Have you noticed that the generation like Gen Z and Millennials are spending their money like there's no tomorrow? Well, there's a name for it, and it's called doom spending. Maybe you've heard of it somewhere, and it refers to that habit we sometimes have of spending money on things we… basically don't need. And yes, I'm talking about expensive trips, designer clothes, and gadgets that we “must” buy like having iPhone 15 pro max but we ''must'' have the new iPhone 16 pro max .
source
And why is it called Doom Spending? you may ask now. It's simple: it refers to the state where we spend money to feel better because we have the feeling that the world is going to hell.
And the reason we get to this point? The answer is simple. We live in a time where we are constantly online and bombarded with negative news. This makes us think that everything is going wrong and that we have no control over our lives. So, by spending our money, we feel a bit better. Some turn to food, others to drinking, and young people resort to mindless shopping!
Of course, not everyone spends on the same things. Some prefer to blow all their money on trips, while others on expensive clothes or gadgets. It's like saying I might die tomorrow so let's fucking spend it all tonight!
In fact, according to a related study, 96% of Americans are worried about their country’s economy, and over 25% of them use doom spending to cope with their stress. And if you think this is just an American phenomenon, you're wrong! The same happens in many other countries too.
We all surely have someone in mind who, despite being able to save money, chooses to spend it all on whatever they come across. And why Because we might die tomorrow.
Think this in Greece a country that has the lowest salary in Europe and basically went bankrupt a few years back the iPhone sales went up 28% from year to year.
Anyway, the point behind all this is that we shouldn’t do it. We shouldn't spend our money on things we don’t need.
It's bad to just accumulate money without ever spending it but spending like there is no tomorrow is just as bad . Instead of making purchases online with just one click, it's better to go to the store, see the product up close, and think about whether we actually need it.
Another technique that helps is using cash for purchases. What difference does that make? you might ask. Well, seeing the money leave your wallet makes you think twice before spending it.
And of course, if we notice that we’re spending without even thinking about it, it might be a good idea to enable notifications on our phone for every time we make a purchase. This will remind us how much we've spent and make us reflect.
In the same way, we’ll create our own reminders that will tell us how harmful mindless spending is to our wallet.
So if you are someone reading this and spending your money like no tomorrow start investing and your future self will have enough money to doom spend.