Those of you who’ve been reading my blog for a while probably have seen way too much hauls from me. The last couple of months, maybe even the last year, it has become way, way less than before. But back in the days I was full on addicted to shopping. I bought way, way, way too much stuff. Stuff I didn’t even end up using. I bought it without thinking about it just because I wanted it. Today I’m going to tell you a little more about that and how I went from full on shopping addict to shopping lover. If you’re interested in finding out how I did it and how you can do it too, make sure you continue reading!
I just didn’t think
The main problem with me was that I didn’t think. I didn’t think before I bought something. All I thought was “I like this”. And that was enough for me to actually purchase it. Sometimes I did act like I thought about it, but whenever I found a reason not to buy it I came up with an excuse to buy the product or item anyway.
Therefore my best tip is THINK. Just think. Do you actually like it, what do you like about it, do you need it, is it worth the money. Ask yourself all of those questions. If your answer to all of those questions is yes, than go ahead and buy it. If even one of the questions can be answered with a no, let it go.
Be honest with yourself
Like I mentioned I always came up with excuses for myself to buy certain things. I always said to myself that I really needed it. This obviously wasn’t true in most cases and therefore it’s a very good idea to just be honest with yourself. I mean why lie to yourself, that’s so unnecessary. Of course you can buy something you don’t really need every now and then, but when it comes to it just be real with yourself.
The fact that it’s cheap doesn’t justify buying it
Another big mistake I used to make is thinking: well it’s cheap so why not buy it. Even if something costs less than a Euro, it doesn’t mean you have to buy it. Every penny counts, even that 50 cents you just spend on something that most certainly isn’t needed. Of course it’s always great to find an amazing bargain, but don’t always fall for it. In the end it has costed you way more than it should have. Especially if you end up never using the item.
Calculate in work hours
What works for me really well is counting in work hours. This basically means that you divide the price by your hourly wage and calculate how many hours it has costed you to be able to buy this item. Most of the time it’s way more than you actually thought it would be and that always helps me with not buying things I initially wanted to buy.
Obviously I do have my moments where I think it’s all worth it. But if you think something is worth working 10 hours it’s probably pretty amazing and something you might want to buy. But if it’s not worth all blood, sweat and tears, just let it go girl. Really, just let it go.
Can it be missed
Ever since I started saving money for my upcoming vacations I have a little less money on my hands to spend on things I like, like makeup and clothing. Thanks to that I’ve learned to prioritise. Whenever I want to buy something I think to myself: can I live without this item. If I can, I won’t buy it. If it really can’t be missed I’ll buy it.
Of course this doesn’t count for everything. Sometimes you just really want to buy a nice new sweater and I think you should be able to. But especially if you don’t have a lot of money on your hands this is a great way to protect yourself from buying something you don’t need.
Set goals
Another thing that has helped me personally is setting goals. And with that I mean: I set a goal for myself saying how much money I still need to have left at a certain time during the month. Since I’m someone who doesn’t quit on goals I set for myself this works really well for me because even though I want something really, really bad, I don’t buy it because it’s worse to fail my own goals than to not buy a new blush.
I bought things I already have
Another mistake I made is buying things I already own. With that I don’t mean literally the same thing, I mean similar things. I, for example, have about six million striped sweaters. Like my whole closet consists of them. Even if I really like the sweater I see, I already have a million of them so it’s not really worth the money. In that case I’d rather spend my money on things I don’t have.
Aside from the mistakes and tips I’ve mentioned above I have way, way, way more tips and I made even more mistakes when it comes to this topic, but I think this is enough for now. I hope you enjoyed reading it and be sure to let me know what your tips are for shopping less!
XOXO, Nicole.
Great article <3 I used to be addicted as well, but now I only buy something if I really need it. Minimalism is the right thing for me 🙂
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