I have several friends who decided to start the year with a “Dry January.” If you haven’t heard of it, this is where you abstain from drinking alcohol in the first month of the year. It’s a novel idea, especially for those of us who had one too many spiked egg nogs at the neighborhood Christmas party.
This same concept of abstinence can be applied to your spending habits. Here are 4 tips to help you avoid reckless spending for the month of January and beyond:
Stop Living Like a Celebrity
If you were to believe TV commercials or social media posts, we’re all driving around in $80K Infinitis and sitting poolside with our $4M house in the background. The law of averages tells us otherwise. There’s nothing wrong with having a goal to one day attain some or all of the items you see in a commercial. Using bad spending habits to attain them all at the same time should never be the goal.
Working hard and saving for something so you can eventually buy it can be very rewarding. In the end, the short term financial pain brings forth a long term reward of appreciation for the item(s) you were able to buy.
Avoid Impulse Buys
This is a tough one. It’s so easy to walk into a store with an idea of buying one thing only to exit with 3 more things having entered your shopping bag. Being laser focused on the items you need versus those you might want helps you avoid reckless spending. Employing a needs vs. wants approach will help. Even though you weren’t expecting to buy them, do you need the new pair of jeans in your hand or do you want them?
The fact you would stop to ask yourself that question rather than simply plunking down a card to make the purchase is progress.
Live Below Your Means
Just because you can buy it, doesn’t mean you should. There is a sense of joy in having the ability to purchase something but not actually buying it. This is similar to having enough willpower to hold off on eating that delicious piece of chocolate cake after dinner. It’s hard to do, but keeping a healthy weight while circumventing the feelings of self loathing and guilt is a reward all its own.
Restraint is difficult. This is especially true when you don’t necessarily have to restrain yourself, but instead you choose to do so.
Change Your Perspective
Do you have a full stomach after a nice meal? Were you able to enjoy the holidays with friends and family, relatively stress free? Did you wake up this morning and have a great run? In each of these examples, you’re either full, happy or healthy. All of these can be considered more important than the amount you have in your checking account.
Plenty of people struggle with hunger, depression and poor health. These are all obvious examples but it’s very easy to get caught up in money matters while forgetting about the non-monetary blessings we possess.
Abstaining from spending your money frivolously will set you up for financial success in the new year. Employing this practice will lay the groundwork for good spending habits and a healthier relationship with money.
Now, about that piece of chocolate cake…
