How to (ACTUALLY) Stop Buying: 4 Unconventional Tips 

Thank you so much for watching! Shop Trades of Hope: tradesofhope.com/minimalmom Use Code SHIP5 for $5 flat rate shipping! Take Your House Back Course (Just $94!): www.takeyourhouseback.com/cou... (Next ALL DAY DECLUTTER: This Saturday, April 27. 8:00am CDT-4:00pm CDT) I hope you have a great day!! - Dawn

Okay, so.. as someone who worked in several thrift stores, I can give some input here. I have worked at Goodwill and here is how the actual process works. We take your donations and give you a slip if you need one for taxes, we then sort your donations between clothing and non clothing items. The clothing is then processed by another worker who looks it over for significant damage like tears or stains. Those clothing items get chucked in a salvage bin immediately to be taken to other companies that can utilize the cloth waste. The "good" clothing gets put on a hanger on a rack and is tagged by another employee with a specific color tag for the week. The non-clothing items are assessed by how likely they are to sell and if there is floor space. They are also marked with a tag that is the color for that week. As long as it seems useful to someone (which is most everything- Just In Case, right? We know this) it will make it to the floor unless it genuinely does not fit. If it is deemed entirely unusable it is put into a trash compactor to lower the size of the waste as much as possible, and is picked up on occasion to be dumped. If it is useful but there is no space for it, we will try to store it in the back area (which is generally pretty large), as long as there is space and we can still comfortably process donations (we can't have people tripping themselves and getting hurt). However, if it really just can't fit, It may also make it's way into the trash compactor. More than likely though, it will fit. I would love to tell you that is because what was on the sales floor has been curated well, the right people came in and found just what they need and they bought it. If you want to stay "in the matrix" and allow yourself the " ignorance is bliss" thinking, leave now. For those of you left, we are going to discuss "Pulling". This is where employees walk the floor looking for the oldest clothing tag color so more clothes of that color can be put out the following week. These clothes have been on the floor for the entirety of the color cycle and have not sold, they go to salvage. The same happens with other small items like dishes, trinkets, and decor. However, sticky tags are tricky and like to fall off of stuff (this is why sometimes you see a few of the same tag on one goodwill item) and if there is no tag, we just have to remember or guess). With clothing, if the tag comes off it will either be noticed and retagged or stay there forever until someone buys it but also will never be removed for a new item to take it's place (So please don't remove tags thinking it's going to help!). Also, if you donate straight trash, like actual garbage, something that smells really gross, or is really dirty, or heaven forbid infested with something, we don't have the time or the means to wash or care for clothing or other items, so it is trashed the second it gets in the door (and we are not happy to have had to touch it either, so please don't do this either). In smaller or private owned thrift stores they get/choose to take less donations so the process is very similar except that things mainly sit there until they are sold more often as they are not doing weekly tags. Occasionally things will be tossed if they have been there a long time and it just makes sense. I have only worked in one store that laundered things. Please try to bring your donations in clean or at least not absolutely gross. Churches that do their own shops or run stores like the salvation army, and st vincent de paul tend to do things the latter way i mentioned. Goodwill reallt has it's own whole system. So, what do we take from all this? Don't expect a secondhand store to clean up your mess (literally, or in the sense of continuing to over purchase), but if you need to get things out to make breathing room and you really need that second chance for an item to part with it, bring it in. Unless your going to directly list it to your community or give it to someone you know for sale or free, it will most likely be the best option for it to get used again. Use it for decluttering, Don't use it as an excuse to shop for more stuff! If you have any questions, feel free to reply. I worked in these store environments for years. And Dawn, if you have somehow read this whole thing, feel free to use any of it to explain this process to your other subscribers. 😄 Whew, that was loooong, but hey if you made it this far, hopefully you learned something new today. Knowledge is power! Have a great day! 🥰

I am not loving a video called “how to stop buying” followed by 15 minutes of things to buy

My favorite Mother’s Day gift is to get my car detailed. My 3 grown kids and husband paid to have my car detailed last Mother’s Day. It made me happy and I didn’t add any clutter to my house!

