Guys comment your why here I'm curious! Let me start: I'm doing a no buy year because I want to be more aware about why I'm buying things I don't need and have more gratitude for what I already own.
I have eight reasons written in my Notion, and they overlap with y'all's! I also have this one: "6. Many activist issues I’ve cared about lately have called for boycotts. So just pre-boycott, lol"
Multiple reasons: I want to be more minimalist and I have everything I really need. I want to get out of debt and be financially stable. It makes life a bit more spicy!
A tip that really resonates w me about sales is that there will always be more sales! Every year theres a black friday sale. Every holiday and long weekend theres a sale. I can wait!!!!
One thing I've bought too much of in the past is digital games, and that's a product that has lots of price-tracking websites. Looking at the price histories of games I wanted was sooo eye-opening - almost all of them go on sale four or more times a year! I can wait.
This is true. But I'm noticing, here in New Zesland, that after the covid years the price of the same items now seem to increase quite noticeable, mainly due to increased transportation costs. For eg a small gas burner for camping was $22 last summer. This summer it's $29. So waiting to but something generally means you will pay more. But I like the concept of being more minimal and not just buying unnecessary things for the dopamine buzz.
I think the fact that your video did so well is a reflection that our society recognizes that we have a consumerism problem and know we need to do something about it. Hoping more people can reduce their buying habits.
To anyone doing a no buy, I would advise making rules for coming off/introducing purchases when it’s over. I went wild after a no buy, I bought anything and everything.
2024 is my low spend year too! and after failing 2 previous low spend years I've realised social media (including RU-vid) are where most of my spending urges come from. So on 1/1/24 I'll be signing out of RU-vid and everywhere else and filling my days with my productive activities when I'm not at work. I'm so glad I found Grace before I signed off as this place is giving me good tips and tricks as well.
I did this almost a year ago, and what a difference. You tube is the only channel, and I allow myself 1 hour in the morning, with my coffee to watch, then I am done. It is amazing to realize how many clothing and make-up purchases were due to me seeing someone on social media talk about how amazing the thing is. Pretty sad, since I don't think of myself as particularly gullible. Good luck to you, I am also doing a no-buy 2024.
I did a no-buy in 2022 for 9 months and it was liberating. No more random clutter entering the house + knowing I was saving money + being "forced" to really use what I had was really healthy for me. I'm doing a low-buy this year: only 15 items in 2024. I'm super curious to see how it goes.
My tips so far: Deleting my card from my iPhone has been the best first step I did last month! Also, telling everyone who cares to listen that I'm doing this no-buy thing has been creating accountability, AND it makes my ADHD brain remember that it's what I'm doing. Also, not wanting to achieve 100% of the challenge, but giving myself a grace-percentage of 20%, so that my biggest manipulator - self-sabotage - will have less of an impact for the no-buy-endeavour.
My reasons are: to build my emergency fund, and reduce clutter in my home. I’m doing a declutter right now and the amount of stuff I own is ridiculous. I don’t use so much stuff and I can visually see where i wasted money. The daily upkeep of cleaning and sorting is too much
I bought the online course: Take your house back, and I'm doing some serious decluttering and now want to rebuild my fully Funded emergency fund with 6 months of expenses saved
I started my "no buy" at the end of October with a pause in December and then I'll pick it back up in January. One thing that has helped me tremendously is spending more on groceries to make things that I actually want to eat and also spending more on snacks and alcohol to have in the house. I've found that I don't crave going out to dinner or out to get cocktails as much as I used to when I can make those things at home. Also, I'm a huge extrovert, so finding new ways to socialize has been super important. I have people over for dinner more often and go on hikes and whatnot - things that are cheaper than going to a bar.
My big rule for next year is I can't buy something I wasn't thinking of buying or didn't even know existed 20 minutes ago. I hear about things and must have....no! I must not have!
