Do you struggle with impulse spending? Is 2026 the year you aim to finally kick this bad habit?
Here are 3 out-of-the-box ideas or challenges that can help you stick to financial resolutions and be more mindful with money.
1. No-buy or low-buy year
This challenge can help you form 2 good habits: Keeping clutter low and spending manageable. To follow it, you won’t spend a single peso on things that aren’t absolute necessities.
For example, you won’t buy new bags, pairs of shoes, and clothing items for a certain period, usually 1 year.
You’ll keep using items you already own and repair any damage to extend their life rather than throwing them right away and replacing them.
If completely cutting out wants sounds impossible, you can instead do a “low buy” year. You can choose specific no-spend areas and acknowledge your major triggers and weaknesses.
Identify categories where you’re most likely to overspend, like gadgets, beauty products, or leisure travel, among others. You can choose to cut back on items that can lead to the biggest savings.
You can also choose specific no-spend months if you believe you’re more likely to buy impulsively during certain seasons.
2. Cash-only weekends
Weekends give you more freedom to do what you want. This is often the time to treat yourself a little, go on dinner dates, or catch up over coffee with friends.
With rest and relaxation on your mind, it becomes all too easy to spend way beyond your budget.
As the name suggests, this challenge involves committing to using only cash for all your weekend expenses. You’ll withdraw a certain amount and go on a break from digital and card payments.
By going strictly cash-only, you can physically see how much money you have left after each purchase. This can encourage you to be more intentional with managing your budget.
To ace the challenge, you must prepare well. You need to consider how much you’ll spend on groceries, transportation, and everything else you need to do over the weekend.
3. 7-day minimalism
While this challenge isn’t strictly about spending, it can help you become more aware of the impact of unnecessary purchases on your life.
This involves decluttering your belongings by tackling 1 living space per day. You can follow this schedule:
Day 1: Bedroom
Day 2: Living room
Day 3: Bathroom
Day 4: Kitchen
Day 5: Office or desk
Day 6: Storage room
Day 7: Digital decluttering
You can toss, give away, or sell items you don’t need and cancel online subscriptions that don’t offer much use.
This practice can give you a fresh start in 2 ways. Not only will you end up with a tidier home, you’ll also gain clarity on what you really need so you can spend better in the coming months.
Remember that these challenges should complement – and not replace – good money habits like following a budget and tracking your expenses.
To be better with money, your good habits must stick and become part of your routine.
Following a challenge shouldn’t be the end of the journey, but a fresh and exciting approach that can motivate you to finally get on the right path.
What to do with the money you’ll save
Making progress with your goals can help you stay motivated in maintaining healthy habits. Here’s what you can do with the money you’ll save from following these challenges:
- Pay down any debt, especially high-interest ones that can eat into savings or investment returns.
- Save enough money for emergencies. It’s ideal to have at least 3 to 6 months’ worth of daily needs in your emergency fund.
- Start investing regularly to grow money for your goals.
