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A life you love on a budget you can afford.

Here on TBM®, I provide you with simple, easy-to-follow solutions to help you budget your money, pay off debt, save more, and crush your financial goals. But more than that, I give you the tools to start doing the things that matter most to you, on a budget that actually works!

3 Spending Habits That Are Setting You up for Failure

December 20, 2016
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We are all guilty of a few bad habits. Spending money is probably one of them. Here are 3 bad spending habits that are setting you up for failure and how to avoid them.

There is always a reason why we save too little and have too much debt. People lose their jobs, the economy takes a nose dive, and getting a raise is almost impossible.

What people don't realize is that we are often our own worst enemy when it comes to our financial circumstances. Everyone is guilty of the occasional spending slip up, and sometimes it's hard to recognize that it's happening more than we'd like to admit.

  • Read: Should You Pay off Debt or Save?

Here are four spending habits that will not only kill your budget but will also set you up to fail financially.

SPENDING MONEY BECAUSE YOU ARE BORED

I like to call this “zombie” spending. Most of the time, you don't even realize you are doing it. It's so easy to head to the mall, go out to eat, or spend some time browsing your favorite online store, which you almost always get sucked into buying things you don't need. Everything becomes a distraction to fill our time when we don't have anything better to do.

Believe me; I know “zombie” shopping all too well. One of the biggest challenges I faced was online shopping. It's so easy to be laying in bed, checking your Facebook, and get scammed into checking the email you just received from your favorite online store with the message “Flash Sale! Everything 30% off!”

The result is you end up having ten things delivered to your front door that you don't need, and a huge credit card bill to match.

The number one thing that helped me kick the “zombie” shopping habit was to unsubscribe from all the store's emails. The easiest thing you can do is to stop the temptation. Sites like Groupon and apps like Ibotta are great, but not if they are making you spend money you don't have.

Look for other ways to distract yourself. Try picking up a new hobby that you can do from home,  or join a book club. After discovering my love for hiking, I feel more rewarded from a day of exploring the outdoors than I did from spending out of habit.

  • Read: 3 Things to Do Today to Feel Better about your Finances

SPENDING MONEY YOU DON'T HAVE

This spending habit comes in many different forms. Your tax return, an expected bonus or raise, or even self-employment income can all fall into the category of money that you might not have. These things are not guaranteed income, yet, people depend on them. People already plan out what they are going to spend this money on without knowing if they will actually receive it.

Have you ever thought to yourself, “I will use my tax refund to buy that.” This is the perfect example of spending money you don't have. Maybe you put the purchase on your credit card, thinking you would pay it off with your tax return, only to find out that you actually owe the IRS. Now you have a credit card balance with no way of paying it off. The same is true with work bonuses.

The best thing you can do is not think of this money as guaranteed income. You should also never include work bonuses or an estimated tax refund in your budget. That way, if you never receive it, you are not so deep in a debt hole that you can't climb out of it. Instead, if and when you receive this type of money, use it to reach your financial goals of paying off debt or increasing your savings.

Credit card debt is another great example of spending money you don't have. The most appealing thing about credit cards is the ability to pay later for items that you can receive now. The biggest mistake is using credit to purchase “ordinary” things like gas or groceries.

  • Read: How to Improve Your Relationship With Money

You can't rely on credit cards if you don't have them with you. I went almost a full year without any credit cards in my wallet. It's okay to have a credit card, but it's not okay to have a credit card that you are constantly using because you don't have the cash to pay for things. Rely only on your income, and never spend more money than you make. If you decide to use your credit card to make a purchase, make sure you can pay it off in full every month to avoid interest.

SPENDING TO IMPRESS

“We spend money that we do not have, on things we do not need, to impress people who do not care” – Will Smith

It's easy not to care about impressing people whose opinions you don't care about, but it seems like life or death when you want to impress someone you do care about. Maybe it's a friend, someone you want to meet, a coworker, or family. Whoever it might be, let me be the one to tell you that spending money you don't have to impress someone is not worth it. The funniest thing about these situations is that the person you want to impress is probably so busy trying to impress you that they don't even notice all the things you bought to impress them.

A generous heart, kindness, hard work, dedication, and true intentions are far more likely to impress someone than possessions.

Focus on who you really are, and you won't have to spend a dime to impress someone. Stop comparing yourself to others and learn to appreciate what you already have.

What spending habits are you guilty of?

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Comments

  1. Dyana says

    December 21, 2016 at 7:06 am

    My biggest problem was spending money out of pure boredom. Getting new things gave me a temporary rush that became addicting. I curved it by setting a goal and putting the money I was going to blow towards it!

    • kumiko Ehrmantraut says

      December 21, 2016 at 8:40 am

      I love that Dyana. I think it’s so much more rewarding to put money towards an actual goal.

  2. Michael Welter says

    December 25, 2016 at 3:10 am

    Very well said. Adjust the attitude, so we can stay out of debt. Otherwise, we will just set up ourselves for failure and trap in debt.

    • kumiko Ehrmantraut says

      December 27, 2016 at 10:34 am

      So true Michael. Thank you!

  3. Sandie @ Fulfilled For Less says

    December 27, 2016 at 5:09 am

    I am definitely guilty of some bad spending habits–especially spending because I’m bored, and spending money that I don’t have (hello credit cards.) I am going to work my hardest to break those habits this year and create new ones so I can finally get out of debt once and for all!

    • kumiko Ehrmantraut says

      December 27, 2016 at 10:34 am

      I love it Sandie! Thank you!

  4. Patti says

    January 9, 2017 at 1:46 pm

    Hi Kumiko.
    I have an adult son that really needs to focus on a budget and digging his way out of crushing debt. Is there a ‘guy’ budgeting site you can recommend? I’d pass yours on to him, but, well, ….. it’s a ‘guy’ thing.
    Thanks for a reply

    • kumiko Ehrmantraut says

      January 9, 2017 at 2:33 pm

      Hello, Patti. I recommend checking out DaveRamsey.com. He has very helpful information on his website 🙂

  5. Natalie @ WalletSage says

    June 14, 2017 at 4:24 pm

    I really enjoyed this post! While I like to believe I have all the willpower needed to resist the temptation of “40% off sale” type emails, I have struggled with this. Even when I don’t have money for it, my “shopping hackitis” kicks in telling me to buy it now to save later–which doesn’t actually end up saving me anything a lot of the time , but just an unnecessary purchase digging me into a deeper financial pit. (I guess the issue here is not exactly willpower, but confusion over what is the most financially prudent.)

Hello, I'm Kumiko, but everyone just calls me Miko. Welcome to my blog, The Budget Mom. I am an Accredited Financial Counselor® , and mom to a rambunctious boy. Come along with me as I strive to live a life I love on a budget that I can afford. Read more about me.

RECENT YOUTUBE VIDEO

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The Budget Mom
It’s time for another Real Life Budget. I asked my readers to submit their REAL information. Real spending, real debt, and real savings goals.

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If you would like to submit your budget information to possibly be picked for a Real Life Budget that we will show on YouTube, please reach out to budgets@thebudgetmom.com.

Diane is a single mom who is a Database Administrator for an IT Department at a local college. She lives in Queens, NY, and eventually wants to move to a lower-cost of living area in the future. 

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She's also the creator of the wildly popular Live Rich Planner® and Budget by Paycheck® Workbook. Love has been featured on Good Morning America, the Today show, CNN, CBS, ABC and in USA Today, US News, World Report, Huffington Post, Money Magazine, Parents Magazine, the Washington Post, and Real Simple. She lives in Spokane Valley, Washington.

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