I started my minimalism journey at the beginning of 2020. I love being able to track my finances with ease. I love knowing where everything is and being able to clean my entire apartment in under 30 mins! The best part is being able to go to the store and only buy what I need because I’ve finally gotten to the place where I realize that most of the stuff in the store is literal junk. 😂
@Tellehahsghsbbs minimalism is for you!!! I have a playlist on my channel page with my minimalism videos and it's super painless I promise!! it'll make minimalism seem a lot less overwhelming
@@Tellehahsghsbbs I can’t imagine having to get things more organized as a MOM! I hope you have the courage and help to create peaceful time for yourself!
I’m in! My green, yellow and red lists are taking shape in my head, but I have yet to put pen to paper…I appreciated the reminder that editing these lists will be a slippery slope, so I need to get on it. I recommend learning about your local library for more than just their literary offerings. My city’s library network had a small tool borrowing program, bird watching kits, free passes to the art gallery and museums in town, free vegetable and flower seeds in the spring, family movie nights, and they organize a ton of groups and clubs for kids and adults. These “extras” have saved our family so much money.
Starting my no buy from January 🎉 I officially said thank you and goodbye to my DHL delivery man yesterday… I told him that he delivered my last package for some time and he asked me if we are leaving?! 😆
My biggest kryptonite is “silly little beverages” and treats, especially when I’m emotional. For some reason I’m really adverse to spending money on more important things, especially larger things, but spending on Starbucks and Dutch bros feels so easy
I appreciate you coming out publicly and seeking support for saving money. I especially appreciate your stance on challenging the addictive quality of digital media and marketing and encouraging others to join you.
I've been on a buy ban since I moved into my new home this september. I need to go thru all of the boxes, find a home for everything, and also declutter. There was no time to do that before moving. Whenever I feel the need to buy something I keep telling myself that I will do it when all the boxes are empty. Not before. After. It's really helped, to know that it's not forever but also not now.
This is a really good starting point! My recommendation would be to do some going through the boxes whenever you feel tempted to buy something new. I did something similar, in my case it got set off by my not having an income for about half a year - I spent my partner's money, but I was very frugal with that and decided it was not fair to use his money on anything for myself. So instead I dove into the excess of stuff I already owned and this set me on the path to minimalism. I made big steps then towards only owning things I use and(/or) love. Considering to do something similar again, although I have to think about my whys since my financial situation has changed (for the better) and my motivation would be different now. Good luck with your boxes!
Your no buy videos are really resonating with me after other perspectives were very off putting to me due to growing up in scarcity. I didn't plan to do this and marked "not sure" initially on your community group poll, but now I'm setting aside time to go back through your videos with my notebook and make all my lists and plans 😊
this makes me so happy!!!! I actually talk a little about the scarcity mindset in the video where I explain why I'm going minimalist. minimalism has prepped me mentally SO much for this no buy year tbh!! if you're interested then it's all on a playlist on my channel 🥰
I have (at least) 3 different accounts for money, 1 account is for bills, 1 for savings, and the rest dumps to a completely different bank for things like groceries and weekly spending.. this has been a huge help because I used to spend frivolously because the money was there and when the time came to pay bills I didn’t have the money. It’s all hooked up direct deposit and budgeted out so it actually makes bills less stressful considering 0 thought goes into it.
I did a 30 day no buy last year and it was eye opening. I am currently doing another 30 day no buy in prep for a year long no buy. I think the best tip was “no changing the rules”. I have made several changes to my rules this month so hopefully I will get it all figured out before starting my no spend year. Thanks for all the tips. I/We can do this !
These tips are really handy! I'm slowly preparing and already feel like I'll fail in a month. I need to come up with the alternatives to the spending urges, my spreadsheet keeps growing 😂 Thank you for sharing all of this!
One of my biggest spends is on books. I buy them quite mindlessly and then, being a minimalist, donate them to the street library in my area (sorry, guys, not next year). So I put a no-spend on non-work related, unbillable books. I’ve made a list - checked it twice - of all the books I have at home, that I #amreading, still want to finish, or start reading. I’m up to at least 25 titles that I can sink my teeth into in 2024. I will allow myself to extend my library membership if needed (about 40 dollars a year), but they don’t often have (or want to acquire) the books I want to read. I can also revert to Project Gutenberg for copyright-free ebooks! Good luck everyone! Let’s do this!
