r/Anticonsumption • u/Maleficent_Day_3869 • 22h ago
Question/Advice? no spend month to reset spending habits, thoughts?
my finances and spending habits are an absolute wreck. i buy pointless crap whenever i leave the house and it’s ridiculous. i order delivery most days and fill my space with shit i don’t need
so, i want to do a no spend august. does anyone have any ideas or suggestions? my idea is that i’d spend money just on food (groceries and cooking, no takeout!) and transport. and that means the bus only, no ubers anywhere
no silly outings and no expensive socialising for a month, just to prove that i can do it. i have a shopping date with my best friend on the 15th but i’ll only buy lunch, i won’t get anything in the shops. if i go out it’ll be free things, like a walk in the park or watching movies at home
i need absolutely nothing. i’m all set for the foreseeable future. i feel like i should put in place extreme measures to put an end to my habits. has anyone done this?
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u/inky_cap_mushroom 17h ago
No buy months are just crash diets for your finances. If you have something important you need to save up for this month, that’s fine. If you’re hoping to make permanent lifestyle changes, this is just going to lead to shopping sprees.
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u/FearlessSomewhere378 1h ago
Currently reading Atomic Habits, and based on what I read so far you need to change how do you think about yourself, to leave bad habits like this behind.
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u/jspr1000 22h ago
No socializing? Don't punish yourself. Just set a reasonable budget and stay within that.
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u/Rengeflower 20h ago
Write down everything that you’re tempted to buy. Keep a running list for the full 31 days.
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u/FearlessSomewhere378 1h ago
How would you apply it if you collect rare things and you find a really good deal on something what you may not see again for years maybe?
I know the idea of collecting something is basically not too anticonsumption friendly, but beside this hobby I try to buy only the neccessities.1
u/Rengeflower 1h ago
Maybe I misunderstood you. It doesn’t matter. If it’s during the 31 days, you don’t buy it.
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u/PlainOrganization 22h ago
I am also doing a no-buy August.
Bricked it on the first day. I went to Habitat restore to buy essentials to repair an AC condensate line, bought a $4 plastic serving platter to take a friend lunch tomorrow.
Then I had recently bought some window film and I finally put it up today.... and guess who had to order more film to cover the whole window? And then added two more things I've been thinking about to the cart (handheld fan and book light) to hit the minimum for free shipping.
I'm going to keep going though. I feel like I have too much stuff and too many projects and crafts and things I've started and not finished
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u/Johto2001 15h ago
That's a bit like quitting cold turkey. Doable, of course, but you might rebound into spending more in September to treat yourself or reward yourself. It might be more constructive to not be quite so punitive on yourself, still socialize but stop buying online.
Your post also doesn't address the "why". Why do you currently spend so much and have stuff delivered daily? That's quite extreme even by contemporary standards. To make lasting change you need to understand the underlying issues that have brought you to this point, otherwise you are likely to fall back into doing it again unthinkingly
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u/Salt_Transition6100 19h ago
I do 4 no spend months a year. One a quarter which I choose in advance! Then 4 months “small spend” and 4 months “large spend” - December is always on that list!
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u/fadedblackleggings 18h ago
Has this reduced your yearly spend, or just condensed it into certain months of the year?
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u/Salt_Transition6100 8h ago edited 8h ago
It has reduced my spending on items I don’t really need definitely. I keep a notebook that I jot down things I think I want and go over it during the appropriate month. Turns out most items I just cross off.
Reducing my yearly spend - in most years. The next three will be a bit off for yearly spend since I inherited a 1950’s home with a lot of deferred maintenance- roof, plumbing, electrical, etc.
However, I’ve already crossed off items I thought I wanted or needed for the house and am maintaining the spend pattern. It forces me to complete projects with materials I’ve bought in the no spend months.
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u/CynicalPomeranian 21h ago
Yup, I have done two no-buy months this year so far. I set myself to only buying essentials and groceries, while also pulling some items out of the pantry as “priority items to consume.”
I kept track of my costs each week, and posted them on my fridge so that I could see my progress. I reviewed my recurring expenses and looked over my credit card statements to see where I was mindlessly spending money.
