Why Are You Over Spending?

Many of us have a problem with over spending. You get to the end of the month and realize that you don’t have enough money. Out come the credit cards. In some cases, you might even have a budget or spending plan meant to help you limit your spending — and still you might spend more than you really want to.

Before you can fix your problem with over spending, you need to determine the “why” behind regularly exceeding your income each month. Here are some possible reasons that you might be over spending:

Not Keeping Track of Your Spending

Even if you have a budget, you might not be tracking your spending as closely as you should be. I used to keep track of my checking account spending, without paying as much attention to credit card spending. Other times, it’s easy to forget to add online purchases to your ledger, or to your personal finance software. And, even though there are ways to automatically update with apps that get information from your bank account, there can sometimes be a delay before your available balance is properly updated.

You will be less inclined to over spend if you truly know how much you have spent, and how much you have left. Make sure to track your spending so you can keep your expenditures under control.

Looking for an Emotional Boost

For some people, spending provides an emotional boost. If you have been under emotional stress, it can lead to over spending. You might be tracking your expenses, but being under stress can result in spending more than you had planned — and not caring very much.

Shopping can offer stress relief, and even if money is the source of stress, spending more can be a way to cope with worries about finances. When you know that you have certain triggers, it’s best to avoid them, and it is important to make the effort to avoid shopping while emotionally compromised.

Don’t Want to Wait