I purchased this year the books I want to read so I think I'm covered in that front, I didn't know about the Project Gutenberg so thanks for that, just in case I want to read something else.
the credit card stuff...YES!!! I have mine all in my safe, and I took them off all my accounts and auto pay stuff. Then I had my debit card only link to my main checking account, and my savings got moved to other banks. Now I have to spend out of my checking account, or not spend at all. I think this will really help my no spend year. LOVED this video!!!!
I randomly found your last video during a moment of high anxiety and it really helped me. I usually make myself a New Years Day Box, filled with new things to use during the New Year. Doing that has made me over buy and spend during years past and this year I am doing none of it. I will be doing a Low Buy, I have made my lists and I feel fairly ready to go. Thank you Grace 😊
@@gracenevittI feel like it’s helping me declutter and look forward to saving money rather than spending it! Im already practicing now not allowing myself to buy things I don’t need and deleted apps that I would just browse and end up buying from (never even thought of that until you mentioned it!) I’ve also made images to look at when Im struggling, with my reason for doing it etc. We can do this! 💜
something i love to do when i REALLY want to go out and get food is actually go to the grocery store (trader joes is my choice) and get a baking mix. I usually bake myself but man i tell you that $2-3 box of goodness takes so much of the work out of baking something and you get to have a treat you don't usually have (and if you're like me theres leftovers for the next few days!). yeah you're still spending money but its $2 rather than $20+ on food :)
I was at a small grocery store that didn't take credit card. I had only 40.00. It was amazing how many things I had to put back! Definitely groceries are my downfall. Probably cash in an envelope is going to be the best route for me with lots of differeent categories! A firewall for sure.
Just putting this here in case it helps anyone, this year I purchased a pass to six flags and when I tell you that was the best $100 I ever spent. I went like 7 times with my friends and spent maybe like 15/20 dollars each time getting something to eat. It’s a great low cost activity when you break it down for the value of the pass. Highly recommend buying one if you're looking for something to do with friends and family when cutting money out of your budget.
One other thing that could be helpful, more so if you’re doing a low buy year and have the means to do this, is by getting gift cards for how much you’re budgeting to spend at those places throughout the next year. So for example if you love Cheesecake Factory and are going to allow yourself $100 throughout the next year, but the gift cards now (you get $15 for $50 gift card because of the holidays) and parcel it out responsibly throughout the year. When it runs out you can’t go anymore. You could do this for whatever you want to bring your spending down on. It could be target, Joann fabrics, etc.
Something I’ve done which still isn’t like the BEST for averting spending is I’ll either scroll a website of things that I want and make a wishlist but not buy. OR if it’s a place that carts expire, I’ll add EVERYTHING I want to cart, watch it be wayyyy too much money to spend/I don’t even have that money, and then, because deciding between taking off items or keeping them on is like stressful for me, I just close that browser tab.
As someone who has a Bipolar Disorder and who has a tendency to buy things on impulse when hypomania hits, I have some tips and tricks to avoid excessive spending. 1. Avoid triggers - for me it’s advertisment on FB and Instagram plus RU-vid videoes about my hobbies. 2. Make online-shopping impossible. I give my creditcard to my husband and make paying apps inaccessible. I also uninstall the web browser from my phone. 3. No visits to stores that tempts me. For me it’s bookstores and places that sells makeup. 4. Make your phone boring with black and white colours and use a minimalistic launcher. It will make you use your phone a lot less and lessen the temptation to buy interesting apps (if that’s a problem for you).
