Controlling Your Love for Shopping

Many of us love clothes and one of our favourite things to do on the weekend is to go shopping. However, this can become a problem quickly, and when you start to spend money that you can't afford to spend, problems can arise. It is vital that you keep on top of this and always be aware of the risks that come with overspending. There are many ways in which you can curb your love of shopping so that you are far less likely to get into money troubles.

Control your store cards

With extra discounts and the option not to pay it back until you get paid, store cards can be extremely tempting. But with some coming with fairly large limits and most stores offering them, it can be a downwards spiral once you cannot afford to pay back the full balance you owe. Many have minimum payments; however before you know it you can be paying a huge amount of money in interest and not even scratching the surface of the original spend. Make it a priority to one by one pay off these cards.

Keep Yourself Occupied

A lot of the time we turn to habit because of boredom. Shopping may fill 20 minutes browsing on the internet or if you have a free weekend you may feel that a day of retail therapy is just what you need. Turn your attention to more important things. Make a list of all the jobs in the home that you have been avoiding doing and work your way through it. You will therefore feel a sense of achievement and will have avoided spending money that you didn't have.

Avoid Temptation

If you know that you have to go into town for something during the weekend or live near a shop, try to go without your purse or wallet. If this is not possible then only carry as much money as you need for the trip in hand. This will help you to avoid temptation and keep your bank balance out of trouble.