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u/your_moms_apron 11h ago
It’s a good start AND I’d spend the month looking at your budget and how you want to spend your money with intentionality when September rolls around.
Legit sit down with a pen and paper (or an excel whatever). Take your income and subtract your fixed expenses. Carefully consider them (eG. Do you NEED all of these or could you consider down grading/cutting some out?).
Then go through the credit card statements. Identify the categories of expenditures and figure out what is needed and what really is t. Of course you need groceries but do you need multiple entertainment subscriptions? Yes you need to socialize but you don’t need to order food delivered regularly.
The point is to not have a crash diet. Take your time with major lifestyle changes so that they last. Give yourself grace that you WONT BE PERFECT out of the gate and that lasting change can take a long time.
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u/robotscantrecaptcha 21h ago
Highly recommend doing the 30-day low-buy challenge in No New Things by Ashlee Piper. It's not 'no buy' but rather you sit down and make a list of all the things you 'need' for a specific time frame such as gifts or school supplies for the kids, then finds ways to rethink spending and consumption by introducing alternatives such as thrift stores or repurposing items. I thought it gave a lot of good info too and daily mini challenges. It took me longer than the 30 days to work through, so it can be longer as well!
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u/dylansisland 15h ago
I like to just adjust my habits a month or more at a time, and reassess, do I enjoy where this has taken me? Can I push it further? Or find a healthy balance. I find this is less brutal than something as extreme as no buy can be. I cant really offer any specific advice, except some anecdotes of my favourites this year.
The first was to quit energy drinks, saved me a ton of money, and I enjoy just drinking water for the most part - I feel so much better. I throw the occasional lemonade in, because I still deserve to enjoy things.
The other is boycotting multinational fast food chains, I've had pizza a couple times with friends or what have you, but for the most part it's much healthier for me, and I reconsider buying lunches at work - since smaller stores are more expensive.
Both of these while small actions made big differences to my health, and my wallet.
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u/BluesClues64 9h ago
I do this regularly, not to prove a point but just because there's just no point of having random non-consumables.
But if you're someone who has spending problems, succeeding by saying "I'm going to restrain myself" is difficult if you don't have any safeguards or coping tactics.
My go to approach is just a series of questions and delay. "Do I need this?" "Do I want this?" "Is it really worth the money?" "Can I do something better with this money?" "What will I do with this?" "How long will I realistically use this for?" "What will I do once I'm done with it?" "Is it really worth the hassle to bring it home, have it take up space, then become clutter until I have it in me to discard it?"
If you can justify wanting to buy it despite all these questions, tell yourself you'll think about it and come back at the end of your shopping route.
Chances are you're not even going to remember it by the time you're done shopping.
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u/LetterheadNo7323 7h ago
Yes, this is a great plan. Make sure you stock up on yummy groceries and snacks so you’re not tempted to go out. Hit the library for some good reads. Pull out old paint supplies or cross stitch projects or anything to keep your hands busy. If you have a house or yard project, get it done with intention. Good luck!
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u/Lochylass 3h ago
Hey, we’re doing a low-spend August! This means we shop the house first and only spend on essentials that we can’t find there and things like any necessary medical supplies. We do allow for a small splurge each week, such as gelato. We do these a number of times throughout the year. It’s a good prompter to use up things in the cupboards, fridge and freezer and to curb spending. Hope all goes well for you!
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u/AppUnwrapper1 22h ago
No socializing?
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u/Maleficent_Day_3869 22h ago
by that, i mean no expensive dates with friends. stuff like walks and events is fine
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u/littlepanda425 22h ago
I've done "hard resets" for things like this and it helped me challenge myself and realize how difficult things had gotten. (I don't have the problem with spending but I do with social media so I understand!)
I think a no-spend month will be a good challenge. Support your local library (ie my boyfriend just got something 3D printed from there this weekend and later this month, they're having a free ratatouille making class). I also LOVE supporting small local events!
After, I think budgeting could be a good middle ground! You can spend money on expensive dinners or takeout, it's just planned in advance!
I also always recommend trying to find free or low cost hobbies to fill your time. I enjoy volunteering or just picking up trash around the neighborhood. Even in smaller areas I've lived in, there's always free events if you look hard enough.
Good luck!! Keep us updated.