Nowadays there seem to be a perpetual number of good deals and discounts available online. This happens especially at the time of the Amazon and Flipkart Big billion sales events but also in other sales on other platforms that happen all year round.
Sometimes it’s not even a discount that entices you to buy a product – it could be a steady stream of ads you see on TV – or maybe your favorite YouTube or Instagram influencer is talking up a product.
Suddenly, before you know it, all you want to do is buy that product or service. I myself am particularly susceptible to this when it comes to coffee machines and accessories. I have always been a big fan of them and so I love to look at reviews of them online. Every month I have a new method of making coffee that I want to try out.
When I think about my own financial goals, I have no need to purchase any of these gadgets or accessories. I am perfectly happy with my existing albeit boring setup. And luckily for me many of these products cost enough to be a deterrent from making even a single purchase. But the temptation is always there – and that temptation increases when there is so much easy financing available.
This phenomenon happens to all of us. And, if we see money lying in our savings account then it gets easy to justify spending that money – what could be the harm, we have already got the funds for it. But this is where the catch is – if you spend that money today, you might not be able to spend on something that is more important tomorrow.
If you have a clearly defined goal and create a strategy to meet it, then the likelihood of you getting tempted to spend money lying in your bank accounts goes down. If I know that I need to change my 10-year-old laptop and it’s going to cost me a bit of money, I will probably make every effort to save up for it and until I meet my goal, I am unlikely to spend money on frivolous purchases. This is why clearly defining financial goals and saving up for them is important.