8 Important Questions To Ask Yourself Before Buying Luxury Items

In today’s blog post, I will explore a few questions to ask yourself before buying luxury items. If you loves buying luxury items, but often feel guilty after doing so, this blog post will help you explore why you feel this way.

Additionally I’ll be sharing practical things for you to do when deciding to buy luxury items to avoid that guilty feeling after making that purchase. 

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8 Important Questions To Ask Yourself Before Buying Luxury Items

A while ago, I did a post on my Instagram stories asking my followers to tell me what kind of content they would like to see on my blog and YouTube channel. Today’s blog post was inspired by a question submitted by one of them.

Follower question about buying luxury items

So the initial response to my question “What content would you like to see more of on my channel?” was “Celebrating Success and Luxury for black girls.”

I didn’t understand the initial comment so I asked her to elaborate, here’s what she said:

“Black girls are told we’re too bougie or doing too much when we succeed and buy ourselves nice/designer things. 

What’s the difference between the above and wasting money?

I feel guilty when I spend and I feel like I never celebrate my wins on myself it always goes to other ppl and things”

Her reply gave more context  for the statement, and allowed me to get to work planning how to address this question in the most helpful way possible.

Introduction 

Luxury goods can be a huge financial burden if the person buying them is not in a strong enough financial position to afford them.

There are a large proportion of people in society that can afford these luxury items and will still have surplus remaining. On the other hand, there are many people that purchase these luxury goods when they are not in the financial position to do so. 

In today’s blog post, I will explore a few questions to ask yourself before buying luxury items. If you are a person that loves buying luxury items but often feels guilty after doing so, this blog post should help you explore the reasons behind these feelings.

Additionally I’ll be sharing practical things for you to do when deciding to buy luxury items to avoid that guilty feeling after making that purchase. 

What are luxury goods

To ensure that we’re all singing from the same hymn sheet, let’s be clear on exactly what we mean when we discuss luxury items. 

Yourdictionary.com defines luxury goods as ‘products that are not essential but are highly desired and associated with wealthy or affluent people. They are bought for reasons such as, to support self-worth and status or for the product’s quality and craftsmanship.’

What does it mean to waste money?

Now, let’s determine what it means to waste money.

The idea of wasting money put simply is when you use too much of it on things that are not important or necessary. 

With the definition clear and out of the way, the next thing to understand is what is actually important or necessary for you. 

I think we can all agree that luxury items are not necessities, however, they can be important depending on the value you place on them. 

If owning luxury items is important to you, and you want to enjoy the fruits of your labour without that guilty feeling that comes afterwards, then read on for important questions to ask yourself before buying luxury goods. 

1. Does your spending align with your financial goals?

When we say yes to something, we’re often saying no to something else. What financial goals are you working towards achieving? Where do you want to be financially by the end of 2021? 2022? The next 5 years? Gaining clarity on your financial goals will help you think more objectively about purchasing these luxury goods.

Sure you want that new Chanel bag, but you also want to go backpacking for a year in 2022? Can the Chanel bag wait until you get back from your trip? Or perhaps your round the world trip could be a halfway around the world trip so that you have money to buy your luxury items. Having a clear financial plan will help you gain clarity of your financial priorities. 

2. Can you actually afford it? 

Being able to afford the payment is not the same as being able to afford the item. What’s more, in the words of famous rapper Jay-Z, “If you can’t buy it twice, you can’t afford it”. This question might seem like an obvious question to ask yourself, but you’d be surprised at how many people don’t answer this question honestly. 

If buying that luxury item means you have zero pounds left in your bank account until your next payday then it’s time to reassess your priorities. 

3 – Do you have a budget? 

If you don’t have a plan for your money, how will you know if you can actually afford that luxury item? A budget is a conscious spending plan for your money. Tell your money where to go at the start of the month, so that you’re not left at the end of the month wondering where it all went.

