Don’t buy on impulse if you plan to be wealthy

Online shopping makes impulse purchases so easy. (Rawpixel pic)

A woman passes by a shop. She sees a beautiful gown on a mannequin. It’s love at first sight. She wants it, but it is costly.

She opens her purse to check if she has brought her credit card, and her face lights up when she finds it there.

She enters the shop, her eyes fixed on the sexy gown. That’s an impulse purchase.

After making the payment and collecting her gown, she goes back home and displays it to her husband. He doesn’t like it at all.

Goods sold cannot be refunded or exchanged

The next day, she goes back to the store and asks for a refund. The guy at the counter points to a sign hanging above his head.

She reads “Goods sold cannot be refunded or returned.” She’s sad now. She spent a fortune on a dress she doesn’t like anymore.

Worse, she still has to make payment to the bank for using her credit facility.

Many of you are impulsive shoppers. More often than before, you are hoarding things you don’t even need.

There is an urge to buy when faced with sales at 50% discount, offers of buy one free one or get the second pair at 80% off.

Many of you will whip out your plastic even though you know you should buy only what you need. Obviously, there are ways to avoid making an impulse purchase.

Cultivate the habit of disciplined spending. (Rawpixel pic)

Some of you who may have experienced the bitterness of paying off a mountain of debt will probably advise others to cut their credit cards in half.

The best advice is to cultivate the habit of disciplined spending. To control impulsive spending, you need to realise that credit cards are just financial tools. They are not dangerous unless the user becomes reckless.

Today’s marketing gimmicks mess with your mind, claiming scarcity and urgency so you will act on impulse.

So should you suppress your desire to buy? Of course, as it is common sense, but it doesn’t feel right, does it?

A new habit to inculcate thrift

Make it a habit to always ask yourself this question before buying something:

“Am I going to use it in the next three days?”

The proposed time frame of three days can actually be any period – 24 hours, one week, whatever works for you, but should not be too long.

Get your mind to stop thinking about the discount or the sale and focus instead on practicality. If you are not going to use the item, it is not going to provide value to you.

So it is not going to make you happier by owning it now. You can always come back later to buy it when you need it.

Be practical and make wise and prudent spending decisions. At least this way you’ll be safe from committing mistakes and be drowned in a pool of guilt.

Use the delayed time to do some research and compare prices to see if the item you are eyeing is worth buying.

This article first appeared in kclau.com - FMT