Needs versus wants - how to stop overspending and start saving
I am a recovering shopaholic. Some people drown their sorrows in food. Some people drown their sorrows in wine and other booze. Me? I used to drown my sorrows in new clothes. So now I’m drowning in debt. Not a good place to be, let me tell ya.
Sometimes, I backslide. I buy things I don’t really need. Then I feel bad because I added to the debt and spending. It’s a viscious cycle. I recently came across a neat way to try to distinguish needs from wants on another blog - how many hours will you have to work to pay for it? Kinda puts things into a new perspective, eh?
The new laptop I want, but don’t really need = 2 weeks of work! 2 WEEKS!!!
I think I will be waiting on the laptop.
However, you often hear that it is the little things that screw up your saving. So, I wonder what a good way would be to stop that type of spending. A cup of coffee at Starbucks isn’t even a hour’s worth of work. Doesn’t seem like a big deal. But done once a day, it adds up to a hella big deal.
May 5th, 2007 at 10:35 pm
Thanks for mentioning the article. I am glad it made you postpone your laptop decision…in the meantime, start saving for it, so that later you won’t have to put it on your credit card….or if you do put it on your credit card, you will be able to pay it off on the your first statement itself.
Good luck.
Btw, some nice articles here. I will try and link to one of them in time to come.