Emotional Spending: The Great Poinsettia Purchase

I had a Mary Kay party last week and in preparation, I went to the grocery store the day of the party. I was feeling stressed about getting everything done and a little guilty that I hadn’t gotten any of my Christmas decorations up.

I got everything on my list and was ready to check out when I saw the Poinsettias. They were 2 for $10. Poinsettias are one of my favorite things at Christmas. I walked out with four of them. It was only $20 and they made me feel so much better.

Only $20. No big deal right? It’s not that much but it’s half of my savings goal for the week. It would have paid for a Christmas present for one of the grandkids. It would have almost made the minimum payment on the smallest of my credit cards. And they definitely weren’t in my budget.

I don’t know whether you call it emotional spending or just an impulse purchase but it has made me think about the reason that I buy things. And yes, I think it does have a lot to do with emotions. I was feeling stressed because I had a full day at work and company coming, food to prepare, final cleaning to do, and guilty because I had wanted to get my decorations up before the party. The poinsettias just happened to be in the right place at the right time. I certainly didn’t NEED them. Buying them made me feel better.

There are a lot of articles out there on emotional spending. Most of them say, Don’t Do It. Use your head not your heart. It’s great advice and I always remember it as I am walking out the door with my new purchase.

Here are my plans to curb my impulse spending:

1. Leave the debit card at home. The debit card gets me into more trouble when I am doing my day to day shopping than anything else. It’s almost like it is not real money. It just comes out of that big green void.

2. Make a list and stick to it when I go shopping. This means a written list, not the one in my head that can magically add things that I “forgot” or absolutely cannot live without. Take enough money to pay for the things on the list and no extra.

3. If I see something that I “have to buy”, wait and go back the next day. For me this will work because stores are at least a 10 mile drive and usually 35 miles for anything but basic groceries. Gas is so costly that driving back is not likely unless I really have to have it.

4. Try not to shop at all if I am feeling stressed. Try not to “reward” myself with those little goodies for being good or having a few extra dollars. Those dollars could earn their keep elsewhere for the time being.

5. Don’t beat myself up about it emotionally if I slip up. The poinsettias are beautiful. I am going to enjoy them and not feel guilty every time I look at them. But they are a reminder and that is as it should be.

I am getting better about impulse spending. I have been putting so much time into budgeting and focus on the blog that it keeps it top of mind. At least when I am not out of my mind.

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