If you don’t have a budget and need a template, you can grab a copy of my zero-based budget template here. Within your budget you can include a fun allowance. You work hard for your money and deserve to enjoy the fruits of your labour without that guilty feeling.

Once you’ve taken care of your necessities, put money aside for your savings/investing goals, you can then of course set money aside for enjoyment – whatever enjoyment means to you!

4. Do you have an emergency fund? 

If you were to lose your income stream today, how long will you be able to live before getting into financial trouble? One month? Maybe 2 months? If today was your last payday, and you wouldn’t be able to survive for the next 3 months without having to get into debt, purchasing luxury items is not your priority. 

Rainy days can, and will come, so it’s important to prepare for them. If you have children, the stakes are even higher. It’s important therefore to lay a strong financial foundation before purchasing these luxury goods. 

5. Does this stuff really make you happy?

I’ve done a lot of retail therapy over the years. If you’re unfamiliar with the term, retail therapy is the act of shopping as a way to relieve emotional distress in other areas of life.

I can tell you for free, retail therapy works for the moment, however the consequences of retail therapy if you’re not in the right financial position, will leave you feeling worse than you did when you went for the retail therapy. 

The truth is, stuff, physical possessions, can and will never actually fully satisfy that desire for happiness. I mean sure, it may result in temporary joy. But the reality is, it quickly fades soon after purchase. Before long you’re thinking about the next great thing that you just need to have. It’s a vicious never-ending cycle.

6. Why are you feeling guilty about spending this money? 

This is an important question to honestly ask yourself. The truth may be a hard pill to swallow. Are you feeling guilty because you know that you cannot really afford to purchase these items? If so, it’s ok. You’re not the first person to do this, and you sure won’t be the last. There’s nothing wrong with buying luxury items or aspiring to have them, just don’t over leverage yourself to do so. 

If you really want to buy the item, it’s ok to save towards it. The art of practising delayed gratification is a lost skill. If you can harness this skill you’ll be able to purchase your item and enjoy it guilt-free with the satisfaction of knowing you saved up to buy it without negatively impacting your finances. 

On the other hand, this guilt may be projected onto you from others. You’ve advanced your career and are in a stronger financial position than most of your peers so you feel bad for levelling up without them. In which case, that’s a them problem, not a you problem. 

My sister always says, you can’t take paracetamol for someone else’s headache. You’ve done well for yourself and deserve to enjoy the fruits of your labour. The reality is, people don’t actually care as much as you think that they do. 

This leads nicely onto my next point.

7.Why do you want to buy these luxury items?

Do you genuinely just like these nice items, appreciate their beauty and quality and want to simply enjoy the finer things in life. 

Or are you using these luxury goods as a status symbol to stunt on your friends and family? Does the acquisition of these goods come with an air of arrogance? Do you find your self worth and value in your material possessions? If so, it’s time to do some deep self reflections. 

The reality is, if you measure their self-worth by your net worth and material possessions, you’ll never feel valuable enough.

8. Are you comparing yourself to others?

Is your desire for luxury items fuelled by other people? You see your friend has bought a new Rolex so you must get a new one too? Your favourite influencer is constantly showing you all the latest must-have designer goods so you feel that you need to acquire the same.

Assess your own financial situation and the motives behind your spending on luxury items. Is this what you really want to do with your money,or are you being influenced to spend money on things that don’t actually align with your financial goals?

To conclude, there are no right or wrong answers when it comes to purchasing luxury goods.It’s down to every individual to decide where they place value. 

These questions should give you food for thought before you make your next luxury purchase. However ultimately, it’s your money and your decision as to how you spend it. 

In the words of Socrates, “Contentment is natural wealth, luxury is artificial poverty. ” – Socrates. Another great quote by Vicki Robin in her book Your Money Or Your Life is  “If you live for having it all, what you have is never enough.”

Your Money Or Your Life by Vicki Robin is a great book that you should read which will really help you explore the motivations behind your spending and make you think more about how your spending patterns align with your values.