Every month, when payday rolls around, I like to treat myself. It doesn’t have to be a super-luxe buy, but maybe a little something I feel like I can’t justify by the end of the month.
I’m a firm believer that getting myself a nice treat to congratulate me on getting paid is an investment into my happiness. It brings me joy — end of.
It’s worth the treat because, for most of the month, it’s all about tricking myself into not buying useless items that I simply do not need and, honestly, will never use. For me, it’s all about planning my spend. Aka, deciding what potential buys are needs, which ones are just wants and knowing the difference between a passing want and an ‘I really, really want and need this to fill my soul with happiness’.
But then . . . then there are those other times. The splurges that go unused and unloved, only to fill your heart with sadness when you think of them. Finding a balance between all of these is both tough and, if you pull it off, rewarding.
According to Liana Cauchi, ANZ Financial Adviser, there are a couple of things we can all probably do to save a bit of extra money. “An easy tip to remember is to save first and spend the remainder,” Liana told PEDESTRIAN.TV. “As a general rule, if you can save 10% of your pay and have it paid to a different account (that you don’t touch), that’s a great start.” If you can’t swing 10%, start by taking an honest look at your outgoing expenses for things like unused gym memberships or subscriptions.
Everyone has their own little trick to avoid spending all their hard-earned money on useless things they absolutely don’t need. If you need some help finding yours, you can sign up for the ANZ Financial Wellbeing Challenge too, in which you’ll be taken on a six-week journey through a variety of tips, tricks and knowledge around managing your money better to set you up for a healthier wallet in the future.
We asked around the PEDESTRIAN.TV office to find out how people stop themselves from spending. Let’s just say, some methods are logical and others are just so damn crazy that they’re brilliant. Either way, they’re worth a try:
“Simple: I send my mum a screenshot of the checkout (if it’s a wild purchase). She usually sets me straight.” — Mina
“I always leave items in a hypothetical cart and check back in four days later to see if I really still need them.” — Shannen
“First, I pay myself a weekly wage into a separate account so I don’t blow my whole income in one swoop on payday. I’ve also created a budget that includes a clothes allowance — so I can only spend a specific amount on clothes every month. It’s divided into different buckets: for shoes, makeup etc etc.” — Isabella
“I have a savings account that I can’t see and that takes a day to transfer money into the account that I can see. So, I keep my budgeted money in my everyday account and everything else is out of sight — that way, I’m not tempted to dip into my savings coz for all my brain knows, it ain’t there.” — Louie
“I never carry cash because I spend it on dumb stuff, and I don’t use any buy now, pay later services. Ever.” — Elise
“The only way I can save is to keep my eye on the prize. Whether I’m saving up for a holiday, new pair of shoes, or that elusive house deposit, asking myself ‘would I prefer to own a home or buy a third coffee today?’ can help put things into perspective.” — Ange
“Before I make any big investment I make myself write down three occasions or times I’d use or wear it. If I cant think of three then I know I won’t get enough use of it and it’s definitely not worth buying.” — Lucy
“I never opt for express postage, so that I can’t really ‘impulse’ buy, as I know it’s gonna take a week to get here. So if I want something ASAP it really has to be something important, otherwise, I end up sitting on it and then losing interest.” — Edward
“I never ever go shopping hungry — if I do, I’ll impulse buy all the snacks.” — Matt
“I create a list of things I like spending money on that actually spark joy (like eating out and drinking good coffee) so I don’t feel guilty when I actually spend money on it. Or when I read terrible finance articles that say to stop spending money on one of those things. It also helps me be more aware of things that aren’t on the list and therefore not worth the spend.” — Whitney
“I force myself to sleep on it for a couple of days to two weeks before hitting purchase and I never online shop from bed late at night. It’s just bad news waiting to happen.” — Georgia
“I always say no to saving my card details to my internet browser. It means I actually have to get my card out to manually type in my details every time I want to buy something and laziness trumps buying stuff most times.” — Bianca
“I make any potential clothes or tech purchases my phone screensaver — and if I’m not sick of looking at it by the end of the week, I’ll buy it.” — Jordan
“I move everything except my weekly budget out of my main bank account and into my savings, so I know what my spending limit is.” — Chris
You can sign up for the ANZ Financial Wellbeing Challenge here.
