How To Fight Lifestyle Creep & Why It’s Dangerous
Lifestyle creep, also known as lifestyle inflation, is something that can happen before you even realize it. As your income increases so does your lifestyle.
Why is lifestyle creep dangerous?
When you receive the good news that you are getting a raise or a new job with a higher salary that means you are going to hit your financial goals faster, right? Not necessarily, in fact in most cases not. Your goals may even slow down!
For most people, as they receive news that they got a raise their mind instantly goes to all the places they can now spend the money.
First, we need to go out to a fancy restaurant to celebrate. Then we can finally “afford” to upgrade the car… which will lead to a higher car payment. It is so easy to fall into the trap of lifestyle creep and end up spending your entire raise and sometimes even more!
How to stop lifestyle creep?
As soon as you know how much your increased salary will be, it’s time to sit down and figure out where to allocate that money.
If you aren’t already on a written budget, it’s time to get on one! Here is my easy-to-use budget template with pre-populated formulas so get you started!
Open up your budget and come up with a game plan for the additional money you will be receiving each month. Whether your increased salary will be $100 extra a month or $20,000 extra a month, you need a specific plan for the money.
"As your income goes up… so do your goals … NOT your spending"
What are your current financial goals? Are you paying off debt, saving, or investing? Allocate your extra money to these goals and stick to your plan.
It’s so easy to increase your spending when you’ve received a raise but it’s important to make your financial goals top priority. Yes, it may not be as fun to make that bigger debt payment but think of how amazing it will feel once you are debt-free and then all the money you receive is yours to keep!
Related artlcles:
Unique Tips to Pay Off Credit Card Debt Quickly and Stay Debt Free
Paying off credit card debt can feel impossible, but it does not have to be. Most advice repeats the same tired steps, yet there are smarter, practical strategies that actually work. From pairing every swipe with a payment to turning no spend weekends into real progress, these methods help you cut balances faster without feeling deprived. Credit cards carry some of the highest interest rates, which makes them the most expensive debt to ignore. The sooner you act, the more money you save and the quicker you break free. Learn how to shift your mindset and use creative challenges to stay motivated until your debt is gone for good.
How to Stretch Your Groceries and Waste Less Each Week [5-Day Challenge To Spend Less]
Looking to save money and avoid constant grocery runs? Learn how to stretch your groceries with five easy, practical tips anyone can follow. From using up leftovers to making the most of pantry staples, these strategies help reduce food waste and increase your savings. Perfect for families, meal planners, or anyone trying to shop less often without sacrificing meals. Try this simple challenge to make your food go further every week.
Why Your Budget Isn’t Broken — It’s Just Missing This One Thing
If you are budgeting carefully but still feel like your money disappears every month, this article is for you. The problem is not that your budget is broken. It is that something important is missing from the process. Learn the simple shift that can help you uncover hidden money in your everyday spending, boost your savings without cutting out the things you love, and finally feel in control of your finances. This is the piece most people overlook and it could be the reason your budget has not been working the way it should.
How To Know When You’re Ready For An LLC (And How To Actually Set One Up)
Thinking about forming an LLC but not sure if you’re ready? This guide breaks down exactly what an LLC is, why it matters, and how to know when it’s the right move for your business. You’ll learn the key signs it’s time to make things official and how an LLC can protect your personal assets. We’ll also walk you through the easiest way to set one up in under 15 minutes so you can skip the confusion and get back to growing your business. If you’re freelancing, side hustling, or running a small business, this is a must-read.
7 Budgeting Habits That Can Actually Change Your Life
Let’s be honest for a second. Budgeting gets a bad reputation. People hear the word and immediately think of rules, restriction, and spreadsheets that collect dust after one stressful week of tracking. But here’s the truth:
Budgeting is not about restriction. It’s about clarity.
It’s about making sure your money is going toward the life you actually want, instead of leaking away unnoticed.
2025 Tax-Free Weekends: The Smart Shopper’s Guide to Saving Big For Back To School
If you’ve got back-to-school, work-from-home, or everyday essentials on your list, tax-free weekends are the perfect time to shop smart and save even more. Many states offer limited-time sales tax breaks on things like clothing, school supplies, laptops, and even emergency prep gear.
Be mindful of your friends
Another reason why lifestyle creep can be dangerous is our friends and the people that we hang around. Don’t fall into peer pressure.
If all of your colleagues upgrade their car when they make partner, don’t feel like you need to as well.
At the end of the day, you and your family have your own goals and they can make fun of you all day long. You are the one that will be so much happier with no car payments and maybe even a paid-off house!
Don’t stop there! Keep growing your income.
Just because you received a raise at work doesn’t mean that’s all the money you can make. Have you thought of picking up an online side hustle?
Here are 147 side hustle ideas that you can make money from home. I bet you have some skills that you didn’t even think you would be able to monetize!
I'm no longer struggling to pay bills.
Have you ever received a raise so that you are no longer struggling to pay bills but then find yourself no longer making progress on your goals?
Unfortunately, it is so easy to stop tracking your spending or working your side hustle because you no longer “need” to. But this is a huge trap because it can result in making zero progress on your financial goals or even going backward because you get too comfortable and start creeping t going into the red at the end of the month.
Don’t let this happen to you!
More Ways To Save:
Here at Freedom In A Budget, I am all about saving money! Here are some of the EASY ways that I save money:
• Lively: Get started with an HSA today, Lively helps people prepare for tomorrow by making smart decisions about finances and healthcare today.
• Fetch Rewards is a free grocery savings app that rewards you just for snapping pictures of your receipts. That’s really it. Free gift cards on groceries on thousands of products every day, no matter where you get your groceries. Just scan your receipts and get gift cards from places like Starbucks, Target, Ulta, Applebees. Use code QHKBH to earn 2,000 points ($2)!
• Hulu: Discover and watch movies, shows, Hulu Originals, past seasons, current episodes, sports, live news, and more with Hulu. Stream TV shows your way. Try for FREE for 1 month!
• Rakuten/Ebates: Rakuten is my to go way to earn Cash Back from over 2,500 stores like Macy’s, Amazon, Sephora, Walmart and much more. Join Rakuten today for free, and you’ll get a $10 Cash Bonus to get you started! Every three months, you’ll get a Big Fat Check in the mail or a PayPal payment just for shopping.
• CIT Bank offers high-yield savings accounts that provide a safe, secure way to grow your savings.
• M1 Finance is an easy to use brokerage platform that allows you to invest in Fractional Shares and auto reinvest!
• Webull Get 2 Free Stocks on WeBull when you deposit $100 (Valued up to $1400).
• Budget Templates: Excel budget templates with pre-populated categories and formulas to keep you on track with hitting your financial goals.
If you enjoyed this blog post, share it with a friend!
Some of the links in this article are "affiliate links", a link with a special tracking code. This means if you click on an affiliate link and purchase the item, we will receive an affiliate commission. The price of the item is the same whether it is an affiliate link or not. Regardless, we only recommend products or services we believe will add value to our readers. By using the affiliate links, you are helping support our Website, and we genuinely appreciate your support.
what do you think?
You must be logged in to post a comment.