Let’s just say for now that impulse buying is fun. 88.6% of the time, we excitedly fall for impulse buying; alas, the excitement never lasts. Peace of mind is a priceless commodity and can’t be bought with money, but you can have it if you decide to be disciplined with your money instead of acting on impulse.
An unplanned decision to buy a product or service is known as impulse buying, while a person who makes such purchase is called an impulse buyer.
We definitely make impulse purchases frequently, but we will be thrown into a financial crisis if we keep giving in to buying things on impulse.
A common barrier to achieving your key goals is overspending. You will experience financial instability if you keep buying things you don’t need and things you can’t afford.
Yes, we are allowed to shop and spend our money on things we like but buying on impulse is not really the best idea. You need to develop a good strategy that will come between your urge to buy a particular product.
Ways you can stop impulse buying
Here are some tricks you can use in curbing your bad spending habit and save money
1. Understand yourself
The first step to controlling your urge to purchase random products is to know and understand yourself. Take note of the things that trigger you and make you act on impulse.
2. Make a budget
In curbing impulse buying, you need to sit down, make a budget, and stick to it. Once you’ve created your budget and the amount of money you want to spend, make sure you don’t get something outside the budget. It may not be as easy or as simple as it sounds, but you just have to tell yourself you can do it.
3. Give yourself permission to spend
Indeed, you need to stick to your budget, but it’s not a bad idea to add some fun money in your bucket list. You can add a reasonable amount that is affordable for your fun spending either for the week or for the month in your budget. There and then you can manage your fun spending because you have already stipulated an amount for it.
4. Reevaluate what you already own
Most times, we act on impulse and purchase so many products without us noticing. Before you rush into buying a product, you need to check out all the things you own and ask yourself how you can make comparative use of them instead of getting another product you don’t need. This helps save cash.
5. Wait longer before you make a purchase
The excitement you feel when buying on impulse cannot be overrated, and you may end up getting something you don’t need. Once you start feeling the excitement to get something new, either because they are offering an off sale price or maybe because you like it, tell yourself to calm down and wait for a day or two so you can be able to think with a cool head.
6. Don’t shop when you are emotional
Buying something when your emotions are in a roller coaster or when you feel jazzed up is not the best idea. When you are super excited or feeling down is not the best time to buy anything; avoid letting your emotions control your spending spree.
7. Get off social media
The one big and prominent billboard for impulse buying is social media. If you are not trying to make comparisons with others and see who got a lot of stuff more, you are being bombarded with different adverts from different sellers.
There is always a new product online that catches your fancy and makes you want to get it so quickly. Try staying off social media for some time, and you will see changes.
8. Set goals
Set goals for yourself and keep them in mind. Remind yourself on a daily basis that impulsive spending won’t help you achieve your set goals. Always tell yourself how important your goals are and why you should control your spending.
9. Do a no-spend challenge
Yes, if your impulse buying is beginning to get out of control, you need to give yourself a no-spend challenge. A no-spend challenge is where you are only allowed to get things that are essential to you and leave the rest for a specific period of time.
Whatever item you are buying should be necessary and essential. If not, you are not to purchase that product at all.
10. Take only the amount of cash you need
Sticking to your shopping plans and not going with extra money can prevent impulsive spending. If you are going shopping, note how much each item will cost and go with the exact cash. Without excess cash at hand, you won’t want to overspend. If possible, try to leave your debit card at home, so you don’t get tempted.
11. Bring someone with you while you shop
You can ask a friend or your siblings to go with you for shopping, especially someone you know can help you curb overspending. All you need is to let them know your shopping budget, and how much you intend to spend so they can help pull your mind back when you start buying out of proportion.
12. Stop comparison
The fastest way to act on impulse is through comparison. Learn to be content with all you have and not need to purchase every item you see on someone. If you learn to stop comparing yourself to others – either your friends or your neighbors – you won’t overspend.
13. Never store your credit cards on websites
Most retailer websites allow you to save your card details on their websites for convenience and faster checkouts. Never you fall prey to this; instead, opt to fill your credit card details whenever you want to make a purchase.
The time you take to get your credit card and input your card details can give you a little space to be thoughtful and think through if you really want to purchase that product or you are just acting on impulse.
14. Commit to researching
Before rushing off to pay for that product you just saw in an advert, why don’t you take some time and research about that product, the company you are buying from, and if it is worth the amount you want to spend on it.
