What a Month of No Shopping Taught Me About Money Management

 

The past few months I have been in a very "treat yourself" mood. I've bought new clothes, new bags, new jewelry, new records and while I love everything I've bought, my wallet has been hurting. As a test of willpower I decided to do a month long cleanse of sort: no shopping (online or in store) and only spending money on essentials. I decided not to do a complete no-buy because I still wanted to be able to dine out or replenish toiletries and cleaning products that I've gone through. Here's how I did it and what I've learnt. 

I find that browsing shops online is relaxing so I still let myself go on my favorite websites and add to cart then closed the page and never checked out. Not shopping in stores was much easier for me. I don't live in a big city and the nearest mall has been hit hard by the pandemic and has few stores so I don't go often. I also used my planner to motivate myself: everyday that I didn't shop I put a pink highlighter X through the day so I could visually see my streak. 

I've learnt a lot about my spending habits and how I like to cope with stress through this process. I have found that my go-to when I've had a bad day or when I'm bored is to browse a shop online. I also realized that when I shop online a lot of the checking out was due to impulse. If I gave myself a day or two between putting things in the cart and checking out, I think fewer purchases would be made. Life is also way more expensive than I realized! My car registration, renters insurance, and a couple other big expenses came up so looking at the month I didn't spend significantly less than a month where I did shop. I've also realized just how much I already own. I have so many clothing items that I really don't need to be buying more. During the pandemic I've gotten into slow fashion and buying secondhand or through sustainable companies and I think I've been going overboard buying new-to-me pieces instead of really cherishing and using what I already own. 

Moving forward I think I am going to keep doing my no-shopping or at least low-shopping lifestyle. I have put down a lot of money (for me) on a life coaching program as an early birthday gift to myself. That money has come from savings and I want to stop shopping until I bridge the gap and replenish the money I've taken. 

Let me know if you've done a no shopping month (trust me, it's harder than it seems) and I encourage all of you to at least try it for a week and notice how your spending habits are.