Spending and Your Feelings-How to Avoid Letting “Feeling Depressed” Adversely Affect Your Personal Finances

A recent article on Time magazine’s website described an experiment in which two separate groups were asked to look at two separate videos, one considered “depressing” and the other “neutral”. Each group was then asked how much they would spend on a certain item (an insulated water bottle). The group who watched the depressing video was likely to pay 4 times as much ($2.00 vs. $0.50) than the other group. The article described shopping when depressed as similar to “grocery shopping on an empty stomach” , which frugal people know to avoid as it can cause overspending. It went on to say that people overspend to boost their “devalued sense of self”, and this could be avoided by turning focus away from oneself.

Here are 5 Tips to Take Your Mind Off Yourself and Avoid Overspending:

Exercise- exercise produces natural endorphins, gets the blood flowing, and generally makes you feel better.
Call a Friend-Most people have at least one person, a friend or relative, with whom every time you talk to them you end up feeling better. Call that person.
Plan a Cheap Outing-Do something or go somewhere that doesn’t cost money (Go on a day trip, plan a picnic, take the family to the park or the dog for a long walk.)
Volunteer-Giving your time to those less fortunate than yourself can make you feel better.
Focus on your Goals- Don’t waste time thinking about your situation now, focus on how you will improve it for tomorrow-and everyday after that-until you achieve your goals-whether it be getting out of debt, weight loss, or other personal or professional goals.