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103 dresses?

Radical steps she had to take after her love of shopping spun out of control

shop in this circumstance? I get as far as entering my card details before realising that if I give myself an excuse for this purchase, I’ll just keep finding them forever. Close tab.

The first week of my shopping ban is definitely the hardest and I’m constantly itching to buy something – proof that shopping is indeed addictive. Interestingly, though, my yearning starts to wear off as the weeks go by, particularly as I experience the relief of not having to scrape around to afford my commute or a late-in-the-month dinner with friends. I also realise that many of my purchases were driven by fear of missing out, but in fact I won’t die of regret if I don’t buy every gorgeous item I see. In fact, I probably won’t even remember them. It also becomes clear that online shopping is my real weakness, since despite not banning myself from in-store purchases, I haven’t made any.

As the month draws to a close, though, I take myself to Covent Garden, to a physical shop. I enjoy looking at all the lovely things, without feeling the urge to run around adding them all to my basket. Yes, those boots are extremely on trend, and that jumper would look great with my favourite skirt, but I don’t need them. Instead, I pick up a leather handbag – one I’ve been carefully considering for weeks and know I will love for years – and take it to the till. It’s not mega expensive – in fact, it is far less than I would normally have spent on clothes every month. But tapping my card to buy it, guilt-free and feeling in full control of my spending, is priceless.

How to curb your shopping habit

Money therapist Vicky Reynal shares her tips for ending your big spending

Pity poor Gen Z. The nation’s youngest adults (born between 1997 and 2012) have had their financial parade well and truly rained on. Want an affordable home? Sorry guys, the Baby Boomers snapped those up back in the 70s and 80s when they were going for just over three times their salary. Now it’s a minimum of seven.

How about an impressive income, then? Nope, those have been ringfenced by

Gen X, who made more than anyone else during the pandemic (benefiting from a perfect storm of peak earning years and a property boom).

With Gen Z’s parents mostly still alive and kicking (read: inheritance a hazy prospect) and the cost-of-living crisis, they are beset on all sides by money worries. This was confirmed in a recent survey by Deloitte, which found that almost half of Gen Zs exist from paycheque to paycheque, citing the cost of living as their biggest worry.

With energy bills soaring, and recent inflation predictions for next year ranging between 13 and 18 per cent, what is the UK’S impoverished youth to do? The answer is that Gen Z will deploy their secret weapon ‒ a willingness to diversify and be flexible. Statistics show it is the generation most minded to ‘job hop’ and to make that a long-term employment modus operandi.

In between the hops, meanwhile, almost half (43 per cent of Gen Zs) are likely to have a second job, and it is these ‘side hustles’ that are marking them out as a force to be reckoned with.

We spoke to three 20-somethings who have turned their passions into profits.

WELLBEING

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2022-09-25T07:00:00.0000000Z

2022-09-25T07:00:00.0000000Z

https://mailonline.pressreader.com/article/282192244850366

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