During the last week of December 2020, I reached a tipping point. I was purchasing SO many things- clothes, beauty products, and home/kitchen goods. I had seen several “No Shopping” or “No Buy” challenges in the past, but they always seemed impossible. For 2021, though, I decided that I NEEDED to re-examine my relationship with shopping and consumerism, and I committed to doing a 3 month #NoShopping challenge.
Why I started the challenge
There are two big reasons why I committed to this challenge. The first is that I think I ought to live somewhat within a student budget. Alhamdulillah, my husband has a great job and thinks I’m silly for wanting to do this challenge. I’m grateful for that. But at the same time, I don’t feel entitled to waste money I’m not earning. I value saving up for the big things- a home, kids, retirement- and I think my spending habits weren’t 100% compatible with that value system. It’s not that I was wasting money, but I don’t think I was being mindful enough. That leads in to the second reason, which is that I wanted to be more sustainable and improve my environmental impact. My hope was that being more mindful about my shopping would benefit both my wallet and the planet.
Planning for the Challenge
There are several blogs online that have more information on preparing for a no-buy challenge, but these were the big things:
- Make a list of pre-approved purchases. This would include things like groceries, my bi-weekly eyebrow threading, and gifts. I also included a couple items I knew I’d need for upcoming projects.
- Similarly, make a list of purchases you want to stay away from. For me, that was clothes, accessories, makeup/beauty products, and home/kitchen goods.
- Unsubscribe from email lists and mute Instagram pages that you think will tempt you to shop!
- If you have items you know you may need soon, you could buy them before the challenge. E.g. I purchased a new bra and a couple items I needed for upcoming projects before the challenge.
Challenges
- I realized early on that January is a bad time to embark on a 3 month No Shopping challenge because WOW the end of season sales are amazing…In general, I think the end of season is the most economical time to shop.
- The second challenge I faced was that targeted ads on Instagram are actually very good at identifying my fashion sense, and therefore are harder to resist.
- As I implemented a blanket ban on shopping, I noticed myself getting more interested in old hobbies such as sewing, knitting, and DIYs. I’ve been getting creative with some of my content on Instagram and that has involved small DIY projects. It’s been so fun and a great distraction from buying. But, I’m also realizing that certain hobbies of mine, like embroidery, are a little expensive. Realistically I don’t even have the time for those hobbies right now- I have a thesis to write and USMLE STEP 2 to take. But doing this challenge has made me realize that I have hobbies besides shopping that I could focus on more in the future rather than using shopping as a hobby (which I think many people do). The downside is that I am not going to let myself purchase embroidery materials because that sort of defeats the purpose of this challenge.
Reflections
I noticed a few things about my shopping habits that I want to change
- When I like something, I feel an urge to buy multiples- multiple colors, other things from the brand, etc. E.g. I wanted a green pair of Birdies because I love my black ones. I think a lot of people fall into this habit, and while it’s not the worst since it hopefully means the product is so useful and great, I should probably just be more mindful whether I really need the second product.
- There will always be some occasion or excuse that comes up for why you supposedly need to shop. Spoiler alert- you DON’T actually need to shop. For instance, I was sent this luxury mascara, which was really good. Then, I started seeing this $5 mascara that everyone raves about, and I wanted to buy it to make a comparison reel for Instagram. Basically, there will always be some idea or another that pops up, and I’m learning to curb my instinct to just make the purchase.
- Sometimes there are items I think I need but eventually realize I don’t. For instance, one item I purchased and later returned was a Peloton bike seat cushion. I’ve been using the Peloton in my building and LOVE it but I felt that I needed a cushion in order to continue biking without getting sore. Unfortunately, the cushion was a little too big for the Peloton seat, so I ended up returning it and eventually my butt just got used to the bike seat. Basically, this just goes to show that we can often get by without things we think we need.
- There are a lot of little purchases that I would ordinarily make without thinking. For instance, there was a pack of 2 hairbands on Amazon that I wanted and it was $5. Usually, I wouldn’t think twice about this sort of purchase. This month, I told myself I could buy it only if I wore my other hair band multiple times, which I did do. Forcing myself to think hard about whether I actually needed this item was a good exercise. I ended up buying the hairbands, but there were several similar purchases I didn’t make.
- Finally, sometimes I see a product and get excited, but wouldn’t actually use it much. For instance, I wanted to purchase a hair oil which I saw on Instagram that a lot of women have praised. However, I told myself that I could only buy it if I oiled my hair 5 times with olive oil or avocado oil that I already have at home. Lo and behold, I haven’t done it. I don’t actually have hair loss or hair thinning, so of course I can’t be bothered to oil my hair. That hair oil would just sit on my shelf unused- I knew this deep down. This is the sort of purchase I need to be careful about going forward. If I actually had hair thinning, I’m sure I WOULD oil my hair and this would be a reasonable purchase.
Did I break the challenge this month?
I’ll say I cheated a couple times. There were a few things I purchased in December that arrived in January, which I exchanged for different items. A black turtleneck I bought was ill-fitting, so I returned it and replaced it with a different one from another store.
A cardigan I had been eyeing came on sale and I bought it, but then I returned a pair of pants I had purchased and was planning on keeping even though I was feeling neutral about them. So net 0, but still cheating.
And then, finally, the hair bands I mentioned earlier, which are useful but I regret buying them because they’re sort of ill-fitting.
Q&A
I’ve tried to answer several of the questions earlier in the post, but here are two I found interesting!
Do you think you’ll rebound after the 3 months and buy more than usual?
I don’t think so- I find that I have less of an inclination to buy things now than before the challenge. I don’t scroll through websites as much. I’ll definitely have to continue to make an effort when the challenge ends, though. It would be easy to revert to my old ways. At this point, I can’t say I’ve kicked the habit of consumerism just yet.
Are you just making a list of all the things you’re about to buy when the challenge ends?
YES I do have a wishlist (guilty!!) BUT I find that as time passes, things fall off the list. I realize I don’t need them, or I decide I want something else instead, or my taste just changes. Because of that, I’m still cutting out purchases I would have otherwise made if I just bought whatever came to mind right away! Right now, my wishlist also includes items like a hair brush and a replacement watch band – things I would have considered “needs” before. But in reality, they’re not “needs” – I already have a hair brush and my current watch band is still usable. So I think my wishlist is fairly reasonable and I won’t feel too guilty about purchasing some of those items eventually!
