As I admitted recently to the Simply Money class, I am an Olympic class spender. This saving thing is still new to me.
Money stresses--solved! Try these easy steps to take charge of your finances.So, as I contemplated a free lunch hour after my appointment--near shoe, clothing, kitchen and antique stores!--I had to talk myself out of going shopping. And I realized that I have quite a mental routine going. Here, some of my anti-shopping mantras:
1) "You don't need X, you already have X. Yes you do."
2) "You're not even going INTO that store. Not even. No. You know what will happen. If you go there, it's a downward spiral." P.S. The "shopping momentum effect" has been verified by researchers. From Yale.
3) [In case you inevitably go INTO that store, which I did.] "Yes, it's a beautiful scarf. Yes, it's only $12. Yes, you could buy that. BUT WHY DO YOU WANT TO BUY IT? Do you need a scarf? Didn't you just buy a scarf recently? Or do you have a pathological need to experience the thrill of spending $12 FOR NOTHING?"
And, in the end, all I bought was lunch: $4.89.
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