Feel like this could have been two separate videos. A video about impulse buying. A video about mothers day gift ideas.

My favorite Mothers Day gift was when my then 15 yo son bought and hauled 3 truckloads of mulch and mulched ALL our flowerbeds! Talk about surprised. 🎉 Can you tell Acts of Service is my love language? ❤. He is 33 now and I tell him every year how much that meant to me.

Sometimes I go to the library when I’m really overwhelmed and I pick up anything that looks good and check out an armload of books. The library is calming, I feel like I bought something without buying anything, and you help libraries keep books on shelves. And then you return the books 2 weeks later, and sometimes I never read them! (I am a reader so it’s also comforting to have piles of interesting books that I *might* get to in my house).

How to stop buying, but here you can shop using our affiliate link???

For mothers day last year my husband painted a bowl with our then 2 year old daughter and filmed the whole process. That was the best gift ever😂 as someone who works with young kids I laughed sooooo hard at my husband who desperately tried to make something pretty while being sabotaged by a toddler.

I do love her videos… kinda wish the Mother’s Day gift ideas were a separate video. I feel like if you’re struggling to not overbuy on impulse, this could be a bit triggering. But the gift ideas were great!!! Definitely will keep them in mind. Holiday or special occasion gifting seems to get harder and harder every year, so it’s great to have good suggestions.

What I want most from my daughter for Mother's day is a hug and an "I love you Mom!" That's all.

My favorite tip from an earlier video was to shop and put everything in your online cart - then only buy things on the first day of the month........ It's amazing how much fun I have looking and how little I end up buying!

I’ve been watching your channel for several years now, and I’m not gonna lie, I’m disappointed that a large part of this video about not buying things is showing us things to buy. Especially after you just complained about influencers always selling stuff. Shopping addiction is a real problem that a lot of people suffer from (myself included) and this video does nothing to address that. ☹️ What I’ve actually found really helpful are low buy/no buy videos on RU-vid, as well as the no buy group on Reddit. People there are in various stages of conquering consumption, and they’re all very encouraging and helpful.

Please declutter the idea of giving gifts for a Mother’s Day. If you must, just do consumables only. I always just ask for going out to eat, or do take outs for dinner, so I don’t have to cook. That’s all. No gifts.

I just saw a video about Trades of Hope being a MLM. You should watch that video before sharing... I'm also really irritated by the gift ideas you present in a video about how not to buy stuff. It's still stuff! And stuff the gifted people don't choose themselves so maybe it's trash.

Am I going crazy or did you just tell us not to buy stuff then go on to tell us to buy all thus other stuff for Mother’s Day with an ethical stamp on it . Oh no I thought I could trust you .

I have a really hard time with trades of hope because it is an mlm. They claim to help those women, and maybe they do, but they prey on our women like all mlms do. I don’t support mlms in any capacity, no matter how much they push religion or philanthropy. Of all the things you both talk about and preach this is the one thing that has never sat well with me. I encourage you to look into mlms more and see how it’s hurting one group of women to help another.

I am currently unemployed but what has helped me not to buy are 1) I prepared an excel spreadsheet of the things I wanted to buy when I got a job. Well so far I did not get a job and when I looked at that list, more than half the things that were on that list I did not want anymore anyways 2) I am now an organization queen. In past each time I went to Costco I picked things up thinking I may need it. Did not realize I ended up with 2 large gallons of Dawn dish soap. Two 36 rolls of toilet tissues. Lots of laundry detergent. Tons of toilet bowl cleaner. But now I am highly organized and I know exactly where everything is and I don't buy unless items I already have a used up. I am no longer trying new items. Even when I go food shopping I first make a meal plan for the week and then buy exactly what I will eat that week. Being organized made a big difference.

My favorite gift when my son was a baby was a day off. My husband would either take our son out for the day, or I would go out for lunch and a walk, go to the library to read, browse cute shops (I don't have a shopping problem). Time is the gift new mothers need.

1. I highly recommend reading Sustainable Wardrobe by Sophie Benson. 2. When you see fashion videos or ads, let them inspire you to come up with something similar based on what you already have. 3. Have a mending day - replace that missing button, fix that seam, etc.