Definitely look forward to your videos every Monday and I’m excited to follow the snow by your alongside you and everyone else in the comments who choose to. You have really help me be more mindful and really slow down and be intentional with my actions and my finances
I love your videos! The first one i saw was the no buy one, but then I looked at more of your minimalist ones. I'm going to do a low-buy this coming year and I've felt really good about it. I've already been having more time to do what I want and decluttering has felt so much better, because I keep thinking how I won't just be overwhelmed with stuff again in a couple of months but will slowly be bringing more space and control into my life. I'm happy that I'll get to keep seeing you during the year. Thanks for all the motivation❤
Hot tip I picked up elsewhere - change your PayPal (or other related app) passwords to a passphrase that reminds you of your "why". Kind of like a mini-affirmation... just typing in the password then can trigger a moment of reflection.
I love your channel! Thank you for starting this. I have unsuccessfully tried to do some no buy months or periods of the year, but 2024 needs to be THE YEAR. Not using a credit card has helped me a lot. I could always pay off my credit card in full every month, but just using it meant I didn't think about what was being spent so I would overspend since I paid it off later. Removing card info really does help and now I just carry a debit card instead. I'm already not on social media much, but as many people know and you pointed out, being on social media is a major driving factor in making purchases. Either seeing ads or just thinking we need to keep up with others/have all the newest, nicest things. I am considering doing a no social media year in 2024 too or at least mostly. My job uses social media but using it personally is so meh right now. I like slogans so I came up with "Don't need no more 2024" for my no buy challenge lol.
Ooo girl you really won my heart with the google sheets doc!!!! Thank you for everything you're doing to support those of us embarking on this journey for the first time!!
I so want to do a no spend month and see how it goes! When you were talking about turning off marketing texts and emails I also thought about staying off of social media, I can't tell you how many times I've bought (or almost bought) something because of an ad. I would also suggest that if you're an emotional spender like me finding a replacement for your spending, like reading a book or going on a walk, etc.
Can you make a video of a guide to creating a list of everything we own? Love to see how you tackle categorizing things like clothes and housewares (or things you own the most of) love these videos and this concept!
I have a video about this already! idk how much it answers your specific question but it comes with the notion template I used and it walks you through my thought process. here's the link if you're interested! ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-8hUQHQOEVwo.html
im so glad i found your video bc i followed ur advice and made the green, yellow and red list! and it made me much more organized and more reflective about my spendings etc, so thank you!! ❤
It’s not really a “no buy” for me, but rather a low spend- so I’m only allowing myself to spend for coffee one time a week and no new books for the first 4 months. I tend to be an emotional book buying so I know this will definitely help for sure
im by no means a minimalist and im not interested in the lifestyle, but i do have a spending problem thats gotten out of hand over the last few years. i decided to do no buy starting at the end of this month. and i resonated a lot with what you have been saying on the subject. i have goals my spending problem have been getting in the way of and i say no more. i dont see it as a punishment but as a tool to reach where i want to be in life. im hoping this will help me. ive already gotten better at realizing what is an impulse purchase and whats an actual want.
I'm 50 years old and dug in hard to get myself out of debt. As of last week, I'm officially out of debt. Now my focus is to build up my savings more but my bestie is a consumer and I admittedly fall prey to that from time to time. And she'll be the first to tell me to "just buy it" but she's also got more money and different priorities than me and I need to remember that. My other pitfall is periodic bouts of retail therapy. They do not happen often but when they do, lawdy. I hate clutter, so that's helpful. I'm easily overwhelmed if I'm feeling like I have "too much" (I'm a sticker/notebook/pen sl*t), which is also helpful. I do give myself an allowance and have a completely separate account at a different financial institution and debit card for my "fun money" from my main account which has been hugely helpful. Good luck to everybody. And lemme just say, being debt free for the first time in my adult life is surreal.
I'm planning to do only Month for now and starting the year with a no spend January. And then depending how this works out on doing 1-3 other months throughout the year. I want to try it because I know that I have an expensive 2024 ahead of me and I want to go through it as smooth as possible.
