SoFi Blog

“Retail therapy” is a tongue-in-cheek phrase people often casually toss about, referring to the good feeling that can arise through shopping, a feeling that is often (but not always) short-lived. (This isn’t, it should be noted, an actual form of therapy!)

Sometimes, people pursue shopping therapy when they need to cheer themselves up, whether after a romantic breakup, a bout with the flu, or a tough day at the office. Other times, this kind of pseudo-therapy is used to celebrate a special occasion, perhaps a promotion at work or an engagement announcement.

This post will explore the psychology behind shopping for pleasure, versus shopping strictly for what you need. We’ll delve into ways in which retail therapy can be harmless and may be a release, along with some potentially negative impacts.

We’ll share tips on creating a budget that helps allow room for purchases that make you smile, as well as ways to free up your cash flow, and a strategy aimed to help dig yourself out of credit card debt that can arise with over-enthusiastic spending.

Created by Greg Glassman, CrossFit is an insanely popular fitness regimen. And like other workout programs, it takes planning, discipline, and commitment to reap the benefits of your hard work. The same is true, psychologically speaking, with managing your debt, as it also takes a similar sense of commitment and disciplined approach.

In both types of goals—fitness and financial—it’s great to first dream big. That’s what brings the excitement to the process, fueling your motivation to succeed. All big successes start with that big dream.

Next come the concrete, practical steps needed to achieve those dreams, making them your reality. In this post, we’ll discuss four things we know about CrossFit lessons that can also help with debt management. We’ll also look at how to manage a specific type of debt—student loans—sharing a smart way to potentially lower your interest rate, as well as describing how you might be able to pay less interest over the life of your student loan.

Millions of Americans are facing the realities of living with debt, as it continues to rise with record-breaking speed. High education costs, home loans, and rising credit card debt mean that most young families are juggling kids, career, and debt. For many, that balancing act quickly becomes overwhelming, with stress about bills and financial health eating away at their overall quality of life.

As debt rates rise, so do concerns about how debt and financial anxiety may impact mental and physical health. Feeling panicky about getting another bill in the mail and lightheaded when you see your account balance drop after your monthly student loan payment aren’t just symptoms of being a millennial, they may actually be symptoms of debt.

Research shows that your balance owed can negatively impact your sense of well-being, potentially causing a variety of emotional and physical issues. The bottom line is that the more stressed you are about debt and finances, the worse you’re probably going to feel overall, both physically and mentally.

In past generations, people who didn’t feel confident about their test-taking abilities might have taken to old-fashioned cheats like listing the answers on the insides of their wrists or on the soles of their shoes. Or, they might have been tempted to peek at the paper of the smart kid sitting next to them.

Whatever the temptation or the technique, these were low-tech methods in contrast to what’s possible and used today. Now, colleges are needing to deal with pretty high tech forms of cheating, occasionally so high tech that the FBI has been called in. Seriously. The FBI.

Here’s another challenge. Surveys show that cheating, including high tech forms, is much more common than we’d like to believe, which means colleges are having to expend plenty of time, energy and resources to combat this behavior to create an even playing field for honest, hardworking students who are earning their grades through studying.

This post will take a look at the extent of this problem, along with high tech methods being used today. We’ll also share how colleges are fighting back against cheating strategies that range from essay mills to cell phone cheating and more.

If you have a passion for pimping your ride—whether that’s a car, truck, motorcycle, ATV or boat—then you already know how having a super-charged garage to work on, store or display your amazing vehicles would be ideal. Or, maybe it’s your dream to have a professional-level DIY workshop or garage for like-minded friends to enjoy.

Maybe the place where you park just needs a basic remodel or maybe you need to do more significant upgrading. Or, maybe your already-cool garage needs a brand-new look. Whatever your situation, possibilities are endless, doable by a creative person like you.

From shelving to flooring to lifts and more, creating a garage space that’s exactly right for your unique vision takes planning, and this post will take you from garage room ideas to finished product. Ideas to consider include how you’ll heat your garage, whether air conditioning makes sense, your water needs, preferences for garage lighting and more.

Discover what aspect of your garage remodel can provide close to a 100% return on investment, tips for working with professional remodelers, and ways to finance your project.