Posted by Fitz Villafuerte under Money Saving Tips, Personal Finance on May 13, 2016
“So
where are we eating lunch?” a friend asks.
“I’m
okay anywhere, as long as it’s not too expensive,” another friend replies.
“How
about at the food court?” I proposed. Everyone agreed and the four of us walked
towards the mall’s food court.
A few
meters later, we passed by an Italian restaurant which was having a 50% promo
discount on their pizza.
“Hey, let’s just eat here,” one of my
friends suggests.
“Yeah,
we’ll save money because of the promo,” one comments and it was a unanimous
decision.
An
hour later, our bill was around P1100 or P275 per person — not bad for a meal
at the mall. However, if you think about it, did we really save money by eating
there?
If our
intention was to eat there in the first place, then yes we would have saved
money.
We
were already set to eat at the food court, where a typical meal costs only P200
or less. But we didn’t, so in reality, we actually spent more than we could
have.
Many times, we experience similar
moments and believe that our choices helped us save some money but the truth is
far from it.
It’s easy to make such mistakes
because they often occur when we are in a positive emotional state —
excitement, surprise, delight, etc. — that often clouds our logical thinking.
Just consider these three
scenarios and tell me if they’re all too familiar.
Buying something that’s on SALE
A popular boutique was having a
SALE and you were able to buy a pair of jeans at 30% discount. Isn’t that a
bargain?
Yes, you saved money if you
really needed to buy a pair of jeans. But if that was an impulsive buy, then
you actually spent more than you could have.
If you bought something worth
P1000 for only P700 — you did not save P300, you spent P700 — on something you
don’t really need.
Don’t buy a pair of jeans and
keep 100% of your money instead.
Buying a
cheaper alternative
My mom was at the department
store looking at some bedsheets. She saw one that she likes but she thinks it’s
a bit expensive.
The saleswoman then showed her a
similar, but more affordable bedsheet. Her face lit up and she decided to buy
it.
She proudly showed me her
purchase and said that she saved a few hundred pesos because she found a
cheaper alternative to the one she likes. I asked her if we really needed new
bedsheets, and she said, “Not really. But this one’s so nice, right?”
“Yes, it is,” I replied while
thinking that the cheapest alternative was not to buy a bedsheet at all.
And of course, I didn’t tell her
that — good thing she could afford it anyway.
Buying on deferred payment
A
friend just bought a new camera and was proudly showing it to us.
“Do
you know what’s great? I was able to save money because this was available at
0% interest for 6 months installment,” he announced.
Regardless
if he needed a new camera or not, he didn’t really save money by deferring
payment in my opinion — he just delayed the inevitable spending for several
months.
Moreover,
if he doesn’t make full payment on his monthly dues, then he will eventually
have to pay credit card interest fees and spend more than he ought to.
I
didn’t want to ruin my friend’s mood, so I kept quiet and simply admired his
camera. But I do hope he reads this post.
The
point is…
Don’t
justify your unplanned purchases with an illogical reason that you saved money
because it was on SALE or because you were able to get it on installment
payments.
If you
don’t need it, then don’t buy it — this is the best course of action. However,
if it’s something you really want, then plan your budget and see how you can
afford it.
Don’t
buy unnecessary stuff on impulse because this is the shortest way to go into
debt. And lastly, if you really want to save money, then the easiest way is to
simply ‘pay yourself first’.
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