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I love shopping. How about you? Shopping is one of my stress reductions. Fashion shopping, in particular, makes me very relaxed and happy. Do you relate?
When I graduated from college and just started my career, I went shopping so often that I could say shopping was my hobby. From being a student to becoming a working adult, I started to buy more mature personal clothes and business clothes.
I remember how good it felt to go to work on Monday in new suits or to friends’ gatherings in a new dress.
Making shopping your hobby is costly
Shopping made me happy. However, there was one problem. As you can probably imagine, it was very expensive.
I was tempted to so many beautiful clothes and often ended up spending too much money. I would buy my clothes with my credit card, only to be brought back to reality when the bill came later. It was a cycle of having a good time shopping and then feeling depressed when the credit card bill came. Furthermore, I was always spending more money than necessary, I gradually had to cut back on food expenses or drain my savings.
HOw to prevent overbuying
Realizing that this was not good for me, I changed the way of my spending. I also set some rules for shopping.
Today, I would like to share two methods that worked best for me.
1. Decide how much you can spend this month on free shopping.
Money is limited. Most of us pay rent, utilities, food, and other expenses from the money we earn to support ourselves. After paying those necessary expenses, the money left over may not be much. Even though we could spend all the money we earn freely, there is still a limit. It is also important to decide, out of the money left over, whether you want to spend it all or save some of it. It’s called budgeting, and I have related posts regarding budgeting below, so please check them out if you like.
The 50/30/20 Budgeting Method, The Most Simple yet Most Effective!
$100,000 Income with $0 Savings or $40,000 Income with $100,000 Savings?
People With More Money vs. People With Less Money
Once you have decided on the amount of money you can spend on shopping this month, divide that money by the number of shopping you will go this month, and the calculated amount is the money you can spend per shopping.
This is a very simple method, but very important and effective. Have you ever bought things you thought were inexpensive, but when you got home and calculated the total amount of money you had spent, you found out you had spent more than you thought? I have experienced many times when I thought I was getting a good deal, but in fact, I was not.
But if you go shopping with a predetermined amount of money you can spend, you will be able to avoid this kind of problem.
One day, I went shopping as usual. But this time, I had decided to spend no more than $100.
Up until then, I would look at the price of an item I liked and think, “Oh well. It shouldn’t hurt.” and I would go ahead and buy it. But that day, But that day, I decided to put it on hold and said, “I only have $100 to spend, so I’ll check other stores before I decide.”
I repeated the process several times, and after going through all my favorite stores, I remembered things I wanted and how much they cost, determined priority in them so that I won’t exceed $100, and then I went back to each store to buy only what I finally decided to buy.
I still remember being amazed at how good it felt to be able to stay within my goals and to buy only the things I truly wanted. I have also learned to cherish the things I’ve carefully selected and bought with satisfaction for a long time.
If you shop with a fixed amount, the following good things will happen.
- You will be able to buy what you really want.
- You will be able to use the items you have carefully selected and bought with care for a long time.
- When you are satisfied with what you have bought, you will not buy the same kind of things, and thus you will not waste your money.
- Any money left over from the shopping can be transferred to your next shopping.
- You will be no longer disappointed when you look at your credit card statement or bank balance.
This is a very simple way to manage your spending, but it is kind to your wallet and gives you a positive feeling. And I definitely recommend it!
2. Decide in advance what you want to buy before going shopping
I have often had the experience of going out shopping and impulsively buying something that I thought I wanted on the spot, only to find out later that I didn’t actually need it. Do you have that kind of experience? I often make such a mistake especially in fast fashion stores and low-priced general stores. I love fast fashion stores and low-priced general stores, but many times when I visit them without a plan, I end up buying a lot of things I don’t actually need and end up not wearing or using them.
It is important to decide in advance what you want to buy especially before you go to those low-priced stores. It is only when you can get the most out of the products you buy at a low price that you will have gained the most.
Also, the more you decide in advance what you want to buy, the less you will be likely to buy impulsively things you don’ need. This will save you money and allow you to buy things at higher-ranked stores. Then the products bought at the higher-ranked store have a longer lifespan, and you often end up getting more for your money.
I used to love buying a lot of bargain things. I enjoyed challenging myself to see how many I could buy with the money I had. When I got home, I would spread out the things I had bought on the floor and feel satisfied. Then one day, I realized that I was happier being surrounded by only the things I truly cherished, even if they were few, than being surrounded by a lot of things.
Like deciding how much you will spend before going shopping, if you decide in advance what you want to buy, the following good things happen.
- You will no longer buy unnecessary things that are not the best way to spend your money.
- You will be able to invest only in what you really want.
- You will be surrounded by only the things you truly cherish, which will make you feel happy and relaxed.
Money is an exchange for value
After all, money is an exchange for value. When you want to buy something, consider if it’s worth your hard-earned money. Out of many methods I tried to avoid overbuying, those 2 methods I mentioned above have helped me learn to get the most value out of shopping. I hope they will help you, too.
What is your shopping pattern?
Is there anything you do to prevent overbuying?
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