How to prioritise your needs over wants

It is crucial, as a financially oriented person to learn how to prioritise your needs over your wants.

By NM Personal Finance

To become financially stable, you have to learn to make some strategic decisions, and one of them includes prioritising your needs over your wants. The things you need are the things you cannot do

without, your necessities, which include; shelter, healthcare, food, clothing and other essential items. Wants, on the other hand, are the things you can live without. For people who want to be financially responsible, wants are considered luxuries. It is crucial, as a financially oriented person to learn how to prioritise your needs over your wants. If you buy everything you feel like buying even when you don’t need them, you are being financially irresponsible, and it might have a massive effect on you. If at all you are going to spend on your wants, it shouldn’t take more than 10% of your monthly income. The deal is; if you want to buy the things you want or desire, you should earn more money.

The needs of men are grouped into three (3), according to Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. They include;

1. Self Fulfillment Needs
2. Psychological Needs
3. Basic Needs

If your needs don’t fall into any of these groups, then they should be considered as wants.

How do you prioritise your needs over wants? 

 1.List your needs and wants 

Writing down your needs and wants will go a long way in helping you to prioritize. Your needs should come first while your wants follow. Your needs should include your house rent, your feeding allowance, your medical fees, and other basic needs, in order of importance. You can group your wants into a hierarchy of priority and move the ones you cannot afford to the following month.

2. Research the prices of your needs and wants 

Research the prices of the things on your list and affix. They might not be the exact prices and might be in ranges, but it is good that you do this. This would help you to calculate how much you might be spending in a month and if it fits your monthly income. With this, you will be able to remove the things that might put you in debt. The goal at the end of this should be to spend lesser than your monthly income and have enough for emergencies. This helps you to focus more on your needs rather than wants

3. Cut all luxuries

As far as basic needs go, there are some rules to it. It is essential that you eat, but you don’t have to eat at restaurants when you can cook at home and save costs. If you can’t cook, you can also check out some cheap restaurants instead of the big and expensive ones. Also, if you are not financially capable to rent a big apartment, look for smaller and less expensive options that would help you to save cost. Some basic needs can become wants if you don’t watch it.

4. Get multiple sources of income 

The way this works is, if you get more sources of income, you get to settle all your financial needs which are your top priority, then you don’t find it difficult to buy the things you want. To prioritise your needs over your wants then becomes more comfortable.

5. Be sincere with yourself 

Be realistic in your budget and don’t list out the things you cannot afford. If some of your needs will make you spend more, look for cheaper alternatives. You are the only one seeing your budget.

As stated above, some of the basic needs include; food, shelter, water, clothing, security and so on. They are the things that might kill you if you don’t have them. It would help if you considered these basic needs first when creating your monthly budget. Having satisfied these needs, you can go ahead and get the things you want. Never choose your wants over your needs. It is a risky financial move that might make you go broke and run into debt.