Would I Love It Without the Price Cut?

I almost never buy anything for myself that has a full price tag attached; with kids, it’s a different story, and we buy what they need.

I started questioning this habit of mine and began asking myself if I needed to buy something/anything at all, regardless of whether it was on sale or not.

I’ve been trying to cut down on unsustainable (anything I don’t need because I have enough) and wasteful (at the moment, I’m fighting plastic) spending and purchases for nearly a year. However, I only seriously committed to replacing disposable items in my bathroom, kitchen and household this year (2021).

Since I started my journey, I realised that asking myself why I’m buying something before paying for it is an essential part of the process of trying to lead a more sustainable life that also happens to lead towards quicker financial independence, as less money is wasted on things that “only” cost £10 and can easily be tossed away if not used/needed any longer.

Since sustainability and implementing a circular economy are what I’m going to focus my life towards and stick with for the rest of my life (total and complete change and re-design of my lifestyle), I need to be very mindful and very specific when it comes to purchasing. I need to ask questions instead of letting my emotions and pressure (marketing tricks that I know too well but often fall for) make decisions for me.

If I buy something I don’t need, what am I going to do with that item? Can I resell it? I think the resale market is currently oversaturated, and it’s become pretty hard to sell anything. If I don’t use the item, will I give it away to a charity or a friend? Could a charity sell it? If not, what will they do with it? Many items that charities cannot sell due to quality issues, limited floor space, shifting shopping habits, etc. Can I find a friend who may have use of the item I’m trying to pass on? If I cannot find anyone, what will I do with it?

Asking questions while shopping needs to become second nature, because if I buy something I don’t need and cannot get rid of, it will either stay with me for the rest of my life or end up in a landfill. I would recommend watching WALL-E for a simple visual representation of what happens to stuff that we buy too much of.

The unwanted items we buy, just because the price is small or because it’s an impulse or rather pressure, will lead to the following:

1. Clutter – physical clutter creates emotional clutter, preventing people from making decisions, moving on with their lives or following their dreams. The clutter clouds their vision, destroys their emotional well-being, and pushes them towards debt to keep up with the Joneses.
2. Pollution – the more we buy what we don’t need and have no use for, the more pollution we will be responsible for. Our purchase decisions sent a signal to the producers that there is a market for their products. If we don’t buy what we don’t need, producers will have to refocus on the sustainability of their products and the circular economy model to create new revenue streams if they are to survive. Buying used and second-hand items gives unwanted or unnecessary items new life and doesn’t send money to corporations, while sending a clear signal that customers want and expect change.
3. Debts – owning stuff and upgrading a lifestyle (inflating it) is expensive and often leads to debt accumulation. We all know how hard it is to pay off a credit card, even with a small balance. Not buying what we don’t need will help with accumulating an emergency stash and significantly reduce the stress people feel when unpaid debt piles up.

I think it’s a good and positive sign that, as a society, we are slowly turning towards conscious consumerism. Asking questions such as:

1. Where is this product coming from?
2. How long do I have to work to pay for it?
3. Is it worth adding five years to my working life just to have a fancy new car I hardly use?

Compulsive consumerism fuelled by low prices (it used to be just winter and summer sales and now the sales is all year long) is one of the leading causes of people never become financially independent, never brave enough to follow their dreams because they always have debts to pay off and only see money as a commodity that needs to be spent, not a road towards freedom. I used to be one of those people.

Suppose we stop comparing ourselves to others and stop accommodating the excessive lifestyle stress and pressure. In such a case, we may find that being genuinely free, without worrying about money or job security, is what life should truly be about.

PS. I’m #MadeByDyslexia – expect big thinking & small typos.