How’s your no-spend month going, friends? Truthfully, I hit a few hiccups the last few days, including a wine-fuelled Etsy purchase. If you’re having a little trouble too, here’s a tip from Reddit that might help curb impulse purchases.
Redditor rodneyjesus writes that in order to avoid picking up “small” things here and there—which can add up pretty quickly—they’ve decided to designate a certain day of the week “Amazon Day” that works like so:
Choose a weekday for online purchases (i.e., Monday)
Throughout the week, write down what you need / want to purchase (preferably on a whiteboard for visibility)
Every Monday, review the list (with your significant other if applicable)
Purchase the things that matter
Remove the things that don’t
Do not make any purchases during the rest of the week
The benefit is two-fold. You’re reducing shopping, sure, but as rodneyjesus writes, it’s actually been beneficial to go through the list with their spouse. “It also gave us time to make decisions around purchases together instead of constantly being surprised at what the other person was spending money on.”
Your mileage will vary of course — perhaps you’d cut that down to once every two weeks, or once a month. But it’s similar to other strategies to combat impulse purchases, like instituting a 72-hour rule. The thought is that by putting some time between initially desiring something and buying it, you’ll realise you don’t actually need or want it, or maybe that you already have the item or something similar.
And getting your spouse or partner on board allows you to get on the same page, institute goals together and avoid any arguments over random purchases the other may not think are necessary. Like the Greek goddess bust you thought you needed after two glasses of Chardonnay.
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