Curbing Impulse Buying.

[adojrts]

I have a list of the wants and prioritize that list. If it isn't on the list, then I don't buy it.
Anything that is $25.00 or more is on the list and even then I have to really want something to purchase it on impulse. Because impulse purchases get in the way of the bigger picture of what I want and how soon I can get it

As for credit cards, loans and lines of credit...........I just do the math and figure out how much a purchase will cost me in the long run if I can't pay cash for it. That typically is the deal breaker. And that also includes purchasing vehicles over time.

Bottom line, I don't lose any sleep or have to worry about a debt load especially over stupid purchases.

 

[Torch]

I rarely use my credit card. I really think hard before charging anything at all but dont so much with the debit card. But I like the cash idea too. Leave debit at home.

My worst is food. I cannot seem to budget food at all.

That's not totally your fault. Food prices are effin insane.

I'm a super budget-er about food. My husband and I moved in together 3 years ago and I loved grocery shopping. I planned everything ahead and fed both of us for approx $360 a month.

Now I'm buying the SAME things and it costs me $20-$30 more a month. Ridiculous.

 

[noludoru]

I budget really well. When I have the impulse to buy something, I write it down and when I go home open up the "Stuff to buy" spreadsheet and enter it in, along with the cost. This works really well for internet stuff too because you're already at the computer.

Later I go back in and delete stuff that doesn't look so appealing anymore. That way I can keep track of non essential things that would be awesome or useful to have, and eliminate wasteful impulses that take away from those awesome things.

Having a list of things I want also gives me something to look forward to and more self control when confronted with small impulse buys. If I'm like, "Oh man! I should totally buy tacos for lunch!" sometimes thinking about the list and that I only have $40 to go until I can get the kids an awesome playhouse we've been saving for is enough incentive to get home and make tacos there.

This.

I got all excited with my car and wrote down and priced out all the stuff I wanted to do to it. I realized I WANT TO SPEND FIVE GRAND ON A TEN YEAR OLD CAR. That stopped me really fast. I still have the document and am getting some of the stuff on it - the essential stuff. The expensive stuff comes after I pay it off.

The other thing that worked well for me is not bringing cards anywhere and staying off of shopping sites. I went through a month long period after my purse was stolen with nothing but my mom's credit card (emergencies only) and a few hundred a I withdrew from the bank. That curbed my impulse buys, and I go back to that once in a while - gas card and cash only, and everything else stays at home.