In The Thick Of It

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Diaries of a Reformed Shopaholic - Part 3

Sharon

Maintaining a Healthy Mindset about Shopping

Here is Final post to my Diaries of a Reformed Shopaholic series

Quick Links to the rest of the series.

Introduction

PART 1 - DECIDING TO MAKE A CHANGE

PART 2 - CLEANING UP AND GETTING ORGANIZED

 3 Things I Ask Myself to make sure I Am Shopping for the Right Reasons

  1. Why I am planning to shop / make this purchase, is it a want vs. a need?

  2. How will this purchase affect my budget? And can I raise the money by selling something I no longer use or need?

  3. Have I exhausted the other options to get what I need? (i.e. “Hand me down” or Craigslist)

If my purchase makes the cut after asking myself the above 3 questions

I move forward with my shopping / purchase.

Habits I maintain to stay more simplified

  1. Only buy clothing or shoes when a current staple is worn out. Once the purchase is made throw out the old article.

  2. Each Spring/Summer and Fall/Winter I still reverse my hangers to maintain a sense of what I truly wear.

  3. Decorate my home in “Season Neutral” colors (gray or tan) so again I am only purchasing when items are worn out.

Once I have monitored what I am really using, I sell and donate what doesn’t fit in my simplified and healthier mindset.

Writing this series has been very telling on where I was and how far I have come. I am proud that I identified my emotional shopping and overspending, then took the necessary steps to get cleaned up. And now I have a plan to maintain a healthy mindset towards shopping and spending. 

I enjoy not worrying about finances and feel proud when I have a planned splurge purchase, never forget I have an un-curable jewelry and handbag addition LOL. Now I actually have the funds to pay for my planned splurges without regret.

Getting my spending under control has afforded me the funds to travel a bit. Traveling provides that much needed reset to the day to day and a nice change of scenery. My son may or may not stay local for college so those additional funds will be available for me to visit him if he decides to venture away to college. I have several reasons to stay true to my “Reformed Shopaholic” ways and look forward to many new experiences.