Yikes - what happened with this video? Quite the bait and switch - how to stop buying, but here are a bunch of great ideas of things to buy? I don't care if it's Mother's Day. This is not a good look.

You are intentionally grabbing the attention of women with impulse shopping problems...only to then smack us in the face with a bunch of neat goodies to desire? Harsh! I 100% am ok with you tubers selling things, promoting things, giving gift ideas...that's great! But to include that as a "surprise" in a video meant to attract women with impulse shopping problems? who are seeking help? that's just not okay😔

Have to agree with others, the gift ideas go against the title of the video.

Trades of hope! Oh no, Dawn. That’s an MLM from what I e heard. half of this video is you trying to sell stuff you’ll earn commission from in a video titled how to stop buying! If anything, it could’ve been a separate video at the very least.

My most favorite Mother's Day gift was a jigsaw puzzle that my 5 kids designed for me. It is a patchwork quilt design which includes pictures of me with each of them, my favorite Bible verse and is bordered with the words that each of them would use to describe me. So, so special!!

This video is very contradictory. How to actually stop buying and then showing all the things you can buy for Mother's Day. It's like attracting all the shopaholics to your video to get them to buy all the things you have for sale. Really disappointing.

One thing we like to do is have 1 day a week dedicated to all things “shopping”. Groceries. Things for the house. Things for the kids. Etc. If it’s not a legitimate “need” that comes up during the week. It gets pushed to the shopping day. And then we’ll go through and review all our carts and take out what we don’t need or want anymore. Cuts down on the impulse purchases during the week.

I've loved your channel for years without commenting. Your positive attitude has always been uplifting. What I'm not loving in this video is your title of how to stop buying followed by 15 minutes advertising things to buy. Even worse, you promote your Trades of Hope side hustle - a known MLM scheme disguised as an advocacy organization. I don't feel uplifted now, I feel let down.

How to ACTUALLY stop buying... And then How to buy some more lol I usually love your videos, but really think you dropped the ball here. This should've been two separate videos.

Wait a minute.....Did you just tell us not to shop and then just showed us all things to buy?? I'm confused.

Ive always told my kids when you are feeling down or depressed or feeling anxious try to do something nice to help someone. It takes your mind off of yourself.

I go, with my children to a local greenhouse and pick out two hanging baskets with the kids. They pay and then we go home and they make lunch for me and we eat together. (I would have bought the baskets anyway 😊). It is the best! I feel special just because they made time to spend with me. ❤

First Half: How to stop buying stuff... Second Half: "Look at all this cool stuff to buy for Mother's Day!" Really?

I’m actually disappointed that you weren’t up front that Trades of Hope is a multi level marketing company. It’s unfortunate that this organization chose to structure such a great mission in such a way to take advantage of the artisans they’re “helping”.

I’m on the divorce financial diet so it’s easy not to buy but that’s not all of my motivation not to buy. I lived with a hoarder and he always had to have a back up item or two in the pantry. If not, I’d get the blame. There were no clear walkways in the house. When I decided to leave I started decluttering, sent the kids’ stuff to them which they didn’t appreciate and went through my own stuff. Before he moved out, I knew I wanted my clutter under control, I only bought stuff that I was going to need for about 10yrs like linen, tools and pans that I wouldn’t be able to afford. I’m actually loving stuff not coming to the house every day and that I have empty space in my home. Now I only buy stuff for a cheap reno of the house and I bought myself a book for my birthday. I’m proud to say I’m re-using anything around the house for reno that I can and actually doing the reno. I’ve always been a responsible saver but if you have an addictive spender in the house no matter what their income, your finances are toast.

My mantra is “Make memories not acquire things.” Solves the shopping for gifts issue.

I don’t understand why you talk about owning less and then you tell us about all this junk

I am a regular watcher. The folks turned off by your sales pitch for buying stuff towards the end was correct. Food for thought.

I honestly get sick of all these days that are made up by shops to get people to buy more stuff they don't need - mothers day, fathers day, valentines day.... I'd prefer not to celebrate any of these - except birthdays maybe. My mother has everything she needs and wants so I make it clear I am not buying her a "thing" but will take her out to lunch, or wheverer she wants to go.

