10 Things You Must do to Avoid Coupon Burnout

Welcome to another Frugal Friday. Today I want to share with you about coupon burnout. Have you ever experienced it? I know I have.

 

“OH MY GOSH!”  You walk out of the store with a HUGE smile on your face. You think, ” Did I seriously just get this all for FREE?!”

You drive home calculating what this would have cost you if you didn't come across that awesome money saving blog ( hehe) and realize you can increase your income without getting a second job.

“Well, maybe this will be a part time job just going around getting free stuff. Oh, I could give it to this person. I could sell it. I have to share this on Facebook.”

Can this be?

The coupon high is intense. When you first walk away with an extreme deal you feel all sorts of emotions.

The high can take you through weeks, months, even years, but then the burnout will follow for many.

I know because I have been there. Many of us who are just starting to coupon is not doing it because we are so bored and want to brag to our friends and family about how we get FREE stuff.

We start doing it because we need more room in our budgets. We have young kids. We have kids who are growing and the food is leaving the cupboards faster then we are stocking them. We have our reasons.

So we decide to coupon. When we have success with it, it's so easy to get carried away. There is nothing wrong with that. But know you could be on your way to a major burnout.

 

Here are 10 ways to avoid coupon burnout. 

 

 

STOP CHASING EVERY DEAL

Don't chase EVERY deal. Take a serious look at the items you actually need. Chasing every deal will cause you to burn out quickly. Once you have a stockpile you can relax. Life is too short to not relax.

 

 

ALLOW MISTAKES

Don't get worked up over transaction went wrong. If you notice you have started to forget coupons at home or you swore this item was on sale and it's not, or you thought the coupon doesn't expire until next month, don't beat yourself up over it. Focus on one store a week that has the best deals YOU NEED.

The key to successful couponing is the balance. Balance your needs with a few occasional freebies that you want on hand to give away. Sticking to one store when life has other events for you in mind is ok. Again there will always be a deal.

 

REFLECT ON THE SAVINGS

Sometimes the thought of checking out the store's coupon matchups for the week, printing the coupons, cutting the coupons, and placing into your purse where you will know where they are seems daunting. But remember your purpose. Why did you start to coupon in the beginning?

If you have been couponing for a few years and your income has increased, remember how much you have saved off your bill. Think of the savings you got and how you could use that extra money somewhere else. For me, it's motivation that I saved $50 at Tops and can use that for a date night! That right there keeps me motivated to keep cutting the coupons and searching for deals.

 

 

DO NOT BE ALONE

DO not go at it alone. To keep your motivation on the rise by joining coupon groups. In our group we share hauls, clearance finds and chat about how to save money on groceries.

 

SPEND MONEY

Allow yourself to spend money. This is a big one for me. Not paying full price is just in my DNA and sometimes I swear it can be a curse. If you are at the store and you know you need something but you don't have a coupon or it's not on sale it is OK to buy it and then let it go. For me, if I let it, it can kill me when I am not getting something for 50% off or more.

I have learned that we can get so many things for such a low price that paying for something just on sale drives me crazy. But that alone will lead to burnout. You won't always get a rock bottom deal and that is ok.

 

STOP BUYING THE INSERTS

Skip buying the newspapers. For me, I stopped buying the newspaper inserts. It wasn't worth me getting two coupons that I would use. Sure the two coupons equaled $3 which ends up being more than what the paper costs but I have all these extra coupons laying around that create a mess in my coupon binder.

It creates a chaos for my mind before I organize my lists. When you know the items your family loves and uses then you will know when you can skip out on the newspaper. Check the Sunday Coupon Previews to see if it's worth grabbing the paper. Sometimes just grabbing the paper and organizing those inserts isn't worth the time for one or two coupons.

 

ORGANIZE

Stay organized. I laugh as I write this because I have to remind myself of this all the time. I throw things here and there and when it comes time to make my list and get to the store I could easily give up because I can't find the coupon I printed two days ago.Take the extra minute or two to put coupons in the right spot from the moment you have them in your hand. This keeps things moving along nicely. You will be thankful for

This keeps things moving along nicely. You will be thankful for the organization when your kids are shopping with you. Just like you must know where every dollar is going. You need to know where every coupon is going. Make a list before you head to the store so your organization continues through the checkout lane.

 

INCLUDE YOUR SPOUSE

Share your excitement with your spouse and let them grab a deal. When I first started couponing I was on such a HIGH that I would be texting my husband in the parking lot of Tops- GUESS HOW MUCH I SAVED TODAY?! After a few months, he would be pretty close.

He was just as excited.  I asked my husband once in awhile to grab cereal deals. They are easy and he got excited to be able to have the satisfaction of seeing the grocery bill go down so much just for handing over some paper we printed at home! This is a great way to boost your reason to keep at it! Include your spouse!

 

TAKE TIME OFF

Take some time off. When you have a stockpile of 10 tubes of toothpaste don't keep searching for the free toothpaste deals for the week. Let it be that you have a steady supply. When that supply is down to one or two tubes then you can grab your free toothpaste again. Why? Because there will ALWAYS be a deal. You can save money and be a couponer without the extremes.  Yet don't just stop because it truly does save money and the longer you take off the harder it is to get back into it.

 

STAY THANKFUL

When you are experiencing burnout take a moment to be thankful. Thankful for the things you have in your life. The chance to save money and how fast life truly goes before you. Saving money and using coupons will and can change your life- but it's just one small part of who you are and your purpose here.