Do you know the feeling when you receive your monthly paycheck? Absolute blissisn’t it? You feel on top of the world and it wouldn’t be wrong to claim that you almost feel like Bill Gates, at least for a day or two. The next few days you are strolling aimlessly at shopping malls, swiping your card for literally anything, regardless of whether or not you need it. You return home with a heck load of shopping bags and this goes on for a couple of days and then you are left to question yourself with ‘Where did all the money go?
Ever Heard of Minimalist Approach?
To make things worse, you sometimes even end up with a negative bank balance and positive credit card figure. It is absurd to realize how we tend to spend money so impulsively. Not that spending money is a bad thing, but it is not a good thing either. It typically varies on what purpose the money is being used. Shopping or overspending could be a big deal when you’re easily tempted to buy anything that might catch your eye. If you are looking to cut back on your monthly budget for possibly saving-up for a trip, pay off a debt or to address your shopping obsession you have got to understand and adopt the‘minimalist’attitude.
A minimalist usually tries to be content with what they already have and is very careful when it comes to spending time, energy and of course money and spend on only such brands like realization par dress. Here are some tips almost every minimalist swears by especially if you are a newbie when it comes to saving. In no time,you will notice a drastic difference in your spending routine.
- Keep track of your shopping routine
Sure, following a list may be old-fashioned but you would be surprised to know that planning your budget ahead of time helps you to save more than you anticipated. Have every necessity noted down and that includes groceries, school supplies, cosmetics, garage equipment, toiletries and even luxuries that could be anything you don’t necessarily need such as dining in a restaurant or ordering from takeaways. All these tiny details make a huge difference when you realize how much you have saved rather than spent. Keep track of all the things you need to live a healthy lifestyle. You could also list out the things you have been spending too much over before you became a minimalist and try staying away from those things. Nothing makes you happier than knowing how responsible you were to save up.
- Don’t visit your favorite stores
It is pretty simple. Why would you want to be friends with the same person who backstabbed you in the first place? Only in this case, the only thing that is being backstabbed is your paycheck. If you wish to spend less, a good trick is to jot down and try remembering all the places that you have been to and where all you overspent or that one store you keep going back to even when you don’t need anything yet you never leave empty-handed (except in terms of your bank balance). Avoid making your way to these same places so you are not easily tempted.
- Prefer Necessity over Luxury
Always ask yourself,‘do I need this?’and no, telling yourself that those pink shoes would go great with that outfit is not good enough of an excuse. Ensure you only look into the basics of life to live and lead a healthy, hygienic, sufficient lifestyle.
- Timing is Important
As crazy as it may sound, just trick your mind into thinking that you will buy the product or avail the service ‘later’ and by later we don’t mean five minutes into the day, but ideally a couple of weeks. You will notice you are not as desperate as you initially were for that product when you first laid your eyes on it. Move on, all good things come to those who wait.
- Save Up for Something Bigger
If you are still really struggling with spending less, or you are fortunately not suffering from a financial crisis with debts to pay off, you could always consider laying down an incentive for you to save up! Why not save up to explore and visit a new place or buy that latest phone or gadget that you have always wanted. This technique is an easy-to-follow cause, no matter how hard it gets you will always be in a dilemma as to whether eating a buffet is better than going sightseeing on the other side of the world. Trust me the latter will always win.
- Find New Things to Do
Distract yourself! A lot of people tend to go out and shop whenever they are bored, therefore they are easily interested and amused by random things they might see around. Instead of going shopping more frequently, why don’t you consider developing a new hobby, like finding out your likes and dislikes? Perhaps learn a new sport, or read a cool book? Anything that keeps you occupied is good enough.
- Be Grateful
Show gratitude to one another. Always be content with what you have and instead of looking up to people who have a lot more than you do, don’t forget to look over those inferior to you who consider your basic necessity as their luxury. Being thankful more often will develop a feeling of responsibility and gratefulness and will allow you to ponder over your surroundings and how tough conditions can get.
- Fortify Your Willpower
It is all in your head! No tip, technique or piece of advice is going to work unless you make up your mind. You have probably heard of the term‘when there’s a will there’s a way.’So as long as you have decided not to spend, nothing on earth can change your mind, regardless of how fascinating and irresistible it might seem. With strong willpower, you won’t even give in to peer pressure and will be able to maintain your pocket-friendly routine.
- Restrict Yourself
Create a shopping ban (metaphorically), where you won’t allow yourself to spend over a specific budget or you won’t spend until a certain period has passed. Challenge yourself with stricter rules gradually and you will eventually get the hang of ‘restricting yourself’ when it comes to overspending.
- Shop When You Are in the Right Mood
Do not consider shopping while you are in a bad mood. You will be a lot hungrier than usual and guess what? The only thing that will receive a raise is your calorie intake. We often don’t pay enough heed when we are stressed or upset; therefore we think shopping our worries away is going to make things better where we mindlessly shop until we are broke. Trust us, when you are back to being in a good mood, you will end up regretting so much more than you ever thought you would.
The Final Verdict
With that being said, don’t get too carried away when it comes to following a minimalist routine. Reward yourself at times and who says you can’t have shopping cheat days? Set weekly goals and then gradually move onto a month-to-month basis. In no time,you will be saving like a pro. Know that everything takes time and patience. You will eventually get the hang of it, just don’t stop trying and don’t give in to the urge to shop.
