Picture your university sharehouse kitchen… Dishes piling up next to the sink, a few empty vodka cruiser bottles in the corner, a sticky fridge with a suspicious smell that no one wants to investigate. 

And your pantry? Sparse. A couple of two minute noodle packets, a communal salt shaker, half a loaf of mouldy white bread (you get the gist). 

Now picture your current pantry. You might have a collection of spices, some fancy olive oil, a nice bottle of wine… maybe even some overpriced chilli oil or sea salt flakes you got from the Sunday market. 

The differences might not be huge. But they’re there. 

Here’s the thing, you probably didn’t wake up one day and go: “I’m going to level up my pantry” - it happened slowly over time. You grew up a bit, and your standards of living grew with you. 

That’s totally normal! But when your living standards become too high for your discretionary income to keep up… that’s when it becomes a problem. 

Get this: personal goods spending jumped 8.4% over the past year, according to NAB, even with inflation biting. So Aussies are still splashing out on retail treats, even when the rest of the budget is feeling the squeeze. 

It’s called the lifestyle creep - and it could be hurting your financial goals more than you realise.

Some signs you’re engaging in a lifestyle might be:

• Living pay check to pay check despite your income increasing.
• Your savings aren't growing (or are shrinking) even though you're earning more.
• Takeaways, food delivery, and stacking subscriptions has become the norm… not the occasional treat they used to be
• You've upgraded your home, car, or day-to-day spending to match a new income level.
• Every raise or bonus gets absorbed by new expenses before you notice it happening.

If the above resonates with you, don't stress. We’ve got some expert tips to help reign things back in.

Set some clear goals

Having clear money goals means you’re less likely to spend money on non-essential items - because you’re focused on where your money is going.

For example: Saving towards a holiday, a car or a home deposit, tickets to a festival, increasing your emergency savings, or even having a set amount of money you’d like to invest.

Set a realistic budget (and stick to it)

Once you have some clear goals, it might be tempting to take drastic measures when it comes to budgeting. But take a breath.

It’s best to set a realistic budget so you can actually stick to it. A common framework financial experts recommend is the 50/30/20 rule.

• 50% goes towards needs - rent, bills, groceries.
• 30% goes towards fun -  eating out, concerts, treat purchases.
• 20% goes towards savings.

Increase your savings with any income raises

As tempting as it is to upgrade your life when you get a raise, or a new job, or your side hustle starts picking up, take a step back first. Ask yourself: “What do I actually need, and what do I just want.”

If you give as much love to your savings pot as you are to your spending one, then you won’t be as at risk of accidentally spending above your means.

Make yourself wait before you spend

When you’re tempted to make a purchase immediately, give yourself a cooling off period, at least 24 hours.

That way you give yourself time for the initial emotions to simmer, and can look at the purchase more rationally.

Match your treat spending in savings

If you really want to buy something, a good trick to try is making yourself match the cost of a purchase in savings.

A new pair of sneakers cost $250? You put $250 into savings too. If you can't afford to do both… you don't buy them.

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At the end of the day, you’re allowed to enjoy the money you earn! Just make sure your lifestyle isn't the only thing getting an upgrade, your savings deserve one too.

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