Put your credit cards away. Stop buying temporary gratification.
As much as we all dream of various “get rich quick schemes” the world really doesn’t work that way barring the occasional lottery winner. We dream of buying nice homes, going to dreamy destinations, eating gourmet foods, wearing designer clothes, driving luxury cars and enjoying an endless abundance of extravagant items and toys that will instantly make us happy. Unfortunately, in a quest to have all of those “things” in the immediate sense, we make financial decisions that actually prolong or eliminate any real opportunity to experience a debt free life and real financial freedom.
That’s the human condition that creates the paradox. We all want it now and behave impatiently. When we buy things before we can actually afford them (this is called debt) within the scope of a wealth plan, we really are taking a step backward, not a step forward in creating more wealth and obtaining financial freedom.
There are countless distractions from our long-term debt freedom everywhere we turn. Whether we turn on the TV, open a magazine, surf the internet, listen to the radio, or drive down the road and see a billboard, we are inundated with marketing initiatives dedicated to convincing us that if we were to buy a product or service right now, then we would be happy (and sexy, and powerful, and important, and unique).
One thing that is essential to being Debt Free is your ability to control instant gratification.
It takes long term commitment to say “NO” to thousands of invitations that will part you from your hard-earned money and sink your further into Debt.
Here are 4 helpful habits to help control that Instant Gratification Spending;
- Create priority lists– know what you want ahead of time and create priority lists. We all have unlimited wants, but we must balance those with limited financial resources. Wealthy people are very calculated on purchases to ensure that they are getting the best return on their limited financial resources. This also ensures that foolish impulse purchases don’t begin to pile up which is an indication of bad spending habits. There is nothing wrong with desiring nice things or luxury items. That is the reward of working hard. Our objective in life isn’t to punish ourselves and see who can perpetually sacrifice the most throughout an entire lifetime. Our objective is to maximize our inputs and outputs by behaving intelligently leading to a fuller and happier life.
2. Categorize purchases in personally important buckets that generate the most happiness for YOU– A favorite quote of mine regarding happiness is,
“Happiness is something to love, something to do, and something to look forward to.”
Hobbies are outstanding and bring joy to our lives. Hard work is important and critical for financial success but enjoying our free time is what it is all about. How we spend our free time and what hobbies we choose to pursue can greatly impact our long-term wealth accomplishments. Wealthy people that are the happiest tend to focus their purchases in very concentrated areas of their life that are important to them. Maybe their passion is triathlon, so the person concentrates their spending on carbon bikes, heart rate monitors, nutrition, coaches, and racing expenses. Maybe they like fishing, or camping, or riding their motorcycle. But the spending is within their budget and very concentrated. As a financial advisor, I know I have a behavioral case on my hands when I discover that the person is constantly purchasing what appears to be random items spread all over the place. An example would be a person who has a jet ski, a cabin in the woods, a golf membership, an antique automobile, a wood working shop in their basement, state of the art scuba gear, a motorcycle, a gun collection, and a pontoon boat. What ends up happening is the person just accumulates a massive collection of crap that never really gets used (or maintained) and the spending never stops because there is always some new item that they must have to be happy (while ignoring their last three dozen purchases).
3. Put yourself in timeout – Yes, I am being completely serious. Know this, we are all emotional creatures. We believe that we act logically, but that’s not reality. We act emotionally and then justify our actions logically.
Imagine this scenario. You are having a rough week at work. Your life is stagnating. You feel like everybody else around you is having so much fun in their lives. But not you. You are just grinding away, and it often feels like you are making little progress. You are driving down the road, and then something catches your eye. You are driving by a dealership that sells jet skis, and they are all lined up outside. They are sparkling. They look amazing. You start to imagine yourself up on the lake. The wind is in your hair. The water feels so refreshing. The sunshine warms your skin. Your friends all want to join you. You finally can have an outlet to have fun, relax, play, and be happy.
STOP!!! Put yourself in timeout…
We all are susceptible to purchases that are an attempt at immediate gratification. We want that escape. Retailers know this. From cars to clothes, to furniture, to items on display besides the checkout aisle, we are very susceptible to impulse purchases. Retailers cater to our desire towards enjoyment and happiness. They know that on any given day, potential customers may be having a moment of weakness. You may be tired, stressed, anxious, or bummed out by something negative that just occurred in your life. Retailers make it appear that if you will be instantly happy if you purchase the item AND you could save money by doing it because, “It’s an amazing deal, on sale, for a limited time, and there are limited quantities available.” Thus, you better purchase it right now or all of your attempts to reach happiness will be quickly pulled away.
STOP!!! Put yourself in timeout…
Take a mental snapshot of the inside of your garage, basement, and closets. How stacked and stuffed are these areas of your house from past impulse purchases? How many times have you purchased something only to move on to another item in a few days or weeks? What you thought was going to make you eternally happy was really just a whim and an expensive one at that. Waiting just a few days to make that purchase can mean all the difference in the world. Usually, when we wait, we often realize that we are so much happier that we DIDN’T make that impulse purchase. We don’t have the monthly payments. We don’t need more storage area for one more item. We also have the financial resources that can be allocated towards something else that will lead to increased happiness.
Sometimes the best path to happiness is learning how to say no and putting the brakes on to impulse purchases.
4. Keep Things Simple– A happy life is a simple life. That may not always be an inexpensive life but those that are happy and wealthy (and healthy) don’t spread themselves out too thin. I know a number of people that absolutely love their second home whether that is a mountain property, a lake house or a beach condo. But they still work hard to keep things simple and within their budgets. Many expensive items (like additional homes) require a lot of upkeep and maintenance. That requires staff and other professional services. It’s not uncommon for people to create such complicated lives all triggered by the endless pursuit of “more.” They never learn to relax or enjoy what they have because there is always another maintenance project to do or another professional services firm to supervise to get work done to maintain their possessions. The key is to enjoy luxuries that not only are within your means but help make your life happier and simpler, not more complicated and stressful.