than succumbing to urges, devise tactics to keep you from succumbing to the want to buy. To save more money, use these strategies and methods to help you overcome bad spending habits.

Allow yourself some time to reflect

Allow yourself a day to consider what you want to acquire. Remove yourself from your phone or laptop by leaving the items in your cart. Experts suggest making a mental checklist to question yourself if the item you want to buy is genuinely something you need or if purchasing it will do more harm than good.
If you still desire it and can see how it would fit into your life after a day, you can calculate how much it would cost and consider purchasing it. This will assist you in removing some of the impulses.

Don’t lose sight of your objectives

The goal of reducing impulsive spending is to free up funds to pursue your most important financial objectives. Write down your objectives and store them in areas where you won’t be able to avoid them if you take them the wrong way.

For example, you may put your objective on your debit and credit cards with a black Sharpie pen. Stick it on your refrigerator, desk at work, or bathroom mirror with sticky notes or laminated cards. Use it as a screen saver on your PC and mobile devices.

Creating visible signals that urge you to consider what you want to achieve can be a great strategy to avoid negative financial habits. Any method that helps you stay focused on what’s most essential and reinforces your commitments will help you stay on track. Only if you recall your goals will they direct your actions.

Shopping is not an entertainment

If going to the mall or shopping on the main street is draining your bank account, consider a different form of enjoyment. You’ll almost certainly buy something if you put yourself in the middle of shopping temptations.

So, if you have some free time and want to avoid impulse purchases, avoid going to outlets or your favorite retailers. Also, if shopping isn’t in your budget, avoid hanging around with friends who live for it.
When you truly need something, shopping alone can be a more thoughtful experience that keeps you in control and calm, as opposed to shopping with friends or children.

Do not sign up for newsletters

Do not sign up for newsletters and if you have already subscribed Look for the unsubscribe option at the bottom of the next retail newsletter you receive in your inbox with a tempting deal or sale to interrupt the loop. Or use an online service like Unroll.me to unsubscribe. Something you see on sale but don’t truly need doesn’t save you money; it really harms your finances. What’s out of sight won’t be remembered. That’s one less way for you to overspend.

Avoid going to the mall if possible

Impulse buying starts from watching ads or being around market areas. So, if you don’t go shopping, you can prevent the temptation from occurring in the first place. Don’t go to the mall, Walmart, or any other store. Only go to a store if you have a definite need to fulfill, and bring a list with you. Nothing not on that list should be purchased. Get out of here as quickly as possible. You won’t be able to resist the temptation if you just go window shopping for fun. Look for different methods to have a good time.

Make a shopping list

It is critical to make a list before going shopping. If you can make sticking to that list a habit, you’ll be able to avoid a lot of small impulsive purchases. Make it a habit to plan, save, shop around, and even see if you can receive it for free for other purchases. As a result of going through this process, your purchases will be more deliberate and less impulsive. Plan ahead for birthday and Christmas gifts, as well as any other significant purchases you expect to make in the next month.

Don’t buy anything that doesn’t have a return policy

The purchases you can’t return are sometimes the most enticing. For example, a really low final clearance price that you think is too excellent to pass up on the internet. A reason a marked-down item hasn’t sold well is that it doesn’t fit well or isn’t the same as the picture.

We’ve all had the unpleasant experience of regretting a purchase that cannot be returned. At the very least, buying something you regret and then returning it helps you to rectify the damage once you realize what you’ve done.

Question your shopping decision

Ask yourself a number of questions before going to the mall. Is the purchase going to make a significant difference in your life? Is it the intention of the purchase to make you feel better? Does it assist you in achieving one of your life objectives? Will it make your life easier? These are good questions to ask yourself to help you assess the worth of purchase and why you’re doing it. Don’t try to sell yourself; be honest with yourself.

Putting time between the impulse and the action is the best approach to resist any impulse buying. The more time you give yourself to relax, remember your goals, and contemplate your purchase, the simpler it will be to resist.