A NO-BUY YEAR

What is a no-buy year?

I came across the concept on YouTube a while ago, and it means committing to not buying anything outside of the rules you set for yourself for a year (though I’ve seen people do it for varying amounts of time). The rules vary by person, but generally people allow buying groceries, paying bills and replacing products when you run out of them. One suggestion I heard is that you allow yourself one area where you are allowed to make purchases, just to make it more doable. I’ve also seen people give themselves a small budget for one specific area that they normally buy a lot of, or having less strict rules in general and calling it a “low-buy”. I’m going for a no-buy though with very few exceptions, because in for a penny in for a pound (or rather not in for a penny, not in for a pound). I’ve written my rules down below (I forgot to include them, but my monthly phone and Spotify bills are also included) .

Why am I doing it?

Well for starters, I no longer have a job so I need to get smarter about how I spend my money. But really I want to get better at appreciating what I have and change my consuming habits. I feel a bit like spending is something I do mindlessly. This seems weird to say, because I do put a lot of thought into what I buy and I return things I don’t like. But thinking it though, once i’ve decided I want something, I put a lot of thought into finding the perfect version of that thing for me, not whether or not I actually need it. I’ve definitely gotten a lot better in recent years but I think I still need to slow down even more..

General thoughts

I do find the idea a bit daunting. However, I told my mum I was planning on doing it, prefacing it by saying “don’t laugh”, but she said she wouldn’t laugh at anything like that because ever since I was a child, once I put my mind to something, that’s it. That made me feel better about it, though I know not everyone would share my mum’s thoughts on my ability to do this challenge.

The thing is, if you watch people’s videos on YouTube talking about their experiences, a lot of them have bought something against their rules. The goal is not complete perfection but to try my best and work on my relationship with consuming, both are continuous objectives. I’ll keep you posted on how I get on, which will hopefully keep me accountable.