Trades of hope are an mlm!

How to stop buying …buy more stuff. I’m joking but this video needs a trigger warning. Love you dawn but this is not a good video it just needs to be separate because it’s a bit of a trick . We watching to stop buying then it’s all secretly about buying .

I would love to find a company that has the same mission as trades of hope but isn't an MLM.

Why are you showing us some stuff to buy ?????????

Isn’t trades of hope a MLM company? If we are truly supporting women, shouldn’t we avoid MLMs (which seem to specifically target vulnerable women) at all cost?

I don’t understand why you are advertising so many items in this video when it’s about stopping impulse buying.

I don’t understand why Dawn gets so upset with influencers who she follows because they are always trying to sell things. Dawn does the same thing on her channel. It seems like a double standard to me.

I agree I don’t love the video

Another wonderful gift my kids have given me is the gift of “service.” They come and do a yard project or a house project that otherwise may or may not get done or it would take twice as long alone.

You live and learn. Hopefully the viewer feedback will help to inform future content strategies. In the meantime - we give grace. It would be great to see a “Take 2”🎬 on “How to ACTUALLY Stop Buying”

While I see others don’t like seeing all the things to buy in a minimal video, I love it. For me this was like a shopping trip where I didn’t buy anything. 😊 I still got to see all the things, got the thrill with no regrets.

Excellent first few minutes! I love you gals, but you lose me every time you try to sell stuff, especially in a video about how to not buy stuff. I recommend reexamining our gifting culture (who promotes it and who benefits from it). My family doesn’t do gifts for Hallmark holidays - I’ve never had to stress about the perfect gift for my mom or anyone else or over the guilt of decluttering a Mother’s Day gift I didn’t really want to receive. That doesn’t mean we don’t show love and appreciation (my mom is awesome and we’re very close), but it is possible to simply opt out of this aspect of our consumer culture.

The best Mother’s Day gift is to spend time with my kids doing an outdoor project without them grumbling, and a nice meal at home or a picnic made by my husband and kids. They also write in a journal for me each Mother’s Day and birthday. That’s about as clutter-free and economical as it gets. I’m sending my mom a gift card to a restaurant and a gift so they can go see a movie, hopefully Unsung Hero that is coming out this week. We were able to go to a screening and loved it. It’s a GREAT movie to celebrate Mother’s Day and the gift of family.

How? Being poor really helps with curtailing the shopping.

For Mother’s Day I started asking for plants! And if anyone needs an idea, I’d love a month to audible or money toward getting my car detailed. I wrote down a whole list of things I’d rather have than one more physical item to care for.

Sorry, can’t watch anymore if you’re going to say buy this instead, I don’t need any help in that area

I talked with my son recently on gift giving. We both agreed that it's so hyped up. (We were talking about kids' birthdays, but it can apply to anyone.) Going out to dinner and spending that time talking is my favorite gift. It keeps down on clutter!

My favorite Mother's Day gifts are the handmade things my kids make for me, and the cards they make.

Controversial Tip: Boycott Amazon/Target/Walmart for their terrible business practices. Its crazy how much money you save and impulse purchases you avoid when you have to physically go to a thriftstore to get an item. The free shipping really adds to the "buy now" culture.

"How to stop buying"- or "What to buy next"?? This is mostly advertising... For Mother's Day, ask for flowers or a potted plant, or something to be cooked for you. Stop buying more clutter. The next video will be about decluttering water bottles, too much jewelry and donating more stuff? Sorry, Dawn, this was disappointing but I'm still subscribed.

Please don’t promote MLMs like Trades of Hope. These are predatory companies that have no place on a channel like this. I typically love your content, but promoting your MLM business on here is a hard NO for me.

When I was a working single mom I used to take my son to the discount stores Saturdays and shop. Mostly I filled my cart and put a lot of it back but it was a way to deal with loneliness and isolation. To this day my grown son hates stores like TJ Maxx. Although he is mostly kidding I think it did affect him to have to spend half a Saturday sitting in a shopping cart and being bored. We should have been at home baking cookies or outside playing. I realize now that it was an addiction.

