3 Ways to Use Savoring in Personal Finance and How to Get Started
Savoring is the act of fully noticing, appreciating, and experiencing positive events, emotions, and acts in our daily lives. Research has shown links between savoring and increasing positive moods and general well-being. Read on for 3 ways that I believe savoring can be used to improve our financial lives as well.
By creating awareness and improvement of emotional states:
So many of our daily spending decisions are emotional, and often when people struggle with overspending or overshopping, what they are actually struggling with is difficulty around managing their emotional states and using shopping as a tool to quickly feel better.
Learning to create and appreciate small pleasures in our daily lives (savoring) can help us to avoid emotional spending by having another tool that we can use to boost our moods and create feelings of wellness and contentment.
By increasing appreciation and enjoyment of things that we already own:
In my own life, when I notice that I’m getting the urge to purchase something new, particularly something that I already have enough of (see also: anything “cozy,” tinted lip balms) the most effective way to interrupt that urge is to focus on savoring what I already have. This allows me to consider what I enjoy about the items I have, and think about what “gap” I may be looking to fill by acquiring something new. I’ll share more about how to do this below.
By creating awareness of where to splurge and where to save:
The act of savoring teaches us to focus on the full experience of using something and creating awareness of how we feel in that moment. In my experience, knowing what experiences bring me joy throughout my day helps me to know where spending a little extra will likely be appreciated. For example, if you’re someone who loves to take baths, perhaps splurging on fancy bath products will be worth it for you. If you’re someone who savors their morning coffee and doesn’t care that much about baths - probably not.
How to start:
Teaching ourselves to begin savoring is quite simple, but does require some effort and attention. Start by creating a list of things that you already get pleasure from in your daily life. What are the small moments in your day that you find yourself looking forward to? These are likely simple things like drinking your morning cup of coffee, taking a hot shower or bath, making the perfect cup of tea, or reading a book before bed. Do you often find yourself rushing through these activities, or trying to multitask through them?
To begin savoring, you must make a conscious effort to pay attention to those experiences. Focus your attention on what you’re doing. For example, enjoy a cup of tea without looking at your phone, watching TV, or doing anything else. Sit with it and pay attention to the experience of drinking it. How does the hot mug feel in your hands? Focus on noticing the smell and the taste of the tea and how drinking it makes you feel in your body. Try the exercises below to practice.
Learning to savor exercise: Choose two experiences each day that you will savor, and commit to practice savoring them for one week. At the end of the week, consider the following questions. You may even choose to write down your thoughts.
How did choosing to create opportunities for savoring alter your days?
Did you notice more positive emotions throughout your day, compared to other weeks? Which ones?
How was the experience of savoring your chosen activities different from just doing them?
How can you apply the experience of savoring activities in your daily life to your financial life?
Savoring possessions exercise:
When you find yourself with the desire to purchase something new that you already have enough of, try this exercise to increase your appreciation and enjoyment of what you already have. Use the same process of savoring outlined above, but instead, focus on examining and using the items in question.
Examine the item. What do you notice about the packaging and the way that it looks. How does it feel in your hand? Does it have a smell?
Think back on times when you’ve used the product- what memories are associated with it? Have you used it recently, and do you plan to use it again? If you haven’t used it, why not?
If it’s something you can wear or put on, do so. How does it feel to use? What do you like or dislike about it? What is lacking about this item that you hope to gain from another purchase?
If it’s one of many similar items -take the other items out and examine them as a whole. Is the experience of considering the single item different from examining it as part of a collection? Consider the impact of adding to this collection.
My hope is that as you practice savoring it will become simpler and almost second-nature. Any time that you’re feeling low, or stressed, or overwhelmed, savoring can be another tool that you can call on to care for yourself. In your financial life you may use savoring to boost your mood before making emotionally-driven purchases. You can also use the act of savoring to enhance awareness and enjoyment of items that you already have. Once you begin to practice savoring, you'll see applications in all areas of your life. Comment below to let me know if you’ve tried it.