I’m usually mistaken to be a cardholder for some credit company and often baffle cashiers as they handle making change when I hand them paper money instead of a credit card.

As technology is changing and making money more accessible for consumers through means such as smartwatch compatibility, and phone compatibility. With all these new advances literally at our fingertips, it makes it easy to lose track of how we manage our money when it’s so easy to spend it.

Paper money allows you to visually see how much you’re spending at any given moment. It’s easy to allow yourself to splurge a little when the money doesn’t seem real, therefore it doesn’t feel like you’re spending a lot because all you’re really doing is swiping a plastic card, which doesn’t give the same feeling as actually handing over real, paper money.

Similarly, online shopping contributes to the same spending habits that credit cards do. Online shopping may even be worse than going to a store and swiping a card because online shopping takes away the aspect of holding the items you’re going to buy. When you’re shopping online you can load up your virtual cart with things, pay for them and then have those items shipped to your house. Completely bypassing the entire shopping experience.

By going into a store and shuffling through racks of clothes and picking out things you like and ultimately buying them allows you to feel the full weight of what you just bought, and stop you from overspending. Also, paper money gives you a cap on your spending, because there’s only a fixed amount of cash on you. Credit cards don’t have the same usage cap.

Paper money allows you to be more frugal and conscious of what you’re buying, whereas credit cards and other forms of credit card compatibility, can foster a habit of overspending simply due to the idea that you can’t keep track of what how much you’re spending. So next time you’re going to go out shopping, maybe stop by the bank and withdraw some cash and leave your credit card at home.