I recently heard shocking statistics on how much clothing goes to the landfills. It's sickening. I think donation centers just perpetuate the cycle of fast fashion and consumerism, over buying etc. I have been decluttering and donating a lot over the last few years but I have not been repurchasing and refilling those spaces that I've emptied.

A show about ,"Stop Spending," but if you Spend,,,, Shop these products ...😮?

I thought this video is suppose to tell me how not buy, now i wanted to buy those gifts…. I don’t know 🤷🏼‍♀️

Dawn, I love you, but: this video mentioned several things to buy! Argh! Mixed messaging today for sure...

Respectfully, isn't Trades of Hope all sold via affiliate links?

I've always put stuff in my cart, then a week or so later I'll do additional research on the products & move them to save for later. Then I go through my save for later & delete. 😂

And "stop buying", then pay 90 plus dollars for a video course on how to declutter? Just find any military mom who is moving and has a weight allowance, she'll show you how to dump the junk!

At this time I no longer by things for gifts. I only give flowers/plants from Trader Joes, gift card for movies or food. Things that do not clutter up your home and life.

Hi Dawn, i love your channel and your kind advice! I am also a Christian and love companies that support underprivileged artisans-- however, I wanted to let you know that trades of Hope is a multi-level marketing company and that their business model is deeply unethical. Many people aren't aware that this business model is so problematic. If you are interested to learn more, the RU-vid creator Hannah Alonzo has a deep dive video on trades of Hope. Keep up the great work with your channel!!

This is why im so fed up with high prices at charity shops, its so greedy when over flowing with donations!

Only a word of caution using double walled glass, and tell this to your kids if they are using them. Be very gentle with them. If you are putting ice in them, place the cubes inside very gently. Never drop the ice into them, or use with an ice dispenser on the fridge door. If using a spoon for stirring, don't bump the side walls. I had these, and used my ice dispenser to put ice into it. I did not hear the breaking, or see it. I filled with water, which is especially hard to see if it gets between the double walls. Started drinking, and thank goodness I noticed something was off. There was broken glass in my water that I could have swallowed. I immediately threw them all away. I just checked the reviews of your link and there are people who had similar experiences. They really were wonderful to use otherwise, but the glass just isn't strong enough and it's a pretty high risk.

My favorite MD gift of all time was the year that my family took me to Home Depot and purchased my choice of fire-proof bricks and together we built a simple fire pit in our yard. We had years of memories built around that fire pit. I absolutely LOVED it!!!! 🔥 It’s funny to me that after 20 years in that home, the fire pit was the saddest thing that I left behind.

I used to really enjoy dawn and cass videos, but now it seems like so much of the videos are pushing the online take back your house thing

trades of hope operates like an MLM.

If a wine salesman went to AA

I love getting just hanging baskets or annual flowers from my kids along with spending the afternoon together. My kids are grown and still love to buy me things for Mothers Day and what better than flowers that you can enjoy for the summer 🌸

That is so true about the “influencers” they make everything look so good, you envy them when they show their homes and vehicles, and you want what they have. Then, you look at all the stuff you have and the amount of debt you went into for it! Not worth it!

My favorite Mother’s Day gift was when my middle son potty trained himself in one afternoon, (with the help of some M&Ms 😂) on Mother’s Day! He & his wife now have 4 children of their own! 😂❤️

4:42 I also get frustrated when people I follow try to sell me things. Ironic for this video title being “how to stop buying” and then became a Mother’s Day purchase video.

I thought you were going to focus on activities, not things, as MD gifts: going for walks, going out for meals, getting coffee, going to the movies etc . . .

Love you guys, and I watch you very often. You’re always inspiring with great encouragement and grace for those struggling with clutter. Please be careful of Trades for Hope. They seems like a great charity, but they are an MLM and have some shady business practices. They are a for profit company. Again, some pretty fun suggestions for Mother’s Day, thank you so much!

