Spend Fast

Why you should never do a spend fast and what to do instead

by Money

It’s January.

So we’re engaging in spend-fasts, alcohol-fasts, or any other kind of restrictive fast to make up for bad behavior in December.

I’m a hardcore Gemini so I get it.  I’ve been all or nothing since I popped out of the womb screaming at the top of my lungs (so they tell me), which is why one of my highest goals is to achieve BALANCE.

Rather than restricting yourself from spending for an entire month and then possibly having a free-for-all when the February sales hit, I would like to offer a different method.

I suggest creating a new habit.  One that you can maintain until the end of time instead of relying on willpower for one month.

Pick one day of the week.  I like Wednesdays.

Then, shop as you normally would…browse online, put anything your heart desires in your cart, then…STOP.  Don’t complete the purchase.  Do this all week long, as many times as you like.  Just don’t press the “COMPLETE ORDER” button.

Now, when Wednesday rolls around go back to your online cart(s) and take a look.  Do you still want it all?  If so, buy it.  However, I will bet you $5 that you don’t.

Most of what we really desire when shopping is the thrill of the hunt.  The dopamine hit.  You are still getting this by putting things in your cart and enjoying the idea of owning them.

However, by not purchasing them in the moment, you eliminate the impulse buy, and, consequently, the dreaded buyers remorse, not to mention you save tons of money!  Ever opened an Amazon box and thought, “Oh, no I didn’t!?!”

Me too.

Start creating a new habit today.  Hunt, then wait.  Walk away.  Go call your mom.  Then, come back on Wednesday and see if those items still look so enticing.

You can send the $5 to my Venmo account 🙂

And, if you want to work with me to learn more strategies like this that will save you gobs of money, just click the button to schedule a consult.

SCHEDULE A CONSULT

Drunk Shopping

by Money

We’ve all been there.

You enjoy a few cocktails.  An inevitable “brilliant” idea strikes.  Just a couple of clicks on your smartphone later and Voila!  Next thing you know there is a case of beef jerky and a customized chia pet on the way to your doorstep.

Drunk shopping is a real thing.

And it happens to be a $45 billion dollar industry.

I felt it prudent to mention as you’re probably spending a little extra time in your home right now.  You also might be spending a little extra time imbibing in the spirits to pass the time.  And you most likely have access to the internet.

It is the perfect trifecta for a case of drunk shopping!

Some interesting statistics:

– Most susceptible to shopping under the influence are women (although men do their fair share).

– The most commonly purchased items are clothing and shoes.

– Amazon is the drunk shopping platform of choice.

– The average expenditure per person per year is $444.

– Retailers who are well aware of this segment of the population will even try to capitalize on the market by running late night flash sales to entice consumers whose inhibitions might be down.

Want to save an average of $444 this year?

Don’t drink and shop.

However, I am not dissuading you from drinking and making Tik Tok videos.  And please send them to me.  I would really enjoy that.

Save money easy

This simple, yet shockingly effective strategy will save you tons of money.

by Money

We live in a world where you can buy almost anything at any time with the click of a button.

I have succumbed to this so often that, sometimes, a package would arrive that I had no recollection of buying.  I’m like, “Who ordered this?!?”

Then, it hits me that after a couple glasses of the vino, I thought it was the best idea ever to order an at-home laser hair removal device or a speed-reading course.  Oh, the time I will save!  I will be so productive!

However, when it arrived on my doorstep, it just didn’t seem like the best idea ever.  Hmmmm.

Thank goodness 99% of things are returnable.

There is a simple, yet shockingly effective strategy to alleviate this problem and save tons of money!

Pause.

Specifically 24 hours.

Go ahead and put that item in your online cart, get excited about the thought of owning it, then wait.

This is going to feel a bit uncomfortable in our world of instant gratification.

You may feel like throwing a tantrum ala Veruca Salt in Charlie and the Chocolate factory, “But, daddy, I WANT IT NOW!”

That’s ok.

There is power in pausing.

When you tell yourself you can’t have something, you feel deprived.

This strategy creates a loophole in the system.  You still get the hit of dopamine from the thrill of the hunt, but none of the remorse associated with an impulse purchase.

You can still have the item if you want, but pausing gives your prefrontal cortex (the sophisticated, planning part of your brain) a chance to weigh in on the decision instead of allowing your primitive brain (the survival, instant gratification part) to take over and purchase that Instapot.  (Side note:  Go ahead and buy the Instapot.  It’s awesome.)

After 24 hours, if you still want the item, then buy it and enjoy!

The goal is not to deprive yourself of things you desire.

The goal is to allow yourself time to make a conscious decision.

The beauty of this trick is that, more often than not, you will find you don’t really want the item.  After the initial urge passes, you won’t think about it again.  And, if you do, it is because you are glad you didn’t buy it.

And you’ve just saved yourself a huge chunk of change.

The excitement of most material items is in the hunt, not in the ownership.

Once you acquire the item, it quickly loses its allure and then you are onto the next shiny thing!

It’s amazing how many things I’ve deleted from my Amazon cart after the initial dopamine rush wore off. At the time, I felt I must have the item or my life wouldn’t be complete.  The next day, I was like, “Meh.”  And, I was pretty darn satisfied with myself that I didn’t give into the impulse and buy it.  As I deleted it from my cart, I got excited about how much less stuff I would have to store in my home.

Saving money is as easy as not spending money on mindless purchases.

But, you have to short circuit the system with an interruption in order to create a new habit.

So, pause.

TAKE ACTION:  There will likely be an opportunity today or tomorrow or in the next fifteen minutes to buy something.  Don’t.  Just pause and see what happens!