Have you found yourself spending over P2, 000 (40USD) in mobile game purchases in a week? You’re not alone. I remember spending as much P6, 000 (120USD) over a month by just buying gems, power-ups, and special game access. I was hooked to playing Choices, Empires, and RPG games that kept me up all night.
One day, I watched a couple of lifestyle and productivity videos, and among them are the topics on financial habits, time management, and organization. It punched me in the face when my credit card bill showed I’d spend way too much money on games. That’s a huge embarrassment for someone who’s nearing her 30s.
So, I decided to change my life for the better. Here’s how I curb my addiction to mobile game purchases.
Ways to curb your spending habits on mobile game purchases
Your hands might be itching to make that purchase online. I feel you. It took me three months to finally break off from my addiction. How? Here are tried-and-true tips to save your money from bad decisions.
Positive reinforcement: Reward yourself for crossing out a day
Make a simple monthly planner and track your spending habits. Reward yourself every end of the week (or after 30 days – your choice!) with a dessert or movie date. It’ll motivate you to finish crossing out the days you didn’t make a mobile game purchase.
Double trouble: Fine yourself for each purchase
Did you buy a package of gems worth P250? Double your fine and take P500 to your coin bank – and I repeat, never touch the coin bank! Now, when you go to the mall, how much money is left on your wallet? Well, you shouldn’t have bought those gems in the first place! On a positive note, it also works the other way around because you save money.
Out of sight, out of mind: 24-hour mobile game detox
Give yourself 24 hours not to play the game. You can also do this by switching off your phone’s wi-fi or data access the whole day. For those who are serious about discontinuing their spending habits, you can – gasp – uninstall the app itself.
Strategy-Wise: Plan your mobile game purchases
Though I still purchase gems time-to-time, it’s not as bad as it was before. From P6, 000 to P100 a month, it’s a huge difference in my financial lifestyle. What I did was to plan my purchases every 15th of the month. I earn gems in a slow, but, better way – watch advertisements, complete game quests, and invite people to click my invitation link (in a not so spammy way).
What if: Create an If-Then and Because- Won’t financial plan
This plan can help you see yourself where your financial goals are in the future. It’s simple as in, “If I buy P680 of gems, then I lose three movie dates with friends.” You create a scenario in your mind that if you spend this amount, you will lose an equal amount of items or experiences you want to happen. You can make use of If-Then for future purchases, and Because-Won’t for purchases you’ve already taken.
For example:
“If I plan to spend P1, 299 for those golden boxes, I will lose three spa visits, birthday dinners, or conference passes.”
“Because I’ve bought gems worth P1, 500, I won’t be going to that long-road trip with my friends.”
Tips to breaking off your mobile game purchases’ habits
Habits are hard to break. If you plan on lowering your mobile expenses, here are some tips and factors to consider.
Go easy on yourself
I’ve talked to other reformed players online on how they want to break off the habit. They said to go slow and make small changes. One person I know is *Ray, who bought gems worth P5, 000 a month. He tried not purchasing at all, but his method failed him big time. Ray ended up purchasing around P7, 500.
With other players, they LESSENED their purchases. For example, another player that goes by the name “aria_evil” made fewer purchases every month – from P3, 000 to P1, 750 to P450. So, go slow and go easy on yourself. It is a hefty addiction after all.
Know what triggers your mobile game purchases
There’s a reason why you’re spending a huge amount of money on that game. Are you that competitive? Would you feel despondent for not getting the game results you wanted? Did something happen in real life as to why you’re addicted to succeeding in the virtual world?
Change your mobile environment
You can change your mobile environment by installing productivity apps and keeping your games hidden at the back. That way, you’re more mindful at work than you are playing mobile games. You can also delete your easy-access icon on the screen to control your temptation. Also, you can put your phone at least 14 inches away from you at night if you want better sleep.
Be mindful of what you do every day
You will catch yourself purchasing gems and power-ups every now and then. At that hour, you’ll hear this odd voice (Jiminy Cricket) inside your head saying it’s wrong – and you know it’s wrong. But instead of tuning into that voice, you gave in to your temptation.
Be mindful.
If you know it’s wrong, don’t do it. It’s hard, I know (Hello, P6, 000). But be mindful and listen to that voice inside your head.
Make a weekly review of your bad habits
So, you broke your promise yesterday and last Thursday. Make a weekly review of your spending habits and plan on avoiding it next week. When making a plan, you create specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART) goals.
For example:
Instead of –
“Do not make in-app purchases this week.”
Make it –
“Keep your purchases minimum to P100, or better yet, none at all, this week, from Sunday to Saturday.”
In partnership with Shy Shelly
Someone from Shy Shelly’s Secret Squad has an addiction to mobile game purchases! Is it Jake, the twins, Patty, or Gilbert? Whoever they may be, they took out their mom’s credit card buying gems!
Do you know how much they spent for that? It was for P2, 000! Catch who among Shelly’s friends who have this addiction as well.
For those of you who have read the two previous books, (like me!) hear me when I say, that this one puts you on the edge of your seats as it deals with the classic #whodunit storytelling.
Yes, it’s a story about secrets and how it can trap you in a dark hole you created for yourself. Even undisclosed, they can harm us and those around us. And, vigilant secret keepers pay a price.
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Shy Shelly has always been relatable to me since I grew up quiet and shy. Honestly, I’m still having anxiety when talking and dealing with people – even with friends.
Hope my social anxious friends buy and read this book also ;)
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PREVIEW
Shelly is in big, big, big trouble!
When the Claustro Field Crickets’ trophy goes missing, the Secret Squad makes it its mission to find the trophy and its thief. But it seems like Shelly knows more about the missing trophy than she lets on?
As the rest of the Secret Squad comes closer to discovering the truth, Shelly is put in a tight spot.
Can Shelly trust Jake—the class bully—to help her?
Or will she face the consequences of her big mistake?
Shy Shelly and The Big Lie is the third book in the series by Justine Hail De Jesus and this time illustrated by Tristan Yuvienco.
PRE-ORDER
You can now pre-order Shy Shelly and the Big Lie at OMFLit online store (P136.50) and it will soon be available at OMF Lit and Passages Bookshops for only P195. Best to buy now ;)
Main Shy Shelly Page
Online purchases can be found here.
