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What type of spender are you?

Knowing your spending personality can help you understand your buying habits, and where you can make changes if you need to.

3 minute read

When it comes to spending, people generally fit into one of two categories – slow and steady, or emotional and impulsive. Kind of like a tortoise and a hare. You may be a tortoise or a hare all the time, or change it up depending on the situation, and what you’re buying.

Knowing what type of spender you are can help you understand where you might need to make changes.

The tortoise

If you’re a tortoise, you probably tend to research what you’re going to buy, and take the time to think about it. You plan for your purchases, and are deliberate and logical in the way you think about spending. Take a new phone, for example. You’re the kind of person who thinks about it, does their research, sleeps on it, and might even save towards it.

The hare

If you’re a hare, you tend to be more emotional and impulsive. You see something, you want it, you buy it, and then think about it or maybe even regret it later. When there’s a sale, you’re even more tempted to buy things you don’t need. If you’ve ever bought a phone you didn’t need, simply because it’s the new one out, it’s very likely you’re in this category.

The combo

Although people generally lean towards either being a tortoise or a hare, you can be a mix of both. You might be a tortoise for bigger purchases, and a hare when it comes to eating out.

Now you know your spending type, here’s what you can do

Being aware of how you spend in different circumstances means you can start to take steps to change your behaviour.

If you’re a tortoise:

Think about what you could do with the extra money you save from being careful with your spending.

Look at whether you could pay off any money you owe, faster, by increasing your repayments.
Think about your bigger goals and look at saving or investing.
Don’t forget about the long term, and make sure you also join a KiwiSaver scheme. You can find out more about the BNZ KiwiSaver Scheme on our website.

If you’re a hare:

Be conscious of your tendency to buy things on impulse and try to make changes – like sleeping on purchases, rather than rushing into them. Give yourself a day or two, and if you’re still thinking about that ‘must have’ thing, go back and buy it. This also works well if you shop online – put things on your wishlist and leave them there for a few days before heading to the checkout.
Don’t get pulled in by specials – it may seem tempting to try and grab a bargain, but unless you were already looking to buy that thing, you probably don’t really need it.
Set a budget, and try to stick to it – it’s a good idea to make sure it’s realistic and fits in with the way you like to live. If you can’t imagine ever giving something up, make sure you have this worked into your budget and can afford it.
Remove emotion – stop and think about whether you’re buying something for an emotional reason, like you’ve had a hard day and think you need to reward yourself, or you’re wanting to keep up appearances and impress your friends, for example.
Create a list and stick to it – when you do need to shop, make a list and try not to buy anything that’s not on it. Better yet, budget an amount per item and make sure you don’t spend more than you planned on each thing.

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Understanding your attitude to putting money aside could help you on the road to better saving.

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This article is solely for information purposes. It’s not financial or other professional advice. For help, please contact BNZ or your professional adviser. No party, including BNZ, is liable for direct or indirect loss or damage resulting from the content of this article.

BNZ Investment Services Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Harbour Asset Management Limited, is the Issuer and Manager of the BNZ KiwiSaver Scheme. Download a copy of the BNZ KiwiSaver Scheme Product Disclosure Statement PDF 1.1MB, or pick up a copy from a BNZ branch.

Investments in the BNZ KiwiSaver Scheme are not bank deposits or other liabilities of Bank of New Zealand (BNZ) or any other member of the National Australia Bank Limited group. They are subject to investment risk, including possible delays in repayment. You could get back less than the total contributed. No person (including the New Zealand Government) guarantees (either fully or in part) the performance or returns of the BNZ KiwiSaver Scheme or the repayment of amounts contributed. National Australia Bank Limited, the ultimate owner of BNZ, is not a registered bank in New Zealand but a licensed bank in Australia and is not authorised to offer the products and services mentioned on this webpage to customers in New Zealand.

BNZ Investment Services Limited (BNZISL) uses the BNZ brand under licence from Bank of New Zealand, whose ultimate parent company is National Australia Bank Limited. No member of the FirstCape group (including BNZISL) is a member of the NAB group of companies (NAB Group). No member of the NAB Group (including Bank of New Zealand) guarantees, or supports, the performance of any member of FirstCape group’s obligations to any party.