Find meaning in your life that provides a dopamine hit that doesn’t include spending.

Took having a kid for me to overcome it. Wouldn’t recommend that for most people though. Now I really like seeing my networth go up.

You want to ask yourself why spending makes you feel so good. You also want to ask yourself why you’re getting out of debt. What will you do when you don’t owe anyone anything? What will it feel like when you can just go buy something for cash instead of running up credit card balance?

You want to have a clear reason why you’re getting out of debt, and when you do something financially that causes you to go the wrong way, remind yourself that you’re hurting your progress towards those goals.

This takes some serious thinking. Your goals have to be so vivid and so strong that you won’t want anything to get in your way of achieving it.

1. I became a minimalist. I wanted to have fewer things but at high quality that would last.
2. I set aside money in my budget (after savings and essentials) for a treat each month. If what I want costs more than my monthly allotment, I just rollover treat money until I have enough to get what I want, whether it's jewelry, electronics, tools, clothes, whatever. It a great feeling to treat myself to items that make my life enjoyable and I like sacrificing and waiting until I have accumulated enough play money for it.

When do you spend? Can you avoid those situations?

I spend when I have too much free time, when I am feeling bored or lonely. I keep a list of free and inexpensive activities posted on my door and in my car. I’ve also purchased annual passes to museum, zoo, botanical garden, city recreation’s pottery studio program, etc. This morning I packed lunch and biked to the zoo to eat lunch with the lions. Kept me away from both online shopping and coffee shops.

Best way to break out of spending habits is to make timelines for achieving certain financial goals (for example, I want to have a $10,000 emergency fund saved in 18 months).

Then automate your short term savings, long term savings (retirement accounts) and your monthly bills. Have those specific amounts automatically deducted out of every paycheck. This will force you to reach your savings goals and now you can only spend what’s left in your checking account.

I also recommend YNAB not only for budgeting but also to forecast your future spending and savings.

Every time you are wasteful with your money you’re going backwards. The goal should be to preserve your wealth. It’s the only way to set up a secure financial future and nobody is going to do it for you.

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When you feel the urge to buy something, put it back and say I will buy it tomorrow. When tomorrow comes, ask yourself if you still need it. Then wait another day and if you still really need it, buy it then on the third day.

I found that tracking every single expense and setting a budget was the best way at preventing overspending. You won’t overspend if you know exactly how much money you have and you will prioritize things that you need more than want.

Given COVID, it’s kind of messy…but pay for everything in cash. We have a psychological connection to cash unlike the abstract notion of “credit”, so you’re less likely to part with cash than you would swiping. If cash doesn’t work, try debit card and tracking your purchases. Each time you feel the “urge” to spend, transfer $5 from your checking account to a high yield savings account.