Online shopping isn’t just a convenient way to get the things you need. It’s a hobby. Whenever you’re bored or stressed out, you scroll through retail sites and, before you know it, you’re filling up your digital shopping cart and pressing the “buy now” button.
While there’s nothing wrong with online shopping in general, making a habit of it can be a big problem.
What’s Wrong with Your Online Shopping Habits?
A bad online shopping habit could get you into serious financial trouble. You might not have enough in your bank account to cover your bills for the month. You could rack up credit card debt and reach the limit. You could go into overdraft.
If you don’t get control of your online spending, you could put yourself in a really vulnerable spot. You don’t want to go on a major shopping spree and then get hit with an emergency expense that you can’t fit on your credit card anymore. And what if you can’t wait until your next paycheck to deal with the problem? In this case, you could apply for Texas loans online to help you manage an emergency cost in a short amount of time. That way, you could handle the problem before your next paycheck and deal with the repayments later on.
You should only apply for loans online in Texas when you’re dealing with emergencies. Small problems that can wait for your next paycheck to clear don’t count — and shopping sprees certainly don’t either.
So, how can you break your online shopping habits for the sake of your finances?
1. Leave It Alone
One simple thing that you can do is leave your items in the digital shopping cart for 24-48 hours. This will stop you from buying something on impulse. You might be surprised that you’d rather save the money and delete the items from your cart when the wait-time is over.
2. Remove Your Information
Remove your credit card information from shopping sites and apps. Essentially, you want to make it a little harder to purchase things on impulse. Now you’ll have to go hunting for your credit card, pull it out of your wallet and fill out the tabs. Make the process inconvenient instead of effortless.
3. Find a New Habit
Lots of Americans are practicing retail therapy to cope with feelings of boredom, stress and anxiety during the pandemic. They find that spending their money and having brand-new items delivered to their doorstep makes them feel a little better.
If you’re noticing that you’re using retail therapy to cope, you should try to find a newer, savvier habit to deal with these negative feelings.
Remember: the easiest way to break a bad habit is to replace it with a better one. You won’t feel like you’ve lost out — you’ll feel like you’ve gained something instead. So, when you’re getting an urge to shop, why not do something else? Look up some cool hobbies to try at home to see whether any of them pique your interest. Go for a walk. Call a friend. The possibilities are endless.
You don’t have to lock your smartphone in a safe to take control of your online shopping. These three simple tips should help you break the bad habit for good.