The past couple weekends, I’ve been on a war path to clean and organize every room in my house. We’ve lived in our house for almost three years now, so it was time to re-evaluate. Take note of things we’ve moved into the house that we literally haven’t used or touched. It was amazing as I started cleaning through rooms how much STUFF we truly had.
I decided in the month of April to do a No Shop Month. I had never done anything like that before and I figured in light of excess spending over the winter paired with being overwhelmed over all the stuff in our house, it was the perfect time to try. I set some ground rules – I wasn’t going to try and push our groceries to last the month, just no spending on any clothes, house decor, etc. Essentially, no shopping besides food.
I made it through the month, but it was A LOT harder than I thought! Doing a no shop month allowed me to be way more aware and in tune with some common themes I find when I shop and I learned so much about myself during that month. I know, on the surface it sounds crazy (and maybe dumb to some of you), but I encourage you to try it. In case any of you are wanting to do a no shop month, I wanted to share a few things I learned and how I plan to implement those things throughout the year so I can have better spending habits and hopefully not accumulate so much stuff!
Lessons #1: I’m an Emotional Shopper
It took forcing myself not to shop to realize that I shop when I’m emotional. Some people eat, I shop. We all long to fill that “hole” when our emotions are eating us up and I have realized that I turn to shopping online. Sometimes I would even find myself shopping without even realizing that I had opened the app! Knowing that I tend to gravitate more towards shopping when I am emotional, I can be more cognizant of it and just avoid it all together until I am in a better state of mind or that feeling of “need” passes.
Lesson #2: I Purchase Items on Impulse Rather Than Intention
We live in a society of consumerism. And while I am proud of the fact that so many people make great livings off of that consumerism, it can also be very tempting (and way too easy) to buy things the moment we want them versus taking the time to think through the process. I can literally open my phone, make a couple clicks, and have things show up on my door without even really thinking about it. Or I can swipe up on a link from someone I follow on Instagram and within a couple seconds order the item they are sharing. I think there is something to be said about giving yourself some time to actually THINK about what you’re consuming – it works for people looking to lose weight! As I was cleaning, I realized that a lot of what I was getting rid of was the result of impulse buying. Things that didn’t really fit in my home or my closet or my kitchen, but I thought would be neat in the moment.
Taking a month to avoid and stop shopping helped me realize what is truly a want, need, or would fit within our home and what isn’t. It helped me to think about becoming more intentional with my spending. For example, investing and making purchases in staple pieces for my closet that I can wear again and again versus buying up a shirt or pants because they are trendy right now and I like it. It forced me to define my personal style and the design/style of our home and make inventory of what we have and where I think there may be holes for future purchases. I guess I had never really given much thought to this, but I am moving forward with a better plan in mind and only want to bring things into our home that I’ve really thought about purchasing before actually purchasing them.
Lesson #3: Make a List and Re-Evaluate
During my no shop month, I kept a list of all the items I saw or found that I wanted – in the moment, had been thinking about, etc. I added them to the list. At the end of the month, I went through the list. And I would say about two thirds of the list, I just deleted completely. Lots of them were impulse wants, some of them when I really thought about it weren’t practical or just don’t fit into my wardrobe or home. And a few of the items were ones that eventually I’d like to purchase.
Making a list has helped me now going into May and back in the land of shopping, be more intentional with my shopping and spending and give me a plan for the future. I am not just mindless shopping and picking up items that I see, like, or want. I have taken the time to evaluate the items I am looking for in my home and my closet and I will hold out on making purchases until I find that right one. I can also feel better about my purchases knowing that they’ll fit within my criteria I’ve established in order to help balance spending and accumulation of things.
Lesson #4: I Spend A LOT of Time Mindlessly Shopping
Much like social media, having apps for all my favorite stores on my phone was a danger. I would find myself mindlessly opening apps and scrolling without even realizing that I was actually shopping! I know it sounds crazy, but I think we’ve all fallen prey to this, especially with social media. Much like anything, establishing boundaries and setting healthy habits in order to compact technology in our lives is important. I’ve moved all of my shopping apps to the third page in my phone so they aren’t easy to just open and click. I have to go searching for them and really want to intentionally buy something when I open them.
I have also unsubscribed from all emails from any of my favorite stores so I am not tempted to go looking when they have their 500th sale of the year. Removing those easy temptations from my life helped me to make it through the month feeling strong and good about not shopping. And honestly, I spent way less time on my phone and sucked into my computer and I was able to spend it doing more important things like praying, spending time with my husband or son, reading, or just enjoying a quiet moment to myself. It is amazing how much time we “waste” on things that we don’t even realize in the moment we are doing.
Anyway, I share all of this in case any of you want to do a No Spend month – I highly encourage it. I guarantee you’ll learn a lot about yourself and your family when it comes to spending and how and where you spend your money. And hopefully, you’ll end your no shop month with goals and plans to shop more intentionally and mindfully in the future.
Have you ever done a no shop month? I would love to hear what you learned!