I love this video!!! I could definitely benefit from a no buy challenge, I honestly spend money unnecessarily. This would be really good for me!! Thank you for the tips!! (:
Had an epihany. I've got all these cute clothes, but im so broke i can't go anywhere to dress up. Whats the point of cute clothes if you cant afford the oppurtunities to wear them. And debt freaking sucks. The financial freedom to start a something new and travel as much as i want would be way better than a new shirt.
the biggest game-changer for me was letting to of my "fantasy self" and realizing that I don't wear fancy clothes. decluttering them and not buying more has been so freeing LOL
I found you from the “first part” of this one and watched four videos of yours in one sitting and subscribed. Keep up the good content! You have a great outlook on spending and being sustainable. Love your channel.
My tip: watch financial videos that align with your goals! For me, I watch a lot of Finanical Audit by Caleb Hammer (he releases content MWF) and it helps remind me of my goals and keep me on track. I want to do a no-buy year, bc in the past, I have definitely shown myself to be an impulsive spender. And not on little stuff either, it’s always big purchases that I didn’t budget for and just decided to do it. I think a no-buy year is something that might be able to help me kick that habit ❤
The nail polish comment on your other video got to me. new colors and collections are my weakness!!!! Unsubscribing is key, but its so hard! thanks for the motivation :)
you got this!!!! I realized I had a problem when I came back from the store with a color I already owned 😭 like I clearly forgot I had ALREADY bought it and just wanted to buy more😩
I want to pay off all my debt and have more financial freedom. I also want to be an intentional consumer so not buying just because I’m emotional or there is a sale or I fall into capitalist consumption of feeling like I need the new shiny thing or new style etc.
Such helpful information. The only thing that didn’t resonate with me is not using credit cards. Now everyone is different so that will change my advice, but credit cards can be extremely helpful with cash back. For example I have a 5% back grocery card and a separate 5% gas card. If I were to use debit cards for these I wouldn’t be earning the money but still spending the same amount. Hope this helps
I agree they can be helpful, but sometimes they can also be a very slippery slope for people with low impulse control (like myself). because it's much easier to just swipe a credit card not knowing how much cash is in your bank account versus having to make sure you have enough with a debit card.
My savings is in my one account but I do not touch it. I have an amount that transfers to it every month and it’s not touchable. It’s emergency and otherwise does not exist. I also highly recommend people do not follow those pay plans like after pay. Use a good credit card and pay your statements every month. After pay and those plans are bad spending habits. Don’t purchase anything if you don’t have the money.
I bought certain seeds, which I really do need, but thought about the purchase… I decided to post a “wanted: seed swap” ad to my community, and we’ll see if I can get the few seeds I need instead of paying $ for 60 seeds! Worth a shot and might get to talk Gardening with someone :)
I need to stop buying little things for the thrill of it. I also need to stop being so easily influenced to buy crap. I’m such an easy sell lol But I don’t NEED this stuff. I’d rather have a nice savings, maybe buy a home and travel ❤ I’m making more than ever but struggling more than ever with the costs of living. Time to take some accountability and make a change
Im curious how people manage hobbies with consumables during a no or low buy year, auch as sewing, art, or knitting. Buying fabric or yarn (either first hand or thrifted) can really add up. Similar with outdoor sports which require gear. New/second hand gear for new hobbies or gear upgrades is my biggest financial weakness.
I used to buy but buy scrapbook paper. It was all so cute, couldn’t get enough. Then I heard someone ponder how many years they would need to use everything they had. Like really think about how much work she brought into the house for herself to do. I realized I could literally wallpaper my entire house with what I had already paid for. It shifted the focus from buying to doing. And really realizing that I didn’t have enough energy to do more than I already had.
