Mindful Spending

on November 15, 2021 / by Financial Mindfulness

Mindful spending.

Being a mindful spender is not about restricting your spending, but being conscious of how, when and where you spend your cash.

“Marketing tactics such as one time only sales offerings, promotions and discounts are all designed to get us to spend big,” says Lea Clothier, a money behaviour coach who helped design the Financial Mindfulness program.

“Tactics such as the use of time, or volume-based limitations and ‘buy now or miss out’ messages create a sense of scarcity and trigger a fear of missing out (FOMO).”

Creating a perception of scarcity is a successful way of making goods and services seem more appealing. Big companies spend millions unlocking the psychology of shoppers, because doing so is worth billions.

Generally, red flags include words, phrases, and images such as:

1. for a limited time only;
2. 24-hour sale;
3. hurry;
4. don’t miss out; and
5. any symbol suggesting a countdown, such as a clock.

Once we become familiar with these tactics, we can better understand what drives our behaviour with spending.

This article shares some strategies to help you create more awareness of your spending patterns and become a more mindful spender.