How Gratitude Can Help You Spend Less
Practicing greater gratitude this holiday season may help keep the impulse buys away. Here's why, and what you can do to add more gratitude in your life.
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When it comes to advice on boosting your financial wellness, common pointers such as "save for an emergency fund" and "create a budget" are widely circulated—and for good reason. But what about gratitude? It turns out there's a psychological link between gratitude and financial wellness.
Here, we'll take a closer look at how practicing gratitude can help you spend less and improve your financial situation:
Gratitude can reduce impulse buys
Have you ever bought an item on a whim? Well, you're certainly not alone. A recent survey reveals that 36% of shoppers admitted that most purchases were impulsive. And that impulsivity, coupled with favoring smaller, immediate gratification over larger, long-term gratification, can be a one-two punch that can lead to overspending and potentially credit card debt.
Interestingly, another study reveals that feeling grateful for what you already have helps you feel satisfied and fulfilled, and may help you spend less. In the study, participants who reported deeper gratitude favored a larger amount of money they would receive in a delayed payment in three months. Conversely, those who experienced less gratitude chose the smaller amount of money they would receive immediately.
These feelings of contentment point you to focus on the abundance in your current life. In turn, you'll have greater patience—and can reduce economic impatience. In other words, you won't be as prone to shop impulsively.
Patience helps with financial planning
By having greater economic patience, you'll stave off the compulsion to buy something on a whim—which can hurt your pocketbook and long-term financial goals. You'll be able to focus on the long game, which can lead to more considerable gains.
For instance, instead of splurging on food delivery when you're feeling depressed, anxious, or bored, you'll have more money to put toward a larger, more meaningful goal, such as saving for a new computer, vacation, or a down payment on a home.
Willpower might not always do the trick
The study already revealed that having willpower and discipline isn't foolproof; sometimes, it can lead to negative outcomes. Plus, when we're exhausted, depressed, anxious, or when our mental or emotional battery is running low, we might not have the time, energy, or motivation to self-regulate, which can lead to emotional spending. We've all been there: knowing full well that we shouldn't load our online shopping carts with stuff we don't need or our grocery cart with cookies, candy, or other savory treats.
Keep a gratitude journal
So, how can we boost gratitude and reduce our impatience around our spending decisions? To start, you can experience feelings of gratitude by jotting down what you're grateful for each day. Or, you can journal about a time you experienced feeling gratitude, abundance, and deep feelings of joy and contentment.
Focus on events that popped up in your life that seemed out-of-the-blue, or surprising. Focus on the details and sensations. What do you remember? How did you feel?
Avoid shopping when feeling sad
When we're feeling sad or anxious, retail therapy can offer a much-needed boost of dopamine—but with a cost. To avoid unnecessary purchases that deter you from your money goals and overall financial wellness, try to shop when you're in a good headspace.
Avoid spending when taking a break from working at a computer, or when you're suffering from insomnia and endless scrolling social media in the middle of the night.
Besides having overall feel-good vibes, infusing a bit of gratitude regularly can stave off impulse buys and help you spend less, which can help you make slow and steady progress toward those important, meaningful long-term goals.
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Jackie Lam is a personal finance writer whose work has appeared in Salon, Business Insider, and GOOD.