by Maria Papadopoulou

Created on: April 16, 2010   Last Updated: April 17, 2010

Changing your spending habits is a difficult task, especially if you have been used to a luxury lifestyle for quite a while. Things can get even more complicated when it comes to women who tend to spend more than they can afford without even realizing it.

How to make your wife change her spending habits

Suggest cash as the only payment option

As credit cards tend to lead to overspending exactly because only the minimum payment is required, it is wise to suggest to your wife to stick to cash instead. With cash as the only payment option, your wife will learn to spend only what she can afford. If she absolutely needs to have a credit card, advice her to keep only a prepaid credit card with a small spending limit for her online purchases, where cash is not an option.

Suggest only a limited amount of cash

After convincing your wife to prefer cash to credit cards, next thing you need to do is convince her to use only a limited amount of cash with her. If she learns to carry with her only the exact amount of cash she will need for specific purchases, she won't be able to overspend, even if she is tempted.

Spend less than you earn

This may be easier said than done, but the truth of the matter is that practice makes perfect. If your wife starts learning to spend less than she earns, then she will be able to save money on a regular basis. In order not to even get tempted, what your wife can do is to occasionally carry even less cash than the amount she is going to need for certain purchases. That way, she will have no other option but look for discounts everywhere. Without even realizing it, she will start spending less than she earns and therefore improving her spending habits.

Make lists

Making lists and sticking to them will help your wife avoid impulse buying that often leads to overspending. If she writes next to the items she needs the exact quantity in which she needs them, things will become even easier.

Give the good example

In order for your wife to change her spending habits, it is important to give the good example yourself, as her husband. If your wife sees you spending way too much while you are lecturing her to spend less, it is only natural for her to think that you are  a hypocrite and refuse to take you seriously.

Making your wife change her spending habits is an attainable goal, if she is determined to show the necessary self discipline and determination all the way.

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