--- title: Budget: Why You Spend Too Much Money and How to Stop description: Retail therapy does work—to some degree canonical: https://time.com/3940378/why-spend-too-much-money/ author: Eric Barker article:opinion: true article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-06-30T04:01:41.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:49:32.461Z article:section: Ideas og:title: Why You Spend Too Much Money and How to Stop og:description: Retail therapy does work—to some degree og:url: https://time.com/3940378/why-spend-too-much-money/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb052f20cc86ec7c9/698858ee5f570f0279b1c3f0/coins-falling-money-bag.jpg?branch=production&width=336&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 336 og:image:height: 189 og:image:alt: money-bag-coins-falling og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Why You Spend Too Much Money and How to Stop twitter:description: Retail therapy does work—to some degree twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb052f20cc86ec7c9/698858ee5f570f0279b1c3f0/coins-falling-money-bag.jpg?branch=production&width=336&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Why You Spend Too Much Money and How to Stop > Sponsored content. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=9b1dfb8b-9312-49a3-a27b-e301a8781831&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1) ## Video: MONEY Staffers' Best Financial Advice from Dad [Watch (HLS stream): MONEY Staffers' Best Financial Advice from Dad](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/0bI50AM3.m3u8) (1:43)  _Published 2015-06-12. In honor of Father's Day, MONEY staffers share lessons learned from their fathers about saving, spending, and other financial matters._ by [Eric Barker](https://time.com/author/eric-barker/) ## Eric Barker Jun 30, 2015 4:01 AM UTC  Losing money Losing money Getty Images by [Eric Barker](https://time.com/author/eric-barker/) ## Eric Barker Jun 30, 2015 4:01 AM UTC * [What our neighbors buy](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/if-your-neighbor-gets-a-new-car-do-you-buy-a) affects what we buy, as does [our names](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/does-your-last-name-affect-how-you-shop), the [weather](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/how-does-the-weather-affect-your-shopping-hab), and the [type of floor](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/does-the-type-of-floor-youre-standing-on-affe) a store has. * Music manipulates us into spending in [flower shops](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/can-the-music-playing-at-a-flower-shop-affect) and [restaurants](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/what-kind-of-music-makes-us-spend-the-most-in). * Which products are next to each other on the shelf [influences what we buy](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/can-which-products-are-next-to-each-other-on). In fact, one product can [catch “cooties”](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/can-one-product-catch-cooties-from-another) from another. * [Attractive salespeople](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/should-every-store-have-a-beautiful-female-em) mess with our heads too, especially if they [touch the products](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/is-an-attractive-person-touching-an-item-enou). Truth is, we’re [more satisfied after buying from good-looking people](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/is-customer-satisfaction-higher-when-people-b). * Stores use [lots of tricks](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/what-tricks-do-stores-use-to-get-us-to-buy) to get us to spend. Limits on how many items we can purchase [make us purchase more](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/does-a-limit-on-how-many-you-can-buy-make-you). So does [stocking fewer items](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/do-stores-trick-you-into-buying-more-by-stock). * The word [sale](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/does-seeing-the-word-sale-make-you-less-likel) makes us less likely to comparison shop and [yellow tags](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/how-can-you-make-someone-think-theyre-getting) fool us into thinking we’re getting a discount even when we’re not. * [Retail therapy](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/does-retail-therapy-work) does work, but being happy can end up [sapping our self-control](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/can-being-happy-make-you-less-able-to-resist) in the face of tempting sales. * Materialism may be [connected to unhappiness](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/does-materialism-lead-to-unhappiness-if-so-wh) but buying generic products can [reduce your self-esteem.](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/can-buying-generic-products-reduce-your-self) * Luckily there are fast, easy tricks [to avoid buying too much](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/fast-easy-tricks-to-avoid-spending-too-much-w) and [breaking a budget](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/whats-a-quick-trick-to-help-you-spend-less-mo). * Learn the key elements of [influence, negotiation and persuasion](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/the-last-damn-thing-youll-ever-need-to-read-a-8759). **Join over 190,000 readers. Get a free weekly update via email** [**here**](http://eepurl.com/o6uAD)**.** **_This piece originally appeared on_** [**_Barking Up the Wrong Tree_**](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2012/06/10-things-manipulating-you-into-spending-too/)**_._** Related posts: [How To Stop Being Lazy And Get More Done – 5 Expert Tips](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2014/08/how-to-stop-being-lazy/) [How To Get People To Like You: 7 Ways From An FBI Behavior Expert](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2014/10/how-to-get-people-to-like-you/) [New Harvard Research Reveals A Fun Way To Be More Successful](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2014/09/be-more-successful/) ## Transcript [ MUSIC ] My dad basically told me to plan ahead for retirement as early as possible. And he said to try and live only off the interest from your retirement accounts, because the life expectancy by the time I get there may be 150 years old. My dad ran a small advertizing agency in San Francisco. And sometimes instead of getting cash for the time on a radio station for example, restaurants or airlines would pay him in the form of meals or free credits or seats on an airplane. So I learned that almost everything is negotiable. My dad. Told me, son, it's just as easy to marry a rich girl as it is a poor one. My dad told me that start saving for my children's college fund now. I'm 26 and single. The financial advice I got from my dad was always make sure you have at least one dollar. Right in your wallet. Nowadays, I think it should be at least $ 20. Whenever my dad would give me money to go do something, go out to eat with friends, or go to the movies, he would always ask for his change back. That definitely taught me to always get a good deal, always be aware of what I was spending because I always would feel really good when I would get home. and be able to give him change back. My mom and dad were always. Was really good at at least trying to get me to think about needs vs wants. I say try because I don't always follow that advice. 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