If you’re anything like me, making unnecessary purchases is a bad habit of yours. Whether it’s ordering delivery from the restaurant down the street or buying that $40 top you just have to have, you find it hard to stop yourself from spending and spending and spending.
And as a broke college student, you’re spending money you just don’t really have.
As a person trying to break this habit, I’m here to give you a few tips on how to reduce your unneeded spending.
Avoid Impulse Purchases
My biggest piece of advice to give you is avoid impulse purchases. Trust me, I know how hard it can be not to buy something you see and love while you’re window shopping. But chances are, you’ll completely forget about that thing by tomorrow.
Just tell yourself if it’s something you really want and need, you’ll still want it in a week. Then you can go back and buy it and not feel guilty about making a purchase rashly.
Take Inventory
Try to take inventory of what you already have. For example, if you see a blue sweater online that you really like and want to buy, figure out how many other blue sweaters you already have. You might realize you have plenty and another one will just sit in your closet and rarely get worn.
Constantly being aware of what items you already have in your repertoire will keep you from buying things very similar to what you already have, and likely don’t use that much anyway.
Sales Are your best friend
This may be an obvious piece of advice, but be willing to patiently wait for sales. You may see something online that is exactly what you’ve been looking for, but it’s full price.
Oftentimes it’s worth it to wait, as brands constantly have promo codes and sales going on. In just a week or two, that full price item could be half off and you just saved yourself some money.
Eat in
Stop going out to eat so often. Sure, an authentic Italian pasta dish sounds amazing. But I promise you, 80% of the time spaghetti with butter and parmesan cheese that you can make yourself is just as satisfying and is likely a fraction of the price.
If and when you do decide you want to order out, don’t order delivery. Those tips and fees can sometimes double the price of your food purchase, and if you really want food from that restaurant it can be worth it to just walk or drive there to pick it up.
Think about it
My largest piece of advice that has helped me to stop overspending at times is to really pause and think any time you’re about to make a purchase that probably isn’t essential.
Ask yourself, do I need to make this purchase now? Do I even need to make this purchase at all? What will I regret more in the long run, making this purchase or not making this purchase?
I guarantee having this conversation with yourself can really save you from overspending for no good reason.
I know this is a hard habit to break, and I am struggling to do so right now. But implementing this advice into your own life every so often will be a great start in doing so.