Start Living Your Life by Getting Control of Your Spending

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You shop. Buy something that interests you. You might put it on your credit card to deal with it later or buy it using your hard-earned cash. It usually comes so easy to spend money. Especially with credit cards even when you don’t have any money to spend.

Then, you get home and might realize immediately or after some time that the purchases weren’t necessary and regret it. Or it could mean you and your partner are fighting over your spending.

Most of us have tried to stop our spending but every time we go shopping, we find something cute or practical for us or our home that we have to buy. But is it worth it? Worth the stress when the bills come? Worth the fights with your partner over your spending?

Related: How We Saved Over $10,000

I recently heard on the radio that after buying something, 50% of people have buyer’s remorse and 25% of people regret buying something within the first hour. But yet, we love to keep buying things and spending our hard, earned money.

 

 

I used to have a hard time controlling my spending. My husband and I have had our share of fights over it too. I know the stress that my spending has caused and it definitely was never worth it. I have tried to stop but the temptation has always gotten to me.

So, a few months ago, after more arguments with my husband about my spending, my husband and I decided to start a no-spend challenge. A no spend challenge is where you only buy necessities. Nothing extra gets bought. No eating out, no fun shopping trips. Just necessities.

 

Our No Spend Challenge

Well, we committed to doing a challenge for 2 weeks and we successfully did it. We didn’t cheat once and although it was difficult, we stuck with it. The first day we started our challenge, I had to go to Target just because I was craving it. So I left my wallet at home and went to the store. I wanted to show myself that I could do this (even though I really couldn’t buy anything without money). Walking through the aisles were torture. But I left the store feeling good about myself. I said no to my temptations and I survived. Well, I knew I’d live through it but you get the point.

So, the next time I went to Target (if you haven’t noticed, Target is my weakness for shopping), I took $10 cash with me (no credit cards) to see if I could control myself. The temptation was there but I didn’t buy anything. I only took $10 so if I did spend it, I wasn’t spending a significant amount. I kept reminding myself of my commitment and I was so proud of myself for sticking with our challenge. This was about 3 days into our challenge.

I, of course, had to go food shopping during the challenge but I made a list before I shopped and stuck to it.

After my 2 visits to Target, I decided not to shop there the rest of the challenge and believe me, it was not easy. My husband stopped eating out for lunch (which he did occasionally) and stopped his Dunkin Donut runs when he was craving coffee.

 

 

And here’s the thing, after our 2 weeks were completed, we loved that we did it and succeeded and wanted to continue it further. We ended up completing an additional month on top of the 2 weeks!

What We Got Out of it

And you know what, I changed. After doing a no spend challenge for 6 weeks, I don’t want to spend money. My temptations to shop aren’t there anymore. I loved the feeling of saving money and realized I don’t need those extra things. Most of the times, the extra purchases just meant more clutter in my home.

Now, we are more committed than ever to keep saving. Since that challenge, I’ve gotten rid of a few things around my home and want to keep minimizing.

Our challenge was a win-win for us. It controlled my overspending and showed me it’s more important to save and have less.

What do you think? Are you going to try one? It’s only for a short time, however long you see fit to try this. It could be a week, 2 weeks, or a month or longer. However long you think you can do this. But if you aren’t sure about this, try it for a short amount of time. I want you to succeed with this!

Related: 9 Inspiring Ways to Stop Overspending

At the end of your challenge, I think you will be so amazed to see how much you’ve saved. You might be surprised to see that you’ve changed too.

Just think what you can use that extra money for. Maybe you can put it toward your debt or maybe you can put that money toward a vacation you’re thinking about. Don’t you think that’s worth giving a no spend challenge a try?

I am so happy that my husband and I tried one. I wouldn’t be in the shape I’m in now if I hadn’t. It’s not a big commitment either. But you have to stick with it.

Do you want to stop your overspending and be better able to control your impulse buying?

My challenge for you is to start one. Start today. Set is up for just a week and see how you do. If you complete that and want to try it longer, go for it. And once you realize all the money you’ve saved by not overspending, celebrate!

What’s your biggest struggle when it comes to money? Leave me a comment below, I’d love to hear from you!!