Think, Before You Commit
In an earlier post, namely ‘Mental Money‘, we talked about the psychological effects of money relating to mental health and how it affects the chemical levels in our brains which therefore defines how we act.
Remember! It’s not who we are underneath, but what we do that defines us.
Did anybody get that film reference?!
Okay, nobody, moving swiftly on!
In this post, we’ll look at a simple 3-step thought process, which is something when mastered, can be very powerful when it comes to ‘checking out’ – whether it be in person or more often than not these days, online.
The Need, Want & Afford Method is straightforward, and it doesn’t take a genius to work out what each of the three elements relate to – But that’s not the point here! It’s about instilling a phrase without our minds which pops-up in our consciousness if we’re about to buy something which is almost ‘contrary’ to this very method. As an example, if we buy something which we didn’t need, couldn’t afford and didn’t want (rare), then it would go against the pillars of reason of our method.
The Need
This is one of those things where it’s going to be difficult to work out if you do really NEED something. If you ask yourself on the spot, as your dopamine levels are through the roof as you enter the checkout on Amazon, the answer 99.9% of the time is going to be yes, because you are almost in a state of euphoria.
However, this overload of chemical in our brain ensures we misconstrue what is truly required and creates a fog between reality and a little bubble world where we feel we need EVERYTHING we buy.
When we are in the above state, if possible, taking a step back (or even several) will give us the ability to use the method effectively, well, at this stage, at least the ‘need’ part of it.
Try and ask yourself questions like these:
– What would my life be like without this in it?
– Is this replacing an older model which still works fine, but maybe not perfectly?
– How will things change when I receive this in the post?
– Am I going to regret buying this? I.e. buyers remorse
– Do I really want to spend ‘x’ amount of this?
– Would my money be best spent elsewhere?
Okay, not all these questions are going to apply, but you get the picture. It’s as much about stepping back and contemplating the purchase, as it is about the questions themselves. These are our questions, there will be others which run through your brain at the time, if you can manage to pause for a few seconds and just think before pressing that ‘BUY NOW’ button!
The Want
This emotion is extremely strong.
We all want things from time to time, and whether we realise it or not, when we’re in that buying moment, and it’s something we want, not even the most powerful force in the world could pull us away from that checkout!
What exactly are we buying though?
Not in the literal sense, like a hat, laptop, or plant, but on the emotion side of things. For example, is there a hidden meaning behind why we are buying something?
boredom = buy something new
stressed = buy something comforting
low mood = buy something exciting
insecure = buy something ‘status’ defining
The list could endless, but those 4 feelings are possibly the most common. This then turns into impulse buying, because when we have these types of feelings, we turn to our credit cards for emotional support in the form of something ‘new’. The ‘want’ part of the method, is always going to be a strong emotion in these types of scenarios.
The Afford
This is not going to be something we can ever advise on, because it’s your money and your finances, but there are ways in which you can look at things a little differently.
It’s not as simple as having enough money in your bank to cover the payment, there’s a lot more grey areas in relation to being black and white.
Anybody can have sufficient money in their bank to be able to buy something from Amazon, because it’s an easy thing to do, but to be able to master the afford method, you need to look deeper into your finances and the consequences of purchasing something.
If you buy something for £5.00, and you’ve got £1m in the bank, it’s not going to make a difference, your lifestyle will NOT change. However, if you’re struggling with money, and in the same scenario, you’ve got £100.00 in the bank, it could and probably would make a big difference to your life.
The key word here, is relative. It’s like a comparison. How much you are spending compared to your bank balance at the time, what’s the percentage? In the latter scenario above, it’s 5%, which might not seem a lot, but if you do that a few times a week, every week for a month, at the end of the month, that £100 that you needed, has dwindled down into just £40.
So…
Do you need it?
Do you want it?
Can you afford if?
