We all know about the dangers of drug and gambling additions, but believe it or not in recent years there have been numerous studies regarding the dangers of shopping addictions as well.
Thousands upon thousands of people suffer from shopping addictions, which in medical terms is termed as “omniomania,” meaning that these individuals get a thrill or a rush every time they purchase an item at a store. Not only do these people tend to have behavioural addiction issues, they also tend to go bankrupt due to their bad spending habits, or even resort to stealing money from their friends or family.
Whether you have an addictive personality or not, once you get into a habit of spending a lot of money it can be the sort of habit that is extremely difficult to break, so it’s extremely important to learn how to adapt to proper spending habits while you’re young.
Whether you’re a teenager or in your 20s and you’re worried about your current spending habits, or if you’re a parent and you’re hoping to educate your child on how to spend their money responsibly, here are three easy tips on how you can practice responsible spending habits:
Always have bumper money
This point may seem fairly obvious, but it can’t be stressed enough. Realistically you should only be spending 50-75% of your regular paycheque, and then put the rest aside for savings in case of an emergency. You can always try asking your bank if you can set some money aside in a savings account, and possibly collect interest on it as well.
Prioritize
The fact of the matter is, if money is tight you’re simply not going to be able to purchase every single item that you want; so you’re going to have to learn how to prioritize what it is you really need, and whether it is worth buying.
Essentially food and bills should be of the utmost importance, as well as money that goes towards how you make your living, for example, transportation costs to get to and from work. If you are currently a student, then school supplies and textbook costs should always take priority over anything else as well.
Keep yourself busy
If you truly want to save your money you shouldn’t be spending money at all. One of the best ways to not spend your money is to keep yourself busy with a cheap or free hobby, like reserving a book from the library, watching YouTube videos on the Internet, or spending time with family or friends, and try to avoid going out drinking or shopping in expensive stores as much as humanly possible.
If you are surrounded by people who like to spend their money, it might be a good idea to limit the amount of time you spend with them so that way you won’t be tempted to spend your money as well.