Spending Addiction, Why We Buy Things We Don't Need

We are in a privileged moment in history because we have so much more freedom than ever before, or the opportunity to get it.
Today we can travel, start a business, write a book, whatever! If we really want to do it, so what keeps us from living that freedom?
So many are living in a new form of slavery which can be defined as:

1. Work
2. Spend
3. Pay debts

And back to work to pay debts and to continue spending. It is what others call the rat race.

And this is not because of the economic crisis. I recently read an article about an American family, victims of spending addiction, which has $ 90,000 in credit card debt, simply by falling into the vicious circle of borrowing more money to pay credits, until they decided to reduce spenses and to establish a plan to get out of the problem and have now paid 50% of what they owe.
As Warren Buffet says.

If you are in a hole, stop digging.

Spending to fill the void that causes us anxiety from modern life.

This spending addiction is fed by the stress and the need to work harder to have things that we often do not need and do not have time to enjoy, or to impress people who don't even like us.

And so the need to buy is fueled by advertising, television and the influence of the majority of society. This is consumerism.

This forces us to work on things we do not like, or to over work to pay debts and thus create more stress and anxiety.

Is compulsive spending a disease?

Well, you should not hesitate to ask for professional help if you need so, but I consider it more as a problem to be solved and that has a largely external cause. If we think we have a disease and start to feel guilty about it, then the battle is lost.
If to increase our self-esteem or security, we need to spend is because we have confused our values and we have to solve our internal problems.

Stop the bleeding now

Stop this spending addiction because if you can pay a debt, then you could also have put the same amount of money beside to save each month to pay all in cash. You see, it is a matter of habits and new attitudes like:

• Appreciate what you have and sell what you do not use
• Pay in cash
• Leave credit cards at home

It is not about stop spending completely because this is unnatural and will cause more frustration and will make you to spend even more. It is all about spending without anxiety.

It's like when you diet to lose weight: if the diet is too hard it's much easier to fall back and get over weighted again.
It's all about learning how to spend, but first you have to put your life in order and balance. Your strength comes from you, from inside, that part which belongs to no one and cannot be sold, so do not sell it and keep the treasure of your heart.