海角大神

My biggest spending weakness is online spending.聽And it鈥檚 not even close.

I have essentially completely conquered my spending impulses when I鈥檓 out and about in stores. I simply don鈥檛 buy stuff on a whim when I鈥檓 in a store. I stick to my list like glue, find the stuff I need, and get out. Even if I鈥檓 waiting on someone, I don鈥檛 end up with unnecessary stuff in my cart.

What impulsive spending I do indulge in happens online, usually at聽Amazon,聽Coolstuff, or聽Steam, but occasionally elsewhere.

The problem is that聽the tactics I use to defeat impulse spending in stores don鈥檛 work as well when it comes to buying online.

In a store, I usually have at least a minute or two to talk myself out of buying an item from the moment I pick it up until I鈥檓 face to face with a cashier (often, the time is much longer). Online, that time is often measured in seconds.

In a store, I have to hold that tangible item, which often triggers a question in my mind as to whether or not I really need it. Online, there鈥檚 no object to hold to trigger that thought.

Taken all together, it means that聽I need new tools to help me curb online spending impulses.聽Here are the tools I use that, taken all together, do a pretty effective job at curbing the desire to spend online.

贵颈谤蝉迟,听I don鈥檛 save my password or billing info at any online site.聽If I鈥檓 buying something, I make sure that I have to enter as much info as possible.

Sure, it鈥檚 inconvenient.聽That鈥檚 the point.聽The time I spend entering all of that information gives me time to reflect on whether or not I should even be making this purchase. Usually, it鈥檚 not worth it.

厂别肠辞苍诲,听I keep an ongoing list of those impulsive buys.聽I ask myself if I trulyneed聽this item聽now. If I don鈥檛, I just write down the item in a list.

I use聽Evernote聽for this list. It鈥檚聽always聽open on my computer and is on my phone as well, so whenever I鈥檓 considering an impulsive buy, I鈥檝e focused very hard on planting the idea that I should just jot it down in Evernote instead.

Every few weeks, I鈥檒l go through that list and delete almost all of the items on it, seeing them for the impulses that they are. That sense of realizing how many of my impulses really aren鈥檛 smart purchases goes a long way toward convincing me not to indulge in them.

贵颈苍补濒濒测,听I have a 鈥渉obby/entertainment鈥� line in my budget.聽Each month, I have a certain amount that I can freely spend on hobbies and entertainment without worry. I know that if I keep my spending within that amount, then there鈥檚 no problem at all.

This allows me to go ahead and splurge聽a little. If I make an impulsive buy, it鈥檚 not the end of the world. It鈥檚 in the budget. It just means I have to be tighter with my other entertainment or hobby purchases for the rest of the month.

These three elements, used together, have gone a long way toward helping me to control my online spending impulses. Even with the convenience of many online shopping sites at my fingertips, it鈥檚 easy to keep control of things using these tactics.