What Type of Spender are You?

Everyone spends money. Whether you like it or not, whether you think it is good, bad or ugly, we all use it. You can learn a lot about what items lure you to spend money by taking a look at your habits. When you analyze your spending habits you can start to understand what type of spender you are.

Why do I need to know what type of spender I am?

Knowledge is power. You need to be armed with knowledge to control your finances. When you know what type of spender you are, you will know:

• The circumstances that make you tempted to purchase things that you don’t need
• What types of things that make you feel the best, even weeks after the purchase
• What you can and can’t cut out when you start budgeting

Figuring Out Your Spender Type

Step 1

In my personal finance class, we go through an exercise to figure out what type of spender everyone is. Since we are on the internet it’s just as easy to read this article by Kiplinger. It will tell you what category you fit into.

Step 2

That category will help you figure out what type of spender you are, but in order to really understand how and why you spend, grab a piece of paper and answer these questions:

What type of items do you usually buy?

Write down 10 non-necessities you bought within the last three months.

When you look back, are you still using the item?

On the list of non-necessities write down yes or no.

Looking back to what you bought within the past year, do you like everything you bought? What didn’t you feel happy with?

Try to figure out if you are really happy with 75% of your purchases. It can be an amazing thing to realize which purchases you have been happy with and which you haven’t.

Step 3

Look at the list and make up a name of what type of spender you are. Knowing a name for what type of spender you are will help when you go on your next shopping trip. When you go to purchase an item you can think to yourself, “Oh! This is another example of why I am a frugal shopaholic!”

In an instant, it will make you stop and help you categorize the purchase. Either it’s a necessity, something you really enjoy, or it’s filling the need that you have as a spender.

Type of Spenders – Examples

Are you normally very frugal yet seem to buy anything that is a good deal?

I’m a Frugal Shopaholic, but I save a ton of money!

Do you need to have the coolest gadgets, but may or may not use them all the time?

I’m an Infrequent Gizmo User, but I look cool!

Do you spend money on non-material items like going out to eat and coffee?

I’m an Experience Junkie, but it all tastes so good!

This doesn’t mean that you need to cut out every trip for coffee. It just makes you aware of what purchases you will be happy with later. It starts to set a priority for what is worth spending your money on. We want our money to provide us with the most bank for the buck, which means figuring out which purchase provide the best bang! 🙂

So tell me, what type of spender are you?

Tags: Budgeting, Debt Free, debt freedom, finances, Personal Finance

Categories: Budgeting, Debt Freedom, Finances, Goals, Personal Finance/Wealth

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