In the words of the all great Carrie Bradshaw
"I like my money where I can see it, hanging in my closet".
Well, with a mindset like that, it has left me broke many times. *sighs* Even when I don't have the funds to shop til I drop, I always find myself stuffing more clothes into my already packed dresser.
A part of me love the rush of buying new clothes, trying them out for a spin and getting compliments on how they love my *insert item of clothing here*. The other part of me knows that it is wrong. I should be saving as much money as possible. I have dreams of traveling, starting a business and finally moving into my own place. But it will be a struggle to get to those goals with my bad habit of shopping. And to that, I will officially announce myself as a shopaholic.
So, with those harsh words to myself, I thought I save my readers and their wallets. Here are a few tips on how to hold on to your cash and not turn into a shopaholic like yours truly. *sighs again*
1.) Get into the habit of saving money
Don't have a savings account?
Get one! Like now. It's a great habit to save whatever money you get. If you have a job, be sure to put some of the money from your paycheck into your savings account. This ritual will help you get use to putting your money aside into a saving account instead of putting it into the hands of a cashier at the mall. Plus, these funds can help you down the line to getting something bigger and better!
2.) Do you really need that new purse?
Ask yourself these questions. Is the item you are thinking of blowing your account for really worth it? Save up for the things you need instead of wasting your money on stuff you want. At the beginning of each month, write a list of needs and wants. Get the things you really need like food for the house, gas for the car or toliet tissue for the bathroom. Yeah, that's pretty important. Then, by the end of the month you can splurge a little on the things you want.
3.) Get a budget book
In this book you will write down your monthly budget, the items you have purchase and the funds that are coming in. This will help with seeing if the amount of money you are bringing in matches the amount of money you actual spend. Also, this will help see if you can stick to a budget and if you need to be on what I call a "spending timeout".
4.) Shop with a friend
I don't mean a friend who will enable you to buy a coach you don't need. A sensible friend, your voice of reason per say. It's good to shop with someone who will call you out when you're thinking of buying something that is definitely not needed.
5.) Treat Yo Self
Yes, you have read that correctly. Every once in awhile you can splurge on a item or two and treat yourself with a nice but responsible shopping trip. After you pay all of your bills, put some funds into your savings account and paid back that $5 dollars you owed your little brother, a little shopping trip wouldn't hurt. But be careful not to go overboard. Set a budget before leaving the house and make a list of items you want to buy so you know exactly what you want. This will eliminate distractions and overbuying.
Well grasshopper, I have taught all I can to get you prepared for saving some dough and spending a little less time at the mall. Be sure to read over these tips and whatever you do, don't fall into the traps of end of the summer sales. They can be very slick.
Happy Shopping!
Like post like this? Follow me on Bloglovin!
No comments:
Post a Comment