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One afternoon at my job two years ago, an alert popped up on my phone: my paycheck had been deposited. It was a decent sum for a student, so I proceeded with my what I always did payday ritual: I opened every retail application on my phone. From Amazon to Zara, the list was endless. In under 60 minutes, I had parted with £90 on clothes, home decor and a completely unused heavy blanket that I never used.

A few days later, I went online again and bought a blow dryer. I already had one, but reasoned another couldn't hurt. Then I added LED strip lights and two shoes that didn't even fit me. This wasn’t new behaviour. In reality, I’d been infamous for it ever since I could afford to buy my own things.

Whenever I felt stressed, exhausted or bored, I would doomscroll until it always culminated in an unplanned shopping binge. My excuse was always: “It's only £5.” But £5 became £10, then £20, and so on.

I was never entirely certain why I did this. Maybe it was because I grew up in a poor family, where we’d go months without buying new clothes or anything to decorate the home. So any time I had extra money, there was always a hidden yearning for new and thrilling things. Or possibly, and definitely more likely, I was just bad with money and succumbed easily to the lure of demands.

The Game-Changing Strategy

In the end, I opted to experiment with something new. Before acquiring any item, I’d place it in my basket, delay for 24 hours, then make a choice on whether to finalize the purchase. The best part of this technique was that it provided me time to think – an action I’d never taken. For the first occasion since adulthood, I began asking myself: “Do I truly need this? Is it within my budget?” Most of the time, the response was negative.

If I accessed my shopping apps and discovered products lingering in my cart, I’d remove them and start fresh. By employing this system, I stopped acquiring things that I intuitively knew I would never utilize. I once wanted to purchasing three board games, but after a waiting period before visiting the store, I understood I never actually engage with tabletop games.

I also contemplated buy a single-use camera for my first trip to Croatia. After waiting I recalled I possessed a smartphone, like most people, that has a perfectly good lens, and thus had no requirement to acquire a separate device.

The Lasting Impact

It additionally means I am more discerning about the items I do purchase, and I can finally look at my financial records without experiencing guilt or embarrassment.

Naturally, there have been occasions I’ve slipped back into previous patterns – it's human nature. The key change is that I can identify the warning signs sooner, particularly when I’m rushing into a purchase. I’ve realised ennui is a powerful trigger. It’s perhaps the primary motivator of my impulsive spending.

Modern culture preys on this boredom and our desire for instant gratification. That’s the reason, in hindsight, forcing myself to halt before buying has felt strangely freeing. To be able to have control over my impulses and reaffirming that I don’t need to expend my diligently earned money on unnecessary products feels as radical as it is simple.