It's a bad habit and I want to try to break it, but could use some advice as to how.
Let your wife keep all the credit cards.
Not married, I live with my mom and don't have any credit cards (not even my own bank account).
Just stop thinking you have to collect everything. Think about whether you really need it first, or if it's just something you want to read for fun once.
It's not that easy. If I have money it's likely to not last very long.
I'm not much of a collector anyway.
|
Draw up a budget of expenses. When you go shopping make a list and only take as much money as you think you will need for the things on the list. Those are two big suggestions. Also, find out if there are finacial literacy classes in your area you can take. Also this site may help as well.
Draw up a budget of expenses. When you go shopping make a list and only take as much money as you think you will need for the things on the list. Those are two big suggestions.
Thanks, that really is a big help.
|
Word of advice: Fix this NOW, while you're still young. So many people, especially when in college or fresh out of school view their credit cards as free money, and charge anything and everything.
The problem with impulse buying is that often they are small things ($20 or less) and it's easy to think, "no big deal." It ADDS UP fast, and credit card interest rates will flay the skin off your back faster than you can say, "bankruptcy."
But that Vera Wang will look excellent with my Paizo.
Except on Henry Rollins books.
Read a hell of a lot of Henry Rollins' books. After that, you'll look down on the establishment with contempt, and you'll never spend your money on anything ever again.
Unless you read them when you're older and have already sold out.
Don't get me wrong, Henry is timeless.
Hank is on a spoken word tour here in North America this spring.
what has always worked for me.....
I was making 12.50 an hour back in the day and I was trying to save money. Everytime I thought about making an impulse buy I would ask myself is this really worth the time I spent to earn this money?
Chances are you don't care for your job
chances are you are underpaid
chances are the stuff your buying is just getting piled up in the closet
So for example.... That 50 dollar rpg book? Well at 12.50 and hour... taking into account taxes...took me about five hours to earn.
Then I would ask myself would I prefer to have that five hours of my life back or would I prefer the book.
You start adding up a fifty dollar book here, a thirty dollar dinner there, twenty bucks in gas....
You are selling your life off piece by piece.
Whenever I put things in that perspective I had trouble buying mutch of anything. Works a lot better when you hate your job though.
So how many hours do you got to work now to get all your monthly supersubcriptions? ;)
So how many hours do you got to work now to get all your monthly supersubcriptions? ;)
I am a broken man who has now embraced impulse buying in all its majesty. I'd type more but some fool is relinquishing his full collection of Garbage Pail Kids Cards on ebay. Gotta snipe those auctions at any cost. Some packs still have the gum! Vintage gum!
Sounds like me at a 20% off sale at Half Price Books.
Draw up a budget of expenses. When you go shopping make a list and only take as much money as you think you will need for the things on the list. Those are two big suggestions. Also, find out if there are finacial literacy classes in your area you can take. Also this site may help as well.
I think David is right. Another thing I would add is don't meander around in the store. The more time you spend looking at things that you didn't come in to buy in the first place, the more likely you're going to buy them. Most of the time, when I go into a store, I go in with a concrete objective in mind (I am going to buy laundry detergent). If I go into a store with no concrete objective in mind (I want to check out what new stuff they have at the local game store), I'm much more likely to make an impulse buy.
Incidentally, I find that I'm much more likely to make an impulse buy around Christmas, because I don't typically have a concrete objective in mind. For example, I know I need to buy a gift for my mom, but ooh! They have the Watchmen Director's Cut DVD Box Collection on sale!
If you don't mind me asking a couple questions--
Do you make enough money that your impulsive purchases are really, financially, neither here nor there?
What, exactly, are you buying on impulse?
Well it seems to me that I buy way too much on impulse; my main vices are dvds and books (gaming books mostly), though I'm honetly getting burned out on books and more turning to dvds lately.
