Within the context of implementing financial security and best practices in spending, it's essential for us to understand better:
- how someone can believe or think that buying things will remove their feelings of emptiness and sadness
- how this can influence them to feel better.
You may track the discussion by clicking on the hyperlinked subtopics below:
SPENDING TRIGGERED BY EMOTIONAL VOID
Do you spend simply to fill a perceived emotional Void inside of you?
In other words, do you indulge in buying things because you desire to plug pressing emotional holes or lacks?
If you do, are you aware that such a spending habits could be exploited or manipulated by scammers?
A void is a state of emptiness or gap with absolutely nothing interesting or worthwhile about it.
Think of it as the hands of an emotional clock tick-tocking abnormally BACKWARD to fill or satisfy a time lapse.
Another way to view it is to consider it as a type of spending activity cashing out the words of a Yoruba adage and other similar global proverbs: "Ba'a j'oba aj'eba".
Translated,, it means that if I can't have that, at least I can have this.
What it says is: in order to reverse your emotional loss, you embark on a spending spree to acquire the closest or next best thing to what you couldn't possess.
How about that?
Is that in any way familiar? Is it even logical?
That hardly counts though, in matters such as these.
We should realize that it's virtually impossible for feelings or emotions and logic to be in tune.
Come to think of it: could you imagine romantic love ever being scientific or "logical"?
Ideally we would wish it were, but we all know that in practice such a complex and complicated "matter of the heart" is not.
Similarly, when financial behaviour becomes driven by how we "feel" rather than how we"plan", it gets equally complicated, sentimental, and impulsive.
In any case, whether logical or not, it's a common practice by which some guys believe they can utilize the purchasing power of money and material acquisitions to reverse their feelings of loss or inadequacy.
What Are Its Common Characteristics?
These are easy to notice or identify.
To put it simply, they include:
- A strong irresistible urge or desire to acquire an item
- A stereotype mindset or conviction that shopping will help you to be happier or calmer
- A tendency to Buy thing without much thought, quickly and unplanned
- An outcome that offers only temporary relief, which is immediately followed by onrush of guilt or regret
Needless to say, these activities are usually linked to or dictated by the individual's emotions, and never based on real needs.
What Are The Factors Leading To Feelings of Emotional Void?
In case you still don't get the picture, take a snapshot of the following scenarios:
1. Having failed to clinch their desired chieftaincy or honorary titles, some guys could start big-time spending to buy expensive properties in order to secure respect and recognition
2. How do you cope with relocating from a community you have lived in virtually all your life, to a new place where you are suddenly a stranger?
We all handle movements in different ways in line with our individuality.
For example, some people try to "belong" to their new communities through shopping activities, registering in paid prestigious clubs etc.
3. Again, it could happen when somebody is experiencing sadness after a breakup or loss. They may book for expensive and actually unnecessary yet expensive trips, concerts, etc.
4. For some fellows, the primal trigger for impulsive spending may be their desperation to receive attention, especially when they believe they are unappreciated or unnoticed at work or home.
5. Suffering from sentimental gaps may also lure someone to have a false notion or believe that they lack purpose or meaning in life. As such it could motivate them to spend carelessly, recklessly and uncaringly to create a (false) semblance of purposefulness.
6. Similarly, long distances and disconnection from loved ones may cause some persons to engage in spurious expenditure,
like sending costly gifs and care packages, investing in video calls and messaging, subscribing to streaming platforms to share experiences virtually, etc.
7. Invariably, persons who have low self-esteem or confidence are most likely to buy things they don't need and without planning.
8. Similarly, feelings of boredom or unfulfillment, especially in a routine job, may influence individuals to seek excitement or pleasure by throwing money at luxury items, hobbies, or entertainment, such as:
- buying expensive gadgets
- taking weekend getaways
- indulging in pricey dining experiences.
9. Also, if there's no emotional support given to an individual after a significant life change like divorce, separation, loss, etc, it could adversely affect their financial behaviour.
They may seek solace through paying for self-help books, therapy or counseling services, relaxation and wellness products (e.g. aromatherapy), spa treatments, etc.
10. Moreover, Emotional Void can also play out in the form of having a sense of being insecure or not being good enough (inadequacy).
This can make them to seek comfort through material possessions or acquisitions.
11. Finally, stress or worries can also create emotional void in people.
This may propel them to lose control and seek temporary escapes or mood boosts through rash spending or purchasing.
Such acts could include:
- buying costly comfort foods and delicacies - treats or dishes which provide emotional solace, relaxation, and sense of wellbeing.
- treating themselves to expensive socialising or entertainment.
What Are Its Effects On Your Wallet?
1. Shopping Fix:
When you shop or buy actively just to plug your emotional void or as a a means to distract yourself from negative sentiments, all you get is a shopping fix.
Explained in simple terms, it means you can only experience a temporary relief, high spirit, or satisfaction.
It's nothing but an illusory quick fix, which is of course short-lived and doesn't in any way solve the real problem on hand.
2. Creating A Clutter
More often than not, you end up amassing an excess collection of coslty disorganized and scattered, items that are outrightly non-essential and useless.
