Live Smartly- Only Buy What You Need

Last week's Live Smartly post was focused on reducing the amount of food that we we waste. This week's post will help you to reduce your waste of both money and space in your home. It will help you to live smartly in the present and will set you on a good path for the future.

To start off, we need to differentiate between the things that we "need" to buy versus the things that we "want" to buy. There's definitely a difference between the two.

The things we want to buy, are the ones that would be nice, fun or just a pleasure to have. At times, even when we already have enough of something, we still want to buy another or a few more "just in case".

You may want an updated model of something because it has all the new features that your present one doesn't have, such as a phone or a new car.  You may see a sparkly new pair of shoes, a new shirt or a pair of pants but you already have one similar to that one already. You may not even have room for it in your closet, but you still buy it anyway. I've been guilty of this too in the past, but I'm learning. ;-)

There are many people who buy on impulse. They see something and buy it without any real thought behind it. Some of those same people have buyers remorse afterwards. They'll habitually return items to the store afterwards because they realize either that they realistically can't afford it or just always change their mind. As a result, some big retailers are now tracking how many returns shoppers make within a specified period of time and have actually blacklisted returnaholics from making any more returns. 

On the other hand, many impulse buyers don't ever return what they buy, which can be a worse situation. They may not have time to get back to the store; don't want to make the effort to do so; or in the extreme situation, they are hoarders. These people collect way more than they need or will ever use in their house. There are television shows revolving around hoarding problems and how hoarding affects their finances, relationships and health..

One way to reduce the amount of "stuff" you accumulate in your home and reducing the amount of money you waste, is by giving some thought to something before you buy it. Ask yourself some questions like, "Do I really need this?", "Can I possibly do without it?", "Do I already have one that is usable and acceptable?".  Just by asking yourself one or more of these questions, you'll see how much less you spend in purchases.

Another effective way is to give yourself a minimum waiting period before making substantial purchases. This waiting period could be 1 day, 3 days or even more. You decide what is effective for you.  After the waiting period is over, many of the items you were going to buy, just do not seem to matter any more. You'll realize that you really didn't need some of them after all. 

One interesting finding to note, is that people who tend to move frequently from residence to residence learn to live leaner. There's a great amount of time, energy and expense in packing up, moving and then unpacking all of one's belongings each time. 

Now, my send off to you will be to remember to think more before you spend and make purchases. Of course, more thinking is required for larger purchases than for smaller ones- but smaller ones can add up anyway.  A more leaner lifestyle will keep more funds in your pocket for more meaningful experiences for you and your loved ones. This naturally results in more joy for you in the long run.