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If you want to change your shopping habits, you may have experienced this shopping scenario. You find the perfect thing, add to cart and realize you have to spend a little bit more to get free shipping. So you keep shopping. Or like I used to do, maybe you buy things you don’t really want so you can get something for free that you don’t really need. How many times did I buy make-up so I could get the free make-up bag full of samples that were being offered?!
Whether you walk in the store for one thing and come home with ten things, or found a shirt and liked it so much, you bought it in every color (I’ve done that before and then .), you can change your shopping habits anytime. Even if you couldn’t resist a recent online sale, or you try to shop away your feelings, it’s not too late. The best part is that you don’t have to torture yourself for your past mistakes. There are judgment-free ways to change your shopping habits.
How to check and change your shopping habits
Buying things and spending money isn’t bad or good. There’s no moral value assigned to the dress you bought at Target while you were grocery shopping (been there, done that). Instead, consider how your shopping habits support what you want in your life and for your life. Simplicity isn’t just about the outgoing stuff. The incoming stuff is just as important. If you are working towards a , you want more stuff going out the door than coming in the door. If you are paying down debt or saving for something, notice when your shopping habits pull you away from what’s important to you.
Remove any judgement you have about past spending and shopping habits. Even when you are experimenting and creating new habits, choose noticing over judging. Things may have to shift depending on your lifestyle, the time of year and other things. While there isn’t a perfect solution that fits every person in every situation, at least a few of these eight suggestions will help you change your shopping habits and .
8 Judgment-Free Ways to Change Your Shopping Habits
When you do stop shopping, don’t judge your past behavior. Notice it, but resist making judgments or feeling badly about it. You’ve already paid enough. You’ve paid with your money, time, attention, energy and emotions. You don’t have to continue paying with guilt or other negative emotions.
1. Cultivate a museum mentality.
doesn’t mean you don’t want to occasionally buy something. Instead of finding gratification in the owning, find it in appreciation for the item. For instance, when you walk through a museum you can fully appreciate the art without owning it. The same goes for new clothing, gadgets and other things. When you , admire, don’t acquire. This will help you shift your shopping habits because instead of approaching things with the question of, “what’s missing?” you’ll be asking, “what do I enjoy and appreciate?”
2. Wait and see.
A purchase pause will do wonders when you are trying to change your shopping habits. Sometimes the thing you want to buy right now isn’t about the thing. Instead, that impulse is about how you are feeling and where you are. Let the moment pass. That thing you want to buy now will very likely still be available next month. Wait thirty days for any purchase and see if is still as necessary or appealing later. Spoiler alert: it rarely is.
3. Buy it on paper.
Get a good look at your shopping habits in a risk-free way. Carry a small notebook with you and whenever you think about buying something, write down what it is and how much it costs. Do this for thirty days and see how much money you’ve saved. If you want to take this a step further, set the cash aside for every purchase you don’t make. At the end of thirty days, you’ll have a good contribution to put towards debt, rent, a donation or a trip depending on what you want to do with your money.
4. Establish gift policies.
Talk to your friends and family and come up with a way to change and reduce exchanging gifts during holidays. Suggest a new twist like gifting experiences over stuff or spending money on a dinner or weekend getaway in lieu of gifts. If you are ready to call gift giving off, be gentle with people who aren’t there yet but hold your ground. Setting boundaries and having these conversations early can be really helpful. You may be surprised that people agree with you!
5. Try a shopping ban.
It’s easier to recognize the behaviors and patterns of your shopping habits when you break away from them for awhile. Try a spending freeze or a . . You might try another simplicity challenge too like . A challenge will bring more intention to your desire to change your shopping habits while leaving the judgment behind.
6. Create shopping-free zones.
Notice when and where you shop the most and declare those times and areas shopping-free zones. For instance, if you notice you shop after work, or later at night when scrolling social media, don’t go there … at all. Steer clear of your favorite shops and unsubscribe from text and email notifications reminding you to buy things you weren’t even thinking about. Give yourself some space from the places that make you want to shop.
7. The buddy system.
8. You can return that!
If you do buy something during a shopping ban, or over do it during a sale and momentarily forget about why you want to change your shopping habits, instead of judging yourself or giving yourself a hard time, remember that you can likely return whatever is weighing you down.
Simply becoming more aware of how you spend and why you buy will allow you to shift your shopping habits with more ease. Becoming more intentional about how you want to spend not only money but your time, energy and attention will simplify and enrich your life.
