New thing today, I read a new blog post that I found enlightening and wanted to share it with you.
I've been researching minimalism and minimalist living. Once upon a time I read a book called Enough - Breaking free from the world of more by John Naish which I loved and really spoke to me. It is one of my favorites, and a book that really changed how I see the world.
Anyway so I've got life things to manage, and with the successful weight loss from Weight Watchers, I'm looking to trim the fat and downsize other parts of my life that are weighing me down and keeping me heavy. So, the minimalist lifestyle and philosophy is appealing and I'm researching and learning to live it. It looks like a shift in philosophy and maintenance in how you manage stuff, but it's also about growing and learning and continuing to improve and streamline what you have.
There's a phrase that really got to me in my research "Everything That Remains" by this group The Minimalists and it got me thinking. It makes me want to keep and cherish and value what remains, and get rid of everything else. It's also part of my love of the movie Fight Club - one of the quotes being, "No Fear. No Distractions. The ability to let that which does not matter truly slide" - Chuck Palahniuk. I am drawn to simplicity. My English teacher once said "It's harder to write something short, than it is to write something long". I'll keep that in mind in my blogs, but possibly not. You may still hear me ramble.
So anyway I've added a few minimalist blogs to my feed (a few) and this one post from today really got to me and I'm going to use it when considering buying things.
I'm also keeping up with the blogs as a way to LEARN to be simple. It doesn't come naturally. We have hoarding and collecting tendencies in my family, and I've seen the kind of addiction and crutch it can become, so I want to be free from that and from the emotional attachment to stuff. I also moved around a lot as a kid, and so I really know what it's like to carry, move and have all that stuff with you. So I'm just trying to evolve. As one of my Fight Club movie quotes says "Fuck off with your sofa units and strine green stripe patterns, I say never be complete, I say stop being perfect, I say let... lets evolve, let the chips fall where they may."
So anyway that's my minimalist spiel. Also new thing today, I learned how to spell spiel.
Ok so enjoy the article - here it is REPOSTED - but credit the original author as they did a fabulous job!
From the Be More With Less blog - The Power of a Purchase Pause by Courtney Carver
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The Power of a Purchase Pause
// Be More with Less
I left my sweatshirt on a plane while traveling in March. I wore it frequently, and it was a staple of my tiny wardrobe. I called the airline, searched lost and found, and when I couldn't find it, I wanted to replace it immediately.
Instead, I decided to implement a purchase pause. Even though I really wanted an alternative for my lost item, I knew I didn't need it. Fast forward almost a month, and while there have been a few times that I wanted to wear a sweatshirt, I didn't think about it much. It didn't prevent me from enjoying life or doing the things I normally do.
I always had what sounded like a reasonable excuse to buy. I also had a pile of debt, a garage and shed full of stuff that I didn't use, and all of the side effects that come with that including discontent and stress.
Shopping never fixed anything.
1. Fake the purchase. Before you buy one more thing, imagine buying it. For example, if you want to buy a new pair of roller blades because you saw some people at the park having fun on skates, fake the purchase. Go through each step of the process. Imagine walking into the store, handing over cash or card, and bringing your new roller blades home. Are you so excited that you put them on and take them for a spin, or do you have to go back to work or clean your house first? Maybe you wait to try them until the weekend. Then it rains on Saturday, so you have to put your outing off a week. When you do get out, do you love roller blading and start using them every day or once a week, or after time do they work their way to the back of the closet while you look for something else?
When you finally give up on the roller blades, are you still paying for them? Roller blades might not be your thing, but whatever the item, fake your next purchase and think through the first 30-60 days with your new purchase. Still interested?
2. Buy it on paper. Declare a shopping fast for the next 30 days. Instead of buying it with paper or plastic, buy it on paper. Write down everything you think about buying along with the price. Keep track of the items you want and the money you would have spent buying them.
At the end of 30 days, look at the total amount of money you saved and ask yourself if you want to spend it on the items you listed or use it for something else. It's easier to justify one purchase at a time, but when you total your expenses and realize how much you are spending each month, the individual purchases may seem less important. If your monthly total is $800, would you go out and buy everything on the list or use the $800 differently?
3. Define need vs. want. Get honest with yourself about your purchases. What percentage of your purchases are needs versus wants? Buying something you want isn't a bad thing, but call it what it is.
4. Know what matters most. Use what matters the most to leverage your shopping decisions. If you don't know what matters, buying things may be your way of searching for meaning.
Instead, identify a few things that really mean something to you. It will be different for everyone, but some examples might include:
5. Make rules. Challenge yourself to stick with a few shopping rules so you can fully embrace the power of a purchase pause. Before purchasing, wait 30 days for anything less than $100 and 60 days for everything that costs more than $100.
You don't have to be a shopaholic to benefit from a purchase pause. Most of us have purchased things we don't need or want and later regret the decision to buy. With a small time out, we can fully consider our purchases and make informed decisions about what really makes us happy.
Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed this post, please subscribe to Be More with Less and join me on Facebook. Check out courtneycarver.com for simple ideas for your life and business.
I've been researching minimalism and minimalist living. Once upon a time I read a book called Enough - Breaking free from the world of more by John Naish which I loved and really spoke to me. It is one of my favorites, and a book that really changed how I see the world.
Anyway so I've got life things to manage, and with the successful weight loss from Weight Watchers, I'm looking to trim the fat and downsize other parts of my life that are weighing me down and keeping me heavy. So, the minimalist lifestyle and philosophy is appealing and I'm researching and learning to live it. It looks like a shift in philosophy and maintenance in how you manage stuff, but it's also about growing and learning and continuing to improve and streamline what you have.
There's a phrase that really got to me in my research "Everything That Remains" by this group The Minimalists and it got me thinking. It makes me want to keep and cherish and value what remains, and get rid of everything else. It's also part of my love of the movie Fight Club - one of the quotes being, "No Fear. No Distractions. The ability to let that which does not matter truly slide" - Chuck Palahniuk. I am drawn to simplicity. My English teacher once said "It's harder to write something short, than it is to write something long". I'll keep that in mind in my blogs, but possibly not. You may still hear me ramble.
So anyway I've added a few minimalist blogs to my feed (a few) and this one post from today really got to me and I'm going to use it when considering buying things.
I'm also keeping up with the blogs as a way to LEARN to be simple. It doesn't come naturally. We have hoarding and collecting tendencies in my family, and I've seen the kind of addiction and crutch it can become, so I want to be free from that and from the emotional attachment to stuff. I also moved around a lot as a kid, and so I really know what it's like to carry, move and have all that stuff with you. So I'm just trying to evolve. As one of my Fight Club movie quotes says "Fuck off with your sofa units and strine green stripe patterns, I say never be complete, I say stop being perfect, I say let... lets evolve, let the chips fall where they may."
So anyway that's my minimalist spiel. Also new thing today, I learned how to spell spiel.
Ok so enjoy the article - here it is REPOSTED - but credit the original author as they did a fabulous job!
From the Be More With Less blog - The Power of a Purchase Pause by Courtney Carver
----
The Power of a Purchase Pause
// Be More with Less
I left my sweatshirt on a plane while traveling in March. I wore it frequently, and it was a staple of my tiny wardrobe. I called the airline, searched lost and found, and when I couldn't find it, I wanted to replace it immediately.
Instead, I decided to implement a purchase pause. Even though I really wanted an alternative for my lost item, I knew I didn't need it. Fast forward almost a month, and while there have been a few times that I wanted to wear a sweatshirt, I didn't think about it much. It didn't prevent me from enjoying life or doing the things I normally do.
The power of a purchase pause allows you to …
- save money
- limit impulse buying
- consider your purchases
- avoid buyer's remorse
- bypass emotional shopping
- create time (once you declare a purchase pause, you can stop searching sales and spend less time in the dressing room)
- gracefully bow out of trips to the mall (sorry, can't make it … I'm in the middle of a purchase pause)
I always had what sounded like a reasonable excuse to buy. I also had a pile of debt, a garage and shed full of stuff that I didn't use, and all of the side effects that come with that including discontent and stress.
Shopping never fixed anything.
When you finally give up on the roller blades, are you still paying for them? Roller blades might not be your thing, but whatever the item, fake your next purchase and think through the first 30-60 days with your new purchase. Still interested?
2. Buy it on paper. Declare a shopping fast for the next 30 days. Instead of buying it with paper or plastic, buy it on paper. Write down everything you think about buying along with the price. Keep track of the items you want and the money you would have spent buying them.
At the end of 30 days, look at the total amount of money you saved and ask yourself if you want to spend it on the items you listed or use it for something else. It's easier to justify one purchase at a time, but when you total your expenses and realize how much you are spending each month, the individual purchases may seem less important. If your monthly total is $800, would you go out and buy everything on the list or use the $800 differently?
3. Define need vs. want. Get honest with yourself about your purchases. What percentage of your purchases are needs versus wants? Buying something you want isn't a bad thing, but call it what it is.
4. Know what matters most. Use what matters the most to leverage your shopping decisions. If you don't know what matters, buying things may be your way of searching for meaning.
Instead, identify a few things that really mean something to you. It will be different for everyone, but some examples might include:
- school tuition
- paying off debt
- travel
- quitting your job
- donating money to a cause you care about
5. Make rules. Challenge yourself to stick with a few shopping rules so you can fully embrace the power of a purchase pause. Before purchasing, wait 30 days for anything less than $100 and 60 days for everything that costs more than $100.
You don't have to be a shopaholic to benefit from a purchase pause. Most of us have purchased things we don't need or want and later regret the decision to buy. With a small time out, we can fully consider our purchases and make informed decisions about what really makes us happy.
Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed this post, please subscribe to Be More with Less and join me on Facebook. Check out courtneycarver.com for simple ideas for your life and business.
