You feel like you’re responsible with your money and yet you still end up with a shocking bank statement at the end of the month. If significant expenses aren’t the factors that are emptying your wallet, the likely answer is that you have bad spending habits. The costs of these common habits add up over the weeks and explain the disappearance of your savings.
You forget to pack your bag before you head out for the day.
It’s easy to forget about prepping meals before commuting to work first thing in the morning, but this bad habit is burning a hole in your wallet. Even if you buy a ten-dollar meal for lunch every day, that is still fifty dollars that are leaving your pocket in a week and two-hundred dollars after a month.
Buying drinks from the nearby café is another one of the daily habits that cost you in the long-run — this is especially true if they are specialty coffees that can be more than five dollars per cup. To stop unwittingly spending more than a hundred dollars a month for a caffeine fix, use a travel mug with home-brewed coffee in the morning and the office’s coffeemaker in the afternoon.
You try to scrounge when it comes to important expenses.
It may seem like a savvy move to go for the discounted version so that you can keep more in your wallet, but there are times when that can backfire. One typical example is skipping a trip to the dentist to save money, which puts you at a higher risk of dental problems in the future and much higher bills. The cost of a cleaning will seem like a deal in comparison to the price of cavities or a root canal.
If you find yourself skipping over these types of expenses because you’re worried about not having anything in your wallet, you can turn to MoneyKey for some easy loans and relief. Procedures by traditional banking services can take too long for people with busy schedules. With the help of this company, people can get access to money fast without any of the usual inconveniences so that they can purchase the things that they need when they need them. A fast payday loan can get someone out of a tight financial spot when they’ve run out of other saving options.
You try to cheer yourself up with retail therapy.
Some people grab a bowl of ice cream when they have had a rough day, while others prefer to practice retail therapy — this means that they would like to pull out their wallets and hit the mall or explore their options online. People do this because buying something brand-new can give you a sudden rush and make you feel better.
Just like overindulging in high-calorie foods, dealing with your problems by putting unessential items in a shopping cart will have consequences. If you feel the compulsion to spend, you should put your wallet away and try to keep yourself busy until the urge passes. Pick a healthy alternative that can still lead to endorphins or satisfaction, like going for a walk.
You like to treat yourself a little too often.
It’s normal to reward yourself for all of the hard work that you do, but it becomes a problem when this turns into a regular habit and forces you to spend money above your means. Studies reveal that this is a popular spending problem since Americans spend $143,280 to treat themselves during their lifetime — these purchases range from luxury spa treatments to the latest tech gadgets to hit the shelves.
To solve this problem, you should limit your indulgences to prevent them from hurting your wallet. It’s also wise to focus on special experiences like concert tickets because they will be more enriching and memorable than material purchases.
Go through your monthly purchases to look for unfortunate patterns and see how much they cost you. Once you’ve spotted a problem in the bank statement, try to break that bad spending habit. After a few weeks, you will see a difference in your savings, and you’ll want to keep it that way.