Doing a no spend challenge during December and so far I'm okay! The only way I'm allowed to have starbucks and other things is someone other than me gets it for myself without me asking 😅 so far I'm 4 for 4
See, I'm the opposite of going instore vs online shopping for necessities. I feel like when I go online to just get deodorant, I'm like "let's make this shipment count!" or "I'll go ahead and get other stuff too!" Also a lot of the time you have to spend $35 on small orders for some companies to even ship. So I need a $3 item but I spend $35+ just to get it, which is a habit I formed in the pandemic. Going online and just instantly clicking buy! Now if I need something, I have to physically take myself to get it. A lot of the time I realize it wasn't actually a necessity since I don't end up going to get the item.
I literally just bought new AirPods today and spent almost €300 on them😢 (in my defense my old ones broke and so did my headphones and with my autism and ADHD I NEED the noise cancellation as well as music but I’m still beating myself up for it yknow?)
if it's a necessary purchase that makes your quality of life better then that is 1000% what your money is for! I bought a kindle this year and it was easily the best few hundred dollars I've ever spent LOL
@@gracenevittCan you try to do a thing where you post on your community tab weekly or once every two weeks or once a month where we can chat while we're doing this challenge? Or maybe go live once a month or once every two weeks? That way we can help each other out, offer suggestions, etc., etc. There's a RU-vidr who did the community tab post weekly or even daily during a spring walking challenge. That's why I asked
I made the discord server to include all of that stuff!! we're already chatting it up in there and talking about our goals for next year :) I also have a monthly email that goes out on the first of the month that will include updates, journal prompts, etc
As long as you pay yourself first, and your retirement and other goal savings are met, there's really no need to torture yourself with limiting challenges like this (saying this as someone who did my first no buy year in 2014). It's so much easier to automate retirement investments, house downpayments, car payments, insurance premiums, grocery budget, etc and then get to use the remaining how you want, than agonizning over money and spending all the live long day...
I'm mostly just creating this for people that use that extra money towards unnecessary purchases instead of putting it towards investments and savings :)
the reason i'm here is because i'm a teenager that really wants a guitar and i want a good quality one (which are honestly really expensive) and i also want to start a small candle business so i really need thes tips
I need to hear this, I've been bad this month, mostly necessities because of children, but I also got some investment items to sell too. I hope it works out, lol 😆
Was there like a discord you mentioned in your last video? I couldn’t find a link anywhere and I was too mentally drained to listen back, but honestly I’d love to be in the discord (would also totally love a text group for iMessage but that’s harder/only for iPhone users which kinda sucks) Too bad Reddit doesn’t have a nospend sub tbh cuz I’d love to connect with more people and find a buddy in my time zone that could be there while we clean out our stuff together and to text for advice about what we can and cannot buy/if we actually need or just want things, and possibly just to have other types of dopamine rather than the dopamine from spending money
@@gracenevitt omg I totally missed that! I checked the old video and didn’t see it there, didn’t even think to check this videos description🤦 thank you🫶
Girl! I of course don't know how much you have for income or saved, but IF you have an emergency fund saved (in your high yield savings account!) you should consider investing anything above that. Again, I don’t know if you have the option for a 401k, but you probably could do a Roth IRA which is killer for retirement planning. Gotta make the most of that money saved!
I have the option at my job, but I'm moving countries in less than 5 years and it seemed too confusing to open all that up and have to jump through all the hoops of moving it over in such a short time. my investment account is essentially my retirement fund LOL
It truly is worth it. Even if it takes you 10 hours to do all of the researching and paperwork and transfers, you could be gaining $10,000 from your employer, plus saving your own $10,000! Think about how much you’re ‘earning’ per hour that way! It’s too much to miss out in. Hey-that’s something you can do with time instead of shopping! 👍
Really need to take my finances seriously next year I want to save up for a used car and trip to Japan. But also bulk up my emergency fund since I plan on moving into an apartment with my cousin when I go back home from college in May. Gotta look stuff up about apartments because I’ve lived in a dorm in college but I think it’s kinda the same?🤔
Unsubscribing is key. I shop from a wishlist and once I get the item the marketing emails just keep coming. I found myself thinking, "I already purchased what I wanted why on earth won't these companies lay off?". They are all eco-centric, fair trade companies btw. It makes no difference.