Page 17 - TODAY magazine Issue 1 2021

YOUR LIFE // FINANCIAL FREEDOM
Call a money-savvy friend and ask them to hold you accountable to not make an online purchase before the items have sat in your shopping cart for five days.
could bring a bit of joy, even if it’s just for a moment. The second best solution is to leave all your credit, cheque and debit cards at home. If you have them on you, you will find a way to talk yourself into buying something on the spot.
A statistic I found interesting and shocking at the same time shows that spending just R27.40 per day that you cannot account for equals R10 000 a year.
What if you decided here and now to start being more conscious of your spending and to save R30 per day? After 12 months, you will have built yourself a nice holiday fund to enjoy as you please... See, you can enjoy your money, you just have to plan well.
Practise the five-day rule
Even though lockdown doesn’t allow us to go out as much as before, many people still find a way to spend money through online shopping. Shopping online
is easy and convenient – your intention might be to simply browse, but before you know it, you’re at the checkout spending thousands of rands.
The solution to impulsive online shopping is to practise the five-day rule. This rule says that you must leave all items in your shopping cart for five days before checking out and paying. After five days
you will have hopefully cooled off, realised that you already have something similar or forgotten about it.
Set clear, inspiring financial goals
Having clear, definite and inspiring goals will help you to focus on your end goal. Even better, write them down on paper and stick it up somewhere you will see them on a regular basis. For example, if your goal is to become debt-free, make a list of all your debts (who you owe money to and how much), look at your budget and decide where you can cut back and save, and use that money to pay off your debt. Also work out the exact date on which each debt will be paid off and write it down. Every time you want to impulsively buy something, having SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, Time- based) goals will remind you that sacrificing the instant gratification will be worth it, as it will allow you to enjoy far greater gratification a little later.
If your SMART goal is to grow your money and make it work for you by starting to invest, remember that letting go of an impulse purchase will allow you to do just that so that you can eventually have the freedom to buy what you want when your investments have grown.
It’s not always easy to stop yourself from buying something on a whim. You will have to be aware and conscious of what you are feeling while at the same time thinking about your financial goals. If you can
do this, it will make it a lot easier to choose delayed gratification over gratification.
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PHOTOS: IMAGES: GALLO IMAGES/GETTY IMAGES