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A Financial Coaching Blog

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Writer's pictureTreavor Dodsworth CFP®, CPA, CKA®

SLOW IT DOWN

The American consumer lives in an outstanding time. In about 30 seconds, I can go from realizing we need dishwasher soap to purchasing dishwasher soap (for it to arrive that same day). Even more than that, I can have a subscription set up for it to continue arriving every three months thereafter automatically. While this is incredibly convenient, I wonder if it is helpful for our spending habits.


slow it down sloth

Credit card usage continues to rise as illustrated by a recent Visual Capitalist post. I wonder if part of this comes from the ease at which it is to make a purchase. Businesses love making it easy for you to make a quick purchase decision.


Even on this website, part of the mentality was how do I make this as easy and straightforward as possible for someone to realize they could benefit from financial coaching and then decide we are the fit for that need. Simple pricing structure, simple intake form, simple scheduling... make it easy.


While businesses generally want to make it easy and speed up your decision to buy, my encouragement is to intentionally slow it down. Make it harder. If you wait to make a purchase, there is a good chance you will realize that you don't need the item in the first place or find an alternative.


Personally, this is where I find myself spending money that I didn't need to. I don't love doing the initial research. This means I may overspend for an item. It also means I may try and solve a solution with a purchase that actually isn't a good fit (buying the wrong type of something).


Practical ideas:

  • Don't save your credit card information on sites. If you have to manually type in your information every time, it will slow you down.

  • Force yourself to price compare to at least three places prior to making a purchase.

  • Wait till the next day to make a purchase.

  • Talk to your spouse before every purchase over $25.

  • Think of three alternatives before purchase. For example, we could just wash our dishes by hand, use paper plates, etc. Not saying these will always be good alternatives but stopping to think may allow you to creatively come up with a lower price alternative.


Slowing down buying decisions can help reduce buyer's remorse and lower your overall spending.


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