To define the point more clealy: though essentially they are not necessities, you've bought them anyway and there they are, unnecessarily occupying space.
3. Lack of Financial Planning.
It is a perfect example of planlessness to boot.
It suggests that you don't bother to plan.
In fact, your purchasing activities are totally controlled by sentiments alone.
4. Debt Accumulation
Going forward, it could unleash a debt crisis on your wallet.
Your unmanaged and uncontrolled expenditure habits may lead to exhausting the funds you have.
Consequently you may land yourself in troubled waters and must go extra miles to offset accumulated debts over time.
5. Fixation on short-term gratification.
It usually prioritizes and focuses on the present and aims at achieving short-term targets, like temporary mood boost, distraction from emotional pain, etc.
As such, it absolutely ignores long-term financial goals.
6. Sentimental Attachment To Possessions
This is not just concerned with the act of buying.
There's nothing meaningful, or dry and cut, or deliberate about it.
It's not about doing business or making investments.
You are simply acquiring items to fill emotional void, without giving any thought to the possible adverse effects.
7. Compulsive buying
Imagine an object standing on its head or top with its bottom up.
Visualize that's your financial attitude on display.
Your spending habit is illogical, possibly erratic, and definitely out of kilter with your finances, thereby creating distortions and imbalance.
8. Ignoring financial Best Practices
You are most likely ignoring standard financial best practices and neglecting key activities such as savings, investments, budgetary dynamics, and so on.
Given this development , it's impossible to see how that can sit well with your wallet.
9. A Burden Of Guilt and regret
Of course, it's where it all ends.
Your emotional high soon wears off.
After the action of painting the town red through numerous shopping sprees, always comes the blues of remorse and regrets.
How Can You Resist impulsive buying driven by emotional void?
1. Identify The Triggers
The place to start is usually to locate the source or causes of the void you are feeling.
Is it boredom, or loneliness, or loss?
Identify it, recognize it, deal with it boldly.
2. Avoid Rushed Buying
Before you make that purchase, wait a moment.
Pause.
Before you pay for it, give it at least 24 hours to convince yourself that you truly need that non-essential item.
A delay might help you to realize that you truly don't need that item after all.
3. Control Your Expenditure Habit
Enforce control over your buying habit.
A likely spot for you to start is to set clear-cut spending limits for your discretionary expenses, in order to prevent you from embarking on impulsive purchasing.
4. Prepare A Shopping List
It's good to know what you need before you go all out and get them.
It shows that you are not buying things blindly.
Plan your purchases in advance and stick to the list when you eventually make your next shopping.
It helps you to avoid acquiring things irrationally or because you feel a need to feel a void.
5. Resist Temptation
This works too.
You know the saying:
"To be forewarned is to be forearmed".
It means that if you already have a hint that something's going to happen, you can get ready or equip yourself to effectively handle it.
Similarly, since we all realize the unfavourable effects or outcomes of yielding to temptation, we can equally ensure that we avoid them.
Therefore, whenever you find yourself at a low ebb or emotional lows and vulnerable, you should keep away from shopping areas or online stores by all means.
6. Explore Alternative Activities
Another way to deal with the challenge is to look for alternative means other than spending on items.
You can engage in activities which will effectively fulfill your emotional needs.
For example, instead of shopping, you can practice:
- Physical exercising
- Reading
- hobbies
- listening to good music
7. Prioritize Mindfulness
There's a proverb: "Happiness is a state of the mind".
It means that happiness is not simply determined by events or activities outside of you (external) but instead by your own thoughts, feelings, and perspectives about life.
Indeed, thinking backward can get you stuck in a sad past and prevent you from moving forward.
So, you should stop dwelling on past misadventures or misfortunes.
Force yourself to stay focused on the present by paying close attention to your current experience.
Avoid worrying about the future.
Doing this will enable you to:
- make rational spending decisions
- avoid being controlled by emotional void
- differentiate between genuine needs and emotional cravings.
8. Be Realistic
Likewise, it helps if you can face reality and accept actual situations as they really are.
Tell yourself truthfully that your buying spree only amounts to trying to fill an emotional gap but fails to satisfy real needs.
Additionally, boldly remind yourself that no amount of shopping can fix emotional problems for the long term.
This can give you the rude awakening you require to get back on track.
9. Reflect on Your Acquisitions
It's always a sensible thing to reflect on our past actions.
This assists us to identify lapses in our purchasing or spending activities.
For example, you can ask yourself:
Does this item add value in any way?
Did I get it because it's a genuine essential or under the I fluence of trauma?
Knowing this will assist you to resist or repeat it in the future.
10. Seek Counseling
Finally, you should seek for advice and counseling from friends, colleagues and family members who have experience in such matters.
Additionally you can engage the services of a professional counselor to enable you to:
- effectively break free from your emotional void
- understand the bigger picture about spending
- become accountable and responsible
Conclusion
To sum up, it's a given from all we've mentioned above that to allow emotional crisis to dictate how we utilize our money is detrimental to our wallet.
We have also identified certain effective steps you can utilize to prevent this from happening and take back control of your finances.
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