Making 2025 a low-buy, intentional spending year
No-buy challenges have become increasingly popular on social media, especially as younger generations embrace a less material-driven existence. If you haven’t seen these trends, just search TikTok for “underconsumption core” and you’ll see exactly what I’m talking about. It was actually one of these videos posted around Black Friday that reminded me that all the stuff we accumulate doesn’t just go away. It ends up in a landfill, the ocean, or polluting someone else’s land and country.
Despite valuing intentionality and minimalism, I have found myself in a frenzy of continuous shopping over the past few months. My Amazon orders page is incriminating evidence of my overconsumption. Our brains have a funny way of tricking ourselves into believing that everything we buy is something we actually need, right now—even if it sits in its package for days after it has been delivered. Some things I have purchased for myself recently include sunglasses, a pair of gloves, a thick winter coat, the 9060 sneakers from New Balance that I bought on sale after having seen them in Korea earlier this year, and a bunch of pottery-related tools and gadgets. Is this really that bad though?
The biggest category of spending lately has been health and wellness related products like air purifiers, vitamins, supplements, eczema-safe skincare, ergonomic pillows, etc. for both my parents and myself. In some ways, these are feel like very necessary purchases. If I’m not going to spend money on ensuring my parents and I are healthy, then what’s the point of having money? On the flip side, I think a lot of these purchases have been made as a way to combat stress and anxiety I have about getting sick and dying. In some convoluted way, it feels like if I buy all this stuff, we can be healthy and happy. (This is a whole other topic / post.)
The last time I did a no-buy year was back when I was in graduate school and concern about planetary sustainability was a big motivating factor but I was always trying to make staying on a minimal student budget easier. This time around, it’s less about decreasing the dollar amount spent and more about reducing the number of purchases. I want to put an end to the mindless add to cart and checkout behavior that has been steadily increasing over the last few months. Minimizing the number of items I bring into my living space and reducing clutter are top of mind. Partially because I have bought so many things that I “needed” recently, I should be well-equipped to follow the guidelines I’ve set for myself.
Some rules for this intentional spend year:
Consumables: Use up what I have before buying another of the same category. I know I have a lot of skincare and hair products that should last me through next year at the very least. No buying anything in these categories unless I use them all.
No clothes, shoes, or jewelry while in the US. This rule is not applicable while I’m traveling.
Learn how to appreciate and value things without needing to purchase them for myself. We do this all the time with beautiful art work we see at museums or public spaces that we can’t bring home, and we should normalize this for other categories, too.
Education purchases, including pottery-related purchases need careful consideration. For books, can I borrow this from the library? Ask myself if I can use an existing pottery tool that I have, create a makeshift version, or use something at the studio first.
Monthly decluttering. Get rid of 5 things I don’t need every month. I find decluttering to be overwhelming so spending some time each month and chunking it versus doing it once or twice a year will hopefully make things more manageable. I kick-started this last week by going through my closet and finding about 8 pieces of clothing and a pair of sunglasses to donate.
Reduce snack food purchases. Overall, my food purchasing decisions and spend look alright. The one area that will help me reach my health and fitness goals is reducing the number of snack foods I purchase. I have been good about not purchasing chips (used to be my guilty pleasure) but cutting out Annie’s cheddar bunnies and the likes will be even better. Whole foods that can be snacked on like nuts, fruit, etc. obviously do not count.
Intentional spending. Spend on the things I am actually excited to spend on!!
Travel - Portugal with the family and Asia in the fall
Home downpayment if it’s in the cards for me in 2025
Adding a monthly allowance for spa services
One designer bag
All in all, I’m looking forward to 2025 being a more thoughtful year when it comes to how I spend my money. I’m in a great place mentally and emotionally to introduce some discipline to help me live in better alignment with my life. Here’s to spending less on mindless junk and investing that time and money into the parts of life that matter.