You need it?
"Do I need it?" – ask yourself this question every time you feel that you are going to buy an expensive thing, the need for which is questioned. In 9 of 10 cases you go into a Shoe store, not because the old boots were worn out to such an extent that the sole has already come unstuck, and in the toe hole. No, you go there lured by the model on display in the window, or a large poster, on which was written the magic word all shopaholics "SALE". You go to the salon, just looking around, touching a hand to a gentle suede or at least a pleasant touch to the skin trendy colors. You do not notice how in the cells of the brain releases a substance called "dopamine". You have an overwhelming desire to see the boots on your feet, while you try on shoes, dopamine continues to be developed, but you feel a slight arousal and excitement. The same thing happens to you when you are on a first date with a man who is nice to you.
What is dopamine and how it affect you? Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that produces a feeling of pleasure or satisfaction. Those pleasant feelings that a person feels on a date, in a restaurant while browsing the menu or in the shop, the action of dopamine. Its peak production dopamine reaches, when people feel the taste of the first piece of juicy steak, for the lips of the one who was sympathetic to him, or paying for your purchase.
Back to the Shoe Department where you stand in front of a large mirror that shows you in full length, but looking at a single item – a new pair of boots. The level of dopamine in this moment three times more than when these boots were looking at you from shop Windows. You like this easy arousal, and not because you feel an urgent need for a new pair of boots, but because you just want it. A wave of pleasure will wash over you when you hold the card on the terminal or pay for purchases in cash, then the seller will hand you the boots, neatly Packed in a box and nice bag rustling. From these feelings will be over in a couple of days when new shoes that day before yesterday approached everything in your wardrobe, will join the rest of the shoes in the closet.
But while you are still standing at the window or the mirror in the new boots, feeling that now will go to the checkout, ask yourself: do I need these boots?
A new gadget or adventure?
You thought about the fact that all the foolish purchases made under the influence of dopamine, deprive you of what you dream? For example, walking through the historic streets of St. Petersburg will give you much more than buying a new smartphone or clothing.
Beautiful urban landscapes, familiarity with the works of the great masters, hiding in the walls of the Winter Palace, lunch in a cozy cafe – even a two-day weekend in Saint-Petersburg you will remember for several months. The new smartphone will bring you so much joy and bright impressions, as familiarity with the new terrain. After a couple of months you will be obsessed with the idea of buying a new gadget, which is a few grams lighter and a few millimeters thinner.
Look inside your heart and ask yourself what you really want. There is no person who wouldn dream to see the world, extending beyond the boundaries of his hometown. But even a short trip seem impossible due to limitations in finances. This implies another question: why these restrictions do not prevent to update your gadgets every six months or buy unnecessary clothes for sale?
How not to deviate from our path?
Save up for a trip or another purpose snap, if you build a plan and to follow it. Agree with yourself every month to postpone the N-th sum of money on a dream. Adequately assess your capabilities: let the sum does not exceed the cost of bags that you can afford to buy on impulse.
And how not to give in to temptation? How not to take off to the store after viewing the presentation of the new Iphone? How not to go to the Shoe Department, if large white letters on a glaring red background says "SALE"? Stop watching the presentation of the new smartphones, unsubscribe from promotional mailings, stop spending every weekend in shopping malls, where it is difficult to avoid the temptation to go to another store. Wanted new jeans or headphones? Remember to think about your goal and fill the piggy Bank exactly as much, how much is your new fad.
You will not notice how harmful the habit of spending money on unnecessary things will disappear, and the reward in the form of a long-awaited trip will quickly make you forget how hard it was to pass by the shop Windows, inviting you to look at the news.