I geet exactly $250 disposable income per month. I'd like to save as much of it as possible, but having it close is like an uneaten Entemann's in the kitchen. I have no way of putting the money out of sight (and thusly putting it out of mind) as I get SSD and my mom is my represenatative payee, and because of this I'm not allowed to have a bank account of my own.
I geet exactly $250 disposable income per month. I'd like to save as much of it as possible, but having it close is like an uneaten Entemann's in the kitchen. I have no way of putting the money out of sight (and thusly putting it out of mind) as I get SSD and my mom is my represenatative payee, and because of this I'm not allowed to have a bank account of my own.
Actually, that's not entirely true. There was a period of time where my mother had custodial rights over my adult brother while he was on SSDI and I know for a fact that he did have a bank account. The catch is that my mother was also listed as the Custodian for the acount. I recall having to settle it out after she had passed away.
If you're actually serious about it, have her set up a custodial account for you where you can put some of that money away for a spell until you really need it.
Actually, that's not entirely true. There was a period of time where my mother had custodial rights over my adult brother while he was on SSDI and I know for a fact that he did have a bank account. The catch is that my mother was also listed as the Custodian for the acount. I recall having to settle it out after she had passed away.
If you're actually serious about it, have her set up a custodial account for you where you can put some of that money away for a spell until you really need it.
Urizen, my case is completely different. My condition doesn't ever allow me to become the sole or partial custodian of the account.
Urizen, my case is completely different. My condition doesn't ever allow me to become the sole or partial custodian of the account.
You're not; your mother's the sole custodian for the account in your name. Whether or not you may have access to it is entirely up to her.
Urizen, my case is completely different. My condition doesn't ever allow me to become the sole or partial custodian of the account.You're not; your mother's the sole custodian for the account in your name. Whether or not you may have access to it is entirely up to her.
I'm not going to argue with you. This was true when I was getting SSI, but when I switched over to SSD, that changed.
I'm not going to argue with you. This was true when I was getting SSI, but when I switched over to SSD, that changed.
Nobody's arguing here (at least I hope not). I suppose I fail to see the distinction of having a custodial account regardless of SSI or SSD; irrelevant of your diagnosis. It would essentially be the same (in name) as a parent being custodian over a minor's bank account.
I'm not going to argue with you. This was true when I was getting SSI, but when I switched over to SSD, that changed.Nobody's arguing here (at least I hope not). I suppose I fail to see the distinction of having a custodial account regardless of SSI or SSD; irrelevant of your diagnosis. It would essentially be the same (in name) as a parent being custodian over a minor's bank account.
Well I do know for a fact that when my mom passes on, if she has not named a new representative payee, it will become a court appointed lawyer.
Well I do know for a fact that when my mom passes on, if she has not named a new representative payee, it will become a court appointed lawyer.
That is correct. Maybe that responsibility will go to one of your siblings?
Well I do know for a fact that when my mom passes on, if she has not named a new representative payee, it will become a court appointed lawyer.That is correct. Maybe that responsibility will go to one of your siblings?
As irresponsible as my sister is with money, my mom would rather a court appointed lawyer become my representative payee.
|
|
You can buy VR CDs for $250 each. The percentage rate may be next to nothing or it may be awesome, but it's a quick, easy way to save that $250 and the term is at least 6 months and 2 days.
If you can manage to hold on to your disposable income for 2-4 months, you can buy a larger, more profitable CD, but if it's burning a hole in your pocket, a standard CD spends-saves that money right away.
If you can save $1000, I'd say open a trading account, then spend your money on stocks. I pay for all my discretionary purchases (including lots of impulse buys) with profit made on trades. Ford and Apple have made me very happy this year, for example.
I'd suggest starting with the standard CDs. Buy one each month--the purchase might salve the compulsion to spend, and in six months you'll have more than you saved--plus, you can't get to it until the term is up, so it's like putting your money in a time-locked safe set to open in six months or more.
Your custodian can set all this up for you, including the trading account, if you save that extra cash.