Reasons for Overspending

I will admit, I have a spending problem. I mean, clearly I do. But why? My parents are incredibly fiscally responsible, I learned financial basics at a young age. I have had good jobs to afford what I NEED (vs. what I want and don't need like those shoes on sale at Nordstrom).

I read this awesome article on Chime.com that really goes into a few basics of the underlying reasons for overspending. I am not trying to make myself feel better here, I made a huge mess for myself. But it is an interesting read. 

Full article can  be found here:  https://www.chimebank.com/2017/02/08/5-reasons-for-overspending-and-how-to-stop/

Basics concepts from the article are below. I definitely know I have wanted to keep up with the crowd. But now that I think about all the times I wasted money doing that, it feels so dumb. My friends love me for me, and would not love me any less if I said no I can't afford that, no I don't want to contribute to that bottle of red wine (I don't even LIKE red wine!!!!). 

We Want to Keep Up with the Crowd

Using Credit Cards Makes it Way Too Easy

We Forget to Budget for Special Occasions

We Get Bored

The Ripple Effect of Buying New Stuff

1. Imagine you’re out to dinner with friends and everyone orders the rare expensive glass of wine. Chances are you will follow-suit so you don’t miss out on the experience. It stems from the tribal mentality we all inherited from our human ancestors. Being the one person who voices opposition to a group plan because of the high price is not easy to do. If you do speak up, you may feel like a spotlight is placed on you and everyone else is judging your decision. It may be much easier to go along with everyone else, but unfortunately, it’s a major reason we overspend.
2. Credit cards give an allure that you can “pay for it later”. You promise yourself you’ll pay off your credit card right away, but it seems that every time you run up a balance, something else comes up that you haven’t pay for. So, it’s convenient to simply pull out your card again and pay for it. The cycle continues until your spending is spiraling out of control and you’re drowning in stress and debt. 
3. It’s easy to make a purchase and chalk it up to a “special occasion.” The next thing you know, special occasions start popping up left and right: a wedding, birthday, the vacation you desperately need. Suddenly living beyond your means because there’s always something coming up that you didn’t plan.
4. Boredom is another common trap that can lead to overspending. You may love meandering through shops on a weekend just to “kill time,” but the problem is that you usually end up spending money you’d hadn’t planned on spending. Even if you only spend a few dollars on a quick bite, it’s not a good idea to tempt yourself when you haven’t budgeted for boredom shopping.
5. Have you ever thought that you just needed to make one purchase, like a new couch, and then suddenly you’ve spent thousands of dollars remodeling the entire living room?

What about you? Do any of these situations apply to you? IMO, it is super important to ID the WHY behind your overspending in order to fix the problem you are in.