I try to remember that it's not just what you take out, it's what you put in its place. If you used unnecessary buying for mood boosting, then when you take the unnecessary buying away, you need to replace it with something healthy that boosts your mood. Too many times we're just trying to grit our teeth and muscle through the void when we need to fill the void with something that truly satisfies.

The best present for me is being present for my family and them being present for us. Spending time together is what makes the world around all of us go round, that personal interaction and emotional connection with those you cherish and who cherish you is so important in this world of technology and zoom and face time vs consumerism. My 19 year old granddaughter makes the best chocolate cake and it’s something we all enjoy and get excited for when she proclaims she is baking it! When my 40nyear old daughter will pat the seat next to her on the couch and says “come sit next to me mom and let’s cuddle while the guys finish grilling”, or when my 11 year old granddaughter pulls on grandpa’s hand and says “play the Wii with me!” or just sitting in each others presence and talking about nothing in particular and then falling into a long silence as we sip our tea, coffee or water. I am so glad I don’t have to miss that type of gift in my life.

I tend to shop my house. When i declutter i always have the maybe pile. When i feel like shopping i go explore that section of whatever it is. So, say its clothes. I tend to gravitate to a certain part of my closet. When i get board i change those items out and put the others away. so everything is new to my eyes. I am on a no buy year and so i still get to have new stuff just stuff i already own that i dont normally go to. same with if i want to reorganize i have a few sets of baskets /totes that just make the rounds of the house. its new to the eye and room just not the house

Trades of Hope is an MLM. MLM’s truly damage the lives of vulnerable women. There are other ethical ways to support developing communities and empower women. It appears comments about MLMs are being deleted or pushed to the bottom. Everyone discussing the problematic nature of MLMs is likely come from an attempt to educate, not shame others.

I volunteer at a charity shop. We are constantly overwhelmed with donations. We have WAY too much "stuff". Please understand that donating is not the excuse you need to keep buying.

I was looking forward to some practical tips to curb shopping (as opposed to esoteric things like “understand how dopamine works.”) and it seemed like most of the video was showing us more stuff we could buy 🤦🏻‍♀️

Here’s a thought…how about we DONT BUY yet another Mother’s Day gift?!! More “ stuff” we likely don’t really need, but spend TIME with our families?! That would take a whole LOT of pressure off feeling the need to spend money, buying more stuff!🙌👍

I let my adult daughters off the hook long ago for Mother’s Day. They are loving and kind to me 365 days a year. Plus I had to arrange my day for them to honor me even though they were mothers too! I remember a particular Mother’s Day that their dad cooked, served and cleaned up a meal for both me and his current wife (we all get along). Other than that, I get to do whatever I want on Mother’s Day. Nap, read and watch TV!! We all wish each other HMD.

Favorite gift: My young adult son and I went on a hike and then he treated me to lunch. We have done this a few years now. We have an awesome time!!

I've read that Trades of Hope is an MLM business model and therefore is perhaps not the most direct way to assist women in poverty. Can you research this more for us and let us know? I think we need to pursue ethical purchasing, even in our attempts to assist others. There are RU-vidrs making videos on how this company is an MLM so might not be a good look for you in promoting it? I don't know myself, just concerned to be ethical.

I usually love your content but how to stop buying video half of wich with ads to what to buy is really disappointing.

"How to stop buying," and then you start recommending things for us to buy... not a fan of this video, Dawn.

First one of your videos I just can’t finish watching. Please change the title or separate the videos. It makes zero sense to complain about affiliate links and influencers and then spend 15 minutes trying to sell us stuff. Your links, albeit for a good cause, are still encouraging people to buy 😅😂

Trades of hope is sadly a MLM.

Oh boy, should definitely have been 2 separate videos

This video is the same as an influencer on IG selling you stuff. I don’t follow for the stuff suggested to me to buy.

I'm trying to make it so that if I'm in the mood to shop, I first have to check the status of my "procrastinated" to-do list (which is organizing my closet/storage/pantry). This way, I'll be re-learning what I have (which scratches that exploration itch) and have something set out to do (can't get bored if I already have a task/plan in place).

I just got my Bundt cake book and I am excited! Love all of your content! Thanks for doing what you do ❤️