“Oh, this is nice!”
*click*
“Hmm, I could do with this gadget in the house.”
*click*
“Oh my goodness, this colour is gorgeous!”
*click*
“Oh yes, my husband needs new socks.”
*click*
“He probably needs more than one pair.”
*click click click*
The result of all that clicking is 102 items in the cart. And oh my, another five parcels are being shipped to the house???
Have you recently been caught impulse shopping online? If you have, you’ll receive no judgement here because it is a very common way to manage the anxiety of being cooped up at home, both working and tending to your children. Then there is cooking, to which that impulse buy to get an air fryer and pressure cooker is definitely paying off.
While shopping online is one of the best ways to get a good deal while keeping safe from the virus dangers outside your front door, it is the case where too much of a good thing is not a good thing at all, especially when one turns to online shopping for temporary comfort.
Why?
Well, you might just end up with many things at home that you don’t use. It may also deplete your finances when this could be the best time to save money.
During the pre-COVID days, when we can still physically be in stores, the impulse to buy may be there, however, to part with the Ringgit notes in our wallet may be more difficult than looking at the digits on the screen and clicking ‘Confirm Purchase’.
So, if you think you are slipping down the slippery slope of overspending online, here are a few simple steps to draw boundaries and keep yourself in check!
Make it inconvenient
Online retail is on an exponential boom during COVID-19 because it makes us happy. When looking at all the pretty items you can own, the brain cells release dopamine, which makes us excited and motivates us to want to do something—and when you are scrolling through an online store, the only motivation is to click ‘Add to Cart’.
If you are not too far down the road of online shopping addiction, but see yourself going there if not regulated at an early stage, then it is time to make it inconvenient for you to shop.
Step one: Delete all the shopping applications from your mobile phone
Some might say this is outright radical, but honey, if sale messages keep pinging at you throughout the day, telling you about this new arrival, a brand new sale or something in your cart that you have not checked out, even those who are known to resist the greatest of temptations will cave in and take a look.
Step two: Delete traces of payment information
There is no need to save your credit card or debit card details at retail sites. If you really need the item, do the hard work, squint your eyes and type the 16 numbers out.
When you think of the hassle you have to go through to purchase an item, you’d realise that you don’t need it today—not yet, at least.
Step three: Clear your cart
What is left in your cart reminds you of what you could have bought, but have not—not yet. If your cart is empty, there is no way you can reminisce or even ponder if you should get it.
If you can’t remember what you added to your cart before, then you don’t really need it.
Set a shopping list
This next step requires discipline. For organised folks, you would usually shop with a shopping list on tow, but for those who like to live spontaneously, they prefer to wing it and see what they can buy in stores.
However, if you find yourself spiralling down the path of excessive online purchases and the courier deliveryman is your new-found best friend…
Girl, you need a shopping list!
- First, start with a monthly budget for online purchases.
- Second, have categories stating what you would need to purchase during the month. It can range from apparel, groceries, food deliveries and household needs.
- Third, fill in the categories.
- Fourth, go shopping but only buy items on the list and ensure it abides by the budget set. Anything beyond it goes to the next month. If there are contingencies, something in the list has to be brought forward and bought the next month.
That way, you stay accountable to your budget, save money and avoid cluttering your home with unnecessary items bought on a whim.
Replace the urge
Why do we seem to find it difficult to resist the urge to go online shopping? A big part of it is due to our emotions.
When it is a rough day – your clients are getting on your nerves, your boss calling for a redundant meeting, your baby starts getting colicky…
Sigh.
A little retail therapy does seem like a treat.
But if you find yourself treating yourself every other day to manage the stress, it is time to replace that urge with something friendlier to the wallet. This calls for unlearning the default reliance on online shopping by learning and forming a new, healthier habit. Psychologists call it the Habit Replacement Loop (HRL).
When you feel stressed out and consider clicking on an online store to shop, stop yourself and replace that urge with something else. It can be yoga, a quick run around the neighbourhood, trimming your plants or dropping some essential oils into the diffuser.
You may give in to temptation sometimes, but don’t let that slip up equal defeat. Sustain the change long enough, and you will see HRL succeed in this area of your life!
The best time to start is now
It is time to enlist yourself in an army as soldiers who will march away from new arrivals, sales and best deals. While you sometimes have to approach ‘enemy territory’ to purchase needed items for your household, arm yourself with a shopping list and a budget so you won’t be struck down by pretty and useful gadgets that make you go ‘OMG, I NEED THIS!‘ because… do you REALLY need it?
So ladies, onward march to less shopping and more saving!
For more interesting stories and fun recipes, stay tuned to Motherhood Story!