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Reading time: 1:57 minutes
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How impulsive are you ?
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Welcome to issue 33 of the Growing Tree of Life newsletter.
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I've got two things on my mind today.
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Firstly, I've posted my first YouTube video, testing an AI tool to create videos and figure out the feel of my content. If you could watch it and share your thoughts, that'd be grand.
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As someone with bipolar disorder, I struggle with allocating resources like time, willpower, energy, and money. But this problem isn't limited to people like me; perhaps you're struggling with some of them too.
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My biggest issues are time management and money management.
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Today, let's talk about money.
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After my bipolar diagnosis, I discovered why despite earning well, I was deep in debt. It was because of impulsive buying and not tracking where my money went.
To combat that, I created a cool-off period for myself back in 2018, and it works wonders.
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How? Simple: I have a table in my journal with columns for
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- date,
- item,
- price & discount timer,
- why I want it,
- two-week column,
- one-month column, and
- decision.
Whenever something catches my eye or feels like an urgent need, I write it down with the date and price. And, most importantly, I write an explanation of WHY I want it.
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Then comes the waiting game: two weeks before even considering buying it. If after two weeks I still want it, I tick the column and wait another fortnight.
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After a month of deliberation, if it was just an impulse buy, I cross it off and mark it "not important". Otherwise, I make a decision: buy now or wait for a sale.
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This method combats impulsive buying – the biggest threat to financial security.
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In bipolar highs, I'm prone to making rash decisions; these highs rarely last longer than two weeks. By waiting a month before purchasing anything on my list, that dopamine-fueled urge for immediate reward subsides and rational decision-making takes over.
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Create a table to track potential purchases and give yourself a cool-off period. It might just save your finances.
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P.S. If you would check out my video, leaving a comment or sending me an email with your thoughts would be much appreciated. Thanks!
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Photo of my decision table from the 2019 journal.
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Stay awesome and have a great week.
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What you can do next:
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The Growing Tree of Life newsletter is sent out every Thursday.
Reading time is usually 4 minutes or less.
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Thank you for reading.
See you next time.
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Lubo
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