How to NOT Get Ripped Off

Know you much you can spend. Keep track of your money!

Whether this means checking in to your online bank account before you go shopping, calling your bank, keeping a budget, or insisting your friend keep you from spending over X amount, do it. DO IT.

Do not go into an outing or a shopping trip and not know how much money you have. I don't meant that you have to memorize your bank account amount, though if that helps you, go ahead. What I mean is, know what is your minimum amount that you can spend on whatever you plan to buy, and most definitely know what is your maximum. If you aren't going out with plans to buy a particular thing, knowing how much you can spend is still important. It helps you to be smart in your spending.

You may have a good amount of money, and therefore you feel like you are free to spend whatever you want on anything. But if that were the case, then you wouldn't be reading this.

Please, contain yourself.

The "Urge to Splurge" has fallen upon many an innocent victim and ravaged them to pieces. That is Urge to Splurge's job. But you can get scot free and safe, away from the sensors of the Urge, by remaining strong. Knowing how much money you have, and keeping it in your awareness as you shop, is very important. Just by knowing that you simply CAN'T spend another penny (even on something as fantastic as THAT, ooh!) will help to ground you in reality.

The Urge to Splurge comes from the illusion that reality has stepped into the loo for a moment and isn't looking. This is wrong. Reality is always breathing down your neck. Sorry. Keep aware of the facts (that you simply CANNOT spend more today), and you and reality may become reluctant but passable friends.

This leads me to my next tip:

Often, you find yourself buying something because friends and family are with you. Perhaps one of them says, "That dress is SO you!" or "You don't have one in that color" or "I love it!", etc. You may have only been contemplating your purchase; you may not have even considered buying the thing at all. Suddenly, you hear something from a friend or family member, and the next thing you know, you are whipping out your cash or credit card!

Do not listen to them. But it's so hard! They make such good arguments! What do I do?

What you do is, you listen to yourself. If you feel at ALL that YOU are not the one making this purchase decision, that someone else is, this means that you should think again about making the purchase. Your money is absolutely yours to spend, and this is the bottom line. No matter how fantastic someone else may think an item is for you, what it comes down to is you. YOUR money is going to go into that item, and whether another person wants you to get it or not is not what is most important. What is most important is YOU want to buy it, you know you can afford it, and you have not been splurging all day with this being another item to an already long list.

How do you not let others influence you? Know that this decision is yours. That is right, DECISION. BE DECISIVE. This is your money, and while you are free to waffle on a purchase and hem and haw as long as you want, doing so will more likely than not, NOT help you save money. Instead, your indecisiveness may make you more susceptible to outside influences, such as "friendly" suggestions from people you know. These suggestions may seem friendly to you, but are they friendly to your bank account?

It is very difficult at times to be decisive, but in this situation, it is a must. You know what you can spend. I suggest that if there are doubts on a purchase, instead of making your first move be asking a friend, think hard on how this purchase might affect your money. That is how to make a purchase decision that ultimately will leave YOU satisfied. It is not about your friends or family; this is a matter between you and your bank account!

I am not saying it is awful to ask a friend or family for help in deciding. Often this can be helpful. But I will advise not to use this method as a crutch. One day you will be the sole person standing in a store trying to make a purchasing decision, and if you have depended on friends or family to help you decide before, you will now be at an utter loss. Instead of creating this predicament for yourself in the future, be decisive and personal about your purchasing decisions, giving yourself time to think alone and assess the situation. Then you will walk out of the store satisfied and will have no regrets.

"Others" also includes the salesperson. Of course they want you to buy their item. Of course it is high quality. Of course it just what you want, or need, and it is the best, blah blah blah blah blah...stop right there. Step away from the counter top. Give yourself a moment. Without that insistent, drilling voice of "others" in your head, with their agendas of "get money" or "hurry up my friend" or "I want to heeellpp", give yourself a moment to think. Do you really want or need this? Is it practical for your current budget? Ask yourself these questions, and then make a firm and final decision.

This may be a very obvious tip, but it is necessary. When you are looking at an item you are considering buying, and you have assessed yourself, your budget, and if you really need or want it (without "outside help"), another step is to look at the price.

Think about what an item like this might cost reasonably, in your opinion, or even better, according to statistics and research. But as I doubt you will find a computer where you can look up comparable prices right there in the store, it's usually more about what YOU think this item should cost. Haggling isn't big these days; fixed rates are extremely common (of course, it differs from country to country sometimes). Are you willing to spend the price on the item's price tag? If not, put it down.

That's all you have to ask yourself, really. You don't have to ask what others might spend, or think, or moan or groan about being a cheapo, or do any should/could/would dance. Just ask yourself: Am I willing to spend this much? This is after you have assessed how much money you have, how much YOU desire/need this item, and made sure that you haven't splurged and gone into the "Danger Zone". If you are pleased with the price, then you are ready.

I would like to acknowledge that, of course, there are times where the price isn't QUITE right but the pros weighed against that con are so numerous that you are willing to buy the item anyway. That happens, and it is fine (although if it happens a lot, you may need to be more careful about the "Urge to Splurge"). Mainly this lens section is addressing the fact that you should be willing to pay the price (or look past it for good reason), and oftentimes the price may make or break the decision for you on whether you want to buy or not.

Price is a very important part of NOT getting ripped off. If you don't like the price and STILL you make that purchase, you probably fall into one of these categories if not all: 1) You are not paying attention to your current budget 2) You have possible splurging habits 3) You let others control your final purchasing decisions, 4) You are ignoring that quiet, though not always existent, "I am bullshitting myself" alarm in your head. If 4 is you, I can help you! See the next section.

Okay, so you have a big problem here. You may have done or not done the previous tips, but guess what? They aren't helping you one wee bit, because when you are in the moment, you bullshit yourself that "It's okay", "I can do this", "I'll earn it back fast", "I want it too badly!" etc. There are so many "reasons" you can come up with. So, how can I help you?

Understand that these little "reasons" for making this expensive, unnecessary purchase are not "reasons". They are excuses. Part of your brain has already told you, "Don't do this", and yet another part says, "Do it!" This second part is creating excuses for the "Don't" part to make the purchase anyway. It is ignoring the loud bullshit alarm going off in your brain.

How to not bullshit yourself? Just don't listen. Pay attention to all of the ideas and reactions that are coming into your brain in those moments or minutes before you MIGHT make a purchase. Don't ignore any part of your reactions, and that includes the bullshit alarm. Listen to that siren ringing in your head, and realize that the "Don't do this" part of your brain is right, because you've assessed your budget, your self, the price, and you actually DO NOT need or want this enough for that price to be worth it. You DO NOT want to be ripped off. Realize this, listen to this part of yourself, and in doing so you will actually be BRAVE, and not cowardly. It is easy to bullshit yourself into buying tons of stuff. It is not easy to walk away. It is not easy, but it is worth it. You will end up much happier for not having been ripped off!

You have used all of the above tips. You walk out of the store and you drive home. You enter your home and you realize, "I spent no money today. I have nothing new that I brought back with me."

It may seem sad at first. It may seem awfully boring. But you know what? It's better for you, in the short and long run. You just saved money! You were not ripped off. Was it easy? No. Was it fun? Not really. But was it worth it? Yes, yes, and YES!!

Now you have MORE money to spend on worthwhile purchases! Do a happy dance! Now's the time, that's right, I said, DANCE!!

This above little description is of your future, whether you have been ripped off before or not. If you haven't been, congratulations! You are wise, brave, and you pick the hard choice over the easy choice (or you're just a cheapo like me). If you have been in the past, now you know how to NOT get ripped off AGAIN! Now go forth and conquer!!