NOT BUYING IT! 2015 - A consumer holiday

Dee2

Very insightful post Slowdown. I know a lot of my spending is based on aspiration. I received the gift of a subscription to Country Living this year. I pour over it and drool at the interiors, often adding bits and pieces to my own home to give it that English modern country look. Its all stuff I don't need, it doesn't particularly make me any happier, any more anything other than more cluttered and less wealthy! And a 50's semi is never going to be a country home!
We probably all have "triggers" that make us spend unnecessarily.

GreyQueen

Lovely thread, slowdown, you're really hit the zeitgeist in respect of what a lot of us are feeling.

Re emulation, I've read a lot of books on consumerism and advertising (from the library ) and one thing which they pointed out really resonated with me.

We humans are evolved to spend our time in smallish social groups, the ideal for a harmonious society being no greater than 150 people. Any more, and you get cliquism, social exclusion, conflict. Because our brains are hard-wired to think in little groups, when we're constantly exposed to another individual, like a celebrity all over the media, we start to think that we know them, that they're part of our social circle. That we have a real connection with them, instead of being voyeurs on a highly-edited version of their lives.

So that what they have is sort-of what we could have. We don't think that their lifestyle is as unobtainable to us as a duchess's would have been to a scullery-maid, we think that we should have what they have, and if we can't afford it, aim for approximations, knock-offs etc. And become poorer trying to keep up.

Although I'm a bit of a non-starter as a consumer, and self-educated about how they pull our strings, I still catch myself falling for this stuff from time to time.

Tamara_2

Grey Queen, that's a fascinating theory, and one that makes a lot of sense.

[Deleted User]

I_want_a_baby wrote: »

We owe my in laws (interest free) approx £10600 which I would like to halve by the end of 2015. :-)

we lent our dd and her dh a lump sum, a few months ago. They insisted on paying interest and I said they could pay back as and when, so they put an identical sum into our account every month. They were going to go to a bank but I am glad I persuaded them to come to us. At the end when they have paid everything then we will completely deduct the interest and put all the interest back into their bank account. We aren`t breathing a word of this as it is encouraging them to be responsible about their payments but they will get a nice surprise in 2 more years

I suppose we are on the other side of the fence now but feel incredibly empathetic to you all.

ruby_eskimo

FLA27 wrote: »

Hi All, I am very much in favour of this thread and I am glad I found it! I've just been turned down after a job interview so it's definitely a must for me to be frugal.

My New Years Resolution (started already) is UNSUBSCRIBE. By this I mean, unsubscribe to all those spam emails telling me how urgent it is to buy now! Black Friday, Cyber Monday, The day after Cyber Monday, Advent offers, Only so many days to go emails. I am so sick of them, they are designed to make you feel bad for missing out despite the fact that I didn't need any of their stuff anyway!

The other thing I need to do is stop checking 'deals' websites everyday. Can I join? I like to think I do really well with the consumerism problem but I'm not so sure....

Oh gosh this is something I need to do as well! I did sign up to Unroll.me a few months ago, but the messages still appear in a separate folder so it wasn't really saving me any space in the long run. I also need to stay away from ebay, well the buying side of it anyway.

Caterina

I have done just that, unsubscribed from a gazillion emails encouraging me to consume, sent them all to junk. Groupon and all the other cut price "bargain"sites, magazine offers, cosmetics companies, they all go to junk now. When I think of the money I spent on bargain massages and beauty treatments over the years I cringe.

I could have done without a lot of it, most of it was disappointing anyway, the magazines are all drivel and they all say the same thing over and over again, buy this and you can't live without that and the ultimate must-have and the face-mush that will give back your youthful dewy looks, all down the junk pan!

And I have given away a lot of the actual physical stuff, creams and face oils and whatnot, that I bought as a consequence of this drivel, to a friend who still loves all that junk. She is so grateful and keeps saying she does not know how to thank me, but I keep saying that it is I who should thank her, she is helping me decluttered and she gets stuff that I don't want. She is happy and I am happy.

Broomstick

I have found the question 'how simple can you make this?' one of the the keys to reducing my spending. It works for decluttering too.:D

For example, I use one sort of each of the most simple set of toiletries that work for me, some branded, some unbranded, all as cheap as I can find. I'm happy with my choices and it helps that I no longer search around for something better so it saves time as well as money and clutter. Everyone is different but I think an awareness of why we make the choices we do does help simplify and reduce spending a lot.

B x

alice-mary

I would like to join you all too please! I have 3 events that I am looking forward to in 2015, well I am looking forward to 2 of them anyway, and I hope to be able to pay for them by avoiding spending on un-necessary items. One of my best friends is getting married in August (mid-week so cheaper accommodation:) ) and he is also having a stag-do in May.
Now, as a girlie invited on a stag do I was a bit worried, but I was reassured by both the groom and the bride that it won't be anything outrageous. He just wants a couple of days away to Ireland, staying at another friend's home, with a small group of his best mates. so he can show us around an area that he is incredibly fond of, with good food, good drink and great company! :beer: It will also be midweek (half-term holiday) so how could I refuse (and why should I? I haven't been away for any kind of holiday for over 20 years).

The 3rd event is my own 50th birthday I do not want a party or any special arrangement as most of my family do not get on with each other BUT I think my sister has other ideas and is planning something with my friends. I wouldn't "object" to that but I daren't ask as I would prefer no celebration at all and I feel that if I mention anything, I might be giving her ideas iyswim?

Anyhow, I won't need to spend much for the stag do, (cheap midweek flight, free accommodation, no fancy outfits). The wedding will mean a decent outfit and 2 nights in a shared hotel room but again that is midweek so cheaper than normal.

It would be great if I can avoid the commercial carp and save anything that I would normally fall for, so in effect, getting the stag do and the wedding for free :T

I am really looking forward to this challenge and will keep you informed of my progress!

Alice
xx

cherryblossomzel

I'm subscribing to this thread. Such a good idea.

I've been trying to "live lightly" for a few years now, sometimes with more success than other times. I do find myself slowly buying less and less, but there are certainly areas where I can do better. For me it's not just about the money, more that I don't want too much stuff in my life, and fortunately I've never been much one for "keeping up with the neighbours".

I managed to avoid the Black Friday sales, but saw some of it on the news. Bewildering, really. When did it become OK to get into fist fights over TVs?

thriftish

I'm joining in too!

A couple of years ago I read "Not Buying It" by Judith Levine and found it very interesting. She spent a year without purchasing any non-essentials.
I also enjoy the Non-Consumer Advocate who took part in the Compact and has now a very successful blog and active facebook group. However, they are both American and I feel this thread will be more relevant to me (although in am RoI).

I wouldn't consider myself a big consumer but I regularly have a bag of items to donate to the local charity shop so I am obviously buying more than I realise!