5 Habits Causing You to Overspend and How to Break Them Today

Overspending seems easy enough to avoid: just stop buying so much stuff. However, it’s not so simple.

Many overspending habits are deeply ingrained in our modern lifestyles, so it’s important to assess where your spending struggles originate and what you can change.

If you need a hand, here are some of the worst overspending habits — and how to break them.

1. Shopping out of boredom

People don’t just shop because they need something. Some do it because they’re low on dopamine, which is the feel-good hormone that shopping can provide, but only in the short term.

The issue is that “it’s largely short-lived,” a behavior specialist at financial wellness startup Enrich told CNBC. “Because of that, it’s not sustainable, which is where people can get into trouble.”

If you’re tempted to online shop, distract yourself or find other ways to encourage dopamine. Go for a walk, meditate, drink a glass of water, hang out with a pet, or do anything that doesn’t involve buying something.

You can also reduce temptation before it happens. Delete store apps on your phone, unfollow your favorite stores’ social media pages or unsubscribe from their marketing emails to take away the allure of a deal.

2. Giving in to lifestyle creep

Lifestyle creep is when people spend more money after their income increases. Maybe you’re finally finished paying off your student loans, started a new job or received a bump in your paycheck.

There’s nothing wrong with an upgrade here or there — sometimes an economic lift is sorely needed after years of enduring financial instability — but there are smart ways to move forward when you do.

Use extra income (or money leftover after finishing payments on debt or another financial burden) to pay down existing debt faster or keep the same amount of spending you had before your increased income and use that money to save up for retirement or something else financially secure.

3. Making impulse purchases

The first question you should ask yourself is if it’s a surprise or impulse purchase. If it’s the latter, try to ask yourself why. Is it to make yourself feel better because of a bad day or stressful life event? Was it a random purchase because you were bored?

If you don’t have a spending plan or budget, put one together. And if you do, it’s OK to set a small monthly cushion for something fun or unnecessary as long as you don’t go overboard.

4. Surprise purchases and subscriptions

Sometimes, surprise expenses are unavoidable, but that doesn’t mean you can’t prepare for them. Think of it like an emergency fund. You should already be thinking about putting money aside for any disaster, but that “disaster” could also mean a surprise expense — good, bad, or neutral.

Some people call it having a “sinking fund” that applies to non-emergencies, like a vet visit, back-to-school season or holiday presents. Even if it’s not completely planned out, you might see some inevitabilities come up throughout the year.

On the other hand, there are expenses that you’ve brought upon yourself but maybe forgotten about. Subscription fees are one thing, especially if you don’t cancel before the free trials end.

Go through your payment history to see what repeat or infrequent purchases you can cut. If they’re not basic necessities, subscriptions for work, or an item you use frequently, consider alternative brands or drop them entirely.

5. Being unable to separate needs from wants

Do you need that fancy drink from Dunkin’, Starbucks or another coffee shop? Or is it a habit you’ve formed that you can fix by buying ground coffee and saving much more money throughout the year?

Maybe you don’t need the newest phone, laptop, smartwatch or gaming console when your current one is only a few years old.

Take (at least) an hour or two before making a decision on a purchase of $100 or more. An hour is plenty of time, even more, to consider if this is a real thing you need. If it is, then shop around for the best prices or wait until another event rolls around, like Amazon’s Prime Day or Black Friday.

How to change your habits

Don’t start off by thinking you’re going to change your shopping habits forever. Just try it to change your approach to shopping for 21 days: three weeks.

That’s how long some experts say it takes to change a habit and create a new, healthier one.

So give it a try… your future self with thank you!