Do you have some bad money habits? From experience, we all tend to make money mistakes from time to time. It simply happens in our society where we see lots of shiny things and think we have to have them all. The truth is that we don’t need half the things that we buy and they can really put us into bad financial shape. What are some good ways to break your financial bad habits?
If you can’t control your spending, control how much you have to spend. When going to the mall, only bring enough for walking around money. Having a limited amount of money forces you to spend less. For example, you could take only your drivers license and a 20 dollar bill to the mall. If you see something you like, you can always keep it in mind for later.
Chances are good that you will forget about that thing you saw in the window of the store in a few minutes. Instead of making a really bad purchase, you are walking home with your head held high. After a few training sessions, you should be able to curb your spending habits and control your impulse spending. There is nothing wrong with an impulse buy every so often just as long as you don’t overdo it.
Cancel your credit cards if you have to. Instead of getting into debt with a credit card, why not just pay it off and get rid of it? At the very least, you only need one credit card and that should only be used for emergencies. If you are using credit cards to buy random things at the mall, you should get rid of it. This will curb your spending and make it harder for you to make impulse purchases.
For the times where you desperately need something, you should plan ahead for its purchase. Instead of making the buy right off the bat, you should save up for it. Each time you walk by it, you should put 10 percent of the purchase price into the bank. Making regular payments into a savings account will get you in the habit of saving. If nothing else, you might just keep the money in the bank as opposed to buying that thing that is now out of style.
Poor money habits are something that we all have. No one is putting as much as they should in the bank, or using their credit as wisely as possible. However, we can always improve and learn as we go. That will help us save money and realize that many of the things we want are things we really don’t have to have.