1 in 10 adults is unaware of their monthly spending. Are you? 

19 May 2025

Leonardo Da Vinci famously said: “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.”

In all areas of your life, you might find that overcomplicating your strategy leads to poor results. For instance, if you want to improve your physical fitness, having a simple plan that is easy to follow may help you remain disciplined and achieve your goals.

This much is true for your financial plan. Yet even if you have an existing financial plan comprising a suite of investments, diverse income streams, and tax-mitigating strategies, you could be forgetting to nail the basics in your day-to-day life.

If this sounds familiar to you, you are not alone.

Cover Magazine reports that 1 in 10 adults is not aware of their monthly spending, and Yahoo Finance says that one-fifth of people avoid checking their bank balance due to anxiety about how much they have spent.

As such, even though you may have important future goals that you are working towards, poor spending habits affect these outcomes, and you could be feeling too worried to take action.

What’s more, burying your head in the sand rather than dealing with overspending head-on could make things worse.

Here is your guide to making appropriate spending choices and stick to your financial plan.

Ask yourself these 3 questions to become more aware of your spending habits

Sometimes, self-reflection can spark positive change. If you routinely overspend, discovering the “why” could be more impactful than trying to change your behaviours at first.

Ask yourself:

1. What do I usually overspend on? If you love eating at restaurants, buying clothes, or attending sports events, these might be the expenditures that tip your budget into overspending territory. Or, you could be stretching to cover family-related costs, such as supporting children or your spouse. Whatever the cause, identifying a common thread of overspending can help you to address it.
2. What do I actually want out of the purchase? We have all overspent on items or experiences we did not really want or need at some point in our lives. If you are about to make a purchase that likely isn’t in your budget, ask yourself why. Is this about chasing social status, following the crowd, or keeping up with a trend? Or do you actually want it for good reason? Discovering the answer can help you allocate budget to expenditure that is genuinely important to you and do away with superficial spending.
3. What impact is my overspending having on my life? Taking a moment to be honest with yourself could be very enlightening. Have you taken on unnecessary debt, impeded saving and investment goals, or even strained your relationship with your significant other? Answering with clarity could help to motivate you away from overspending and towards a healthier relationship with money.

From this foundation, you can begin to build better habits.

For instance, if you often succumb to lifestyle creep (spending more because you’re earning more), you could realise that you are trying to keep up with the crowd, without making yourself any happier. After realising this, you might be able to identify what would actually make you happy, and focus on allocating spending resources towards your goals.

Leave room for unexpected expenses

If you have already created a budget that accounts for your monthly expenses in granular detail – yet keep overspending anyway – you might be leaving out one crucial element: room for the unexpected.

Although it’s easy to wave away unexpected expenses as one-offs, they likely crop up more likely than you would expect. Car repairs, home maintenance or improvements, or higher-than-expected bills may subtly eat away at your budget, causing you to overspend monthly.

Here, it may be helpful to adjust your spending expectations and make room for expenses you didn’t anticipate. You could even allocate a savings pot for these small-but-frequent one-offs, so that when they arise, you already have a plan for how to cover them.

Reach out for professional support

Our financial habits are likely formed at an early age, meaning they can be very difficult to break.

So, working with a financial planner might help you prevent future overspending and form a financial plan you can actually stick to.

Along with structuring your wealth for your long-term future, we can help you to form a better relationship with your money in the here and now. Your planner can help to hold you accountable, counsel you through periods of uncertainty, and give you the peace of mind that you are doing the right thing for your wealth and your future.

What’s more, your planner will create a safe space free of judgement, giving you the opportunity to be honest about your financial habits and receive the support you deserve.

If you want to learn more about working with our award-winning financial planners who hold decades of experience, contact us today.

Email info@depledgeswm.com or call 0161 8080200.

Please note

This article is for general information only and does not constitute advice. The information is aimed at retail clients only.

All information is correct at the time of writing and is subject to change in the future.