How to keep from overspending
For several months, my husband and I did a no spend challenge. This involves…not spending money. Revolutionary, I know. When I shared about the challenge I had a lot of questions on how to keep from overspending so I thought I’d write a little list of ways that have helped me!
Create a budget. And a zero-based budget at that. Stop treating your money like you have “extra” and give every dollar a place to go.
Set money goals. If you’re focused on a goal, you’re less likely to spend.
Find a different outlet for dopamine. Say goodbye to retail therapy and try something else. Baking? Reading? Running?
Avoid restaurants and pack your own meals. It’s so tempting to spend money when you’re at work or on a road trip and hungry but pack that lunch!
Don’t fall for sales. Yeah, it might be 20% off but if you weren’t going to buy it anyway, you’re spending 100% more than before.
Put large purchases off for 3 days before making them, so you can think about it first.
Do grocery pickup instead of going in the store. I don’t know what it is about going into the store but I always end up coming up with more food than was on the list…
Hold off starting new hobbies - instead, maybe pick something back up that you started a while ago (I’m staring at all the embroidery supplies I own)
Don’t put yourself in compromising situations. Say no to the girls night out and instead invite them over for a potluck. Don’t go shopping unless you need something necessary and specific.
Put your credit cards in hiding. If they’re not easy to reach, you’ll be less likely to spend - and consider using cash when you go out.
Delete shopping apps from your phone. I find it so easy to shop on the Amazon app and order things in just a few minutes. Make it hard to do this.
Delete your saved cards in Google so you have an extra 5 minutes to decide if you want that item while you’re getting your card out to put the numbers in.
Plan your meals to use up leftovers - like if you made beef stroganoff on Monday, make tacos on Wednesday to use up that sour cream.
Delete social media. It seems as though everyone else has better things than we do, and the comparison game on social media is not only detrimental to ourselves mentally but also our wallet.
Have you tried any of these? What are your favorite tips?
Looking for more financial advice? Struggling to live on one income (or two, because let’s face it, times are hard right now)?
We’ve been there too. Andrew and I have lived on as little as $30,000 twice during our marriage and we’ve learned some tips and tricks to getting the most out of our money. I actually wrote a guide on living on one income from the experience we had, and it’s available with the template we use for our zero-based budgeting system. You can find it in my shop here.