How to Curb Impulse Spending

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By Valerie Deneen
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stop impulse spending

Those little impulse buys can add up fast, and chew their way into your budget. Here are some simple ways to help minimize impulse spending:

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Step 1

Calculate the Savings -- Spending $5.00 a day at Starbucks doesn't sound like much, but cutting out the little expenses can add up to huge savings. Use a savings calculator, like the one at CNNMoney.com, to figure out that investing those $5 a day (or $150 a month) for five years at 8% interest will generate $11,021.53.
Step 2

Take a Photo -- Take a photo of your biggest long term financial goal, and tape it to your credit card. The next time you go to use your card, you'll be reminded that this small purchase is sending your goal a little bit further away.
Step 3

Index Card -- Another trick to limit impulse buys is to keep an index card in your wallet. When you see something you would like to purchase, write it down on the card and think about it for at least a week. If you see something else you would like to buy, write it down also, but only keep room on the card for about three things. If you need to write down something else, then you must remove something from the list first to make room for the new item. If something stays on the list for a long time, and you have the money, go ahead and buy it.
Step 4

Pay Cash-- Paying with a credit card makes it much easier to lose track of how much money you are actually spending. Instead, paying with cash involves counting out dollar bills and can make you more conscious of spending habits.

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