DON'T BUY THAT THING

COLD TURKEY. 

That phrase sends shivers down my spine. It brings vivid memories of my dad's last days in hospital, thrashing and hallucinating in the grip of terminal symptoms of liver cirrhosis. 

For me, my addiction to SHOPPING, especially online shopping, was my placebo. My fix, as they call it. And although it doesnt seem as bad as drugs, daru and dua, as I like to call the three major vices we humans fall prey to😎, it does suck the life out of your bank balance and makes you a hopeless hoarder. 

And then, one day, I chanced upon this group called Dariya Dil Dukaan that offered me and others like myself, a challenge. 

The NO SHOPPING CHALLENGE.

Going cold turkey for a month. 

30 days without SHOPPING. Easy peasy, I thought. By then, I had reached the level of buying thrift store items too. You know how easy it is to let bargains tempt you! We get super excited when we see a 50% off or a BUY ONE GET ONE FREE. 

Well, I had to muster courage to say NO to all those baits if I was taking the challenge. But, I was keen to try. 

They advised me that I needed to avoid the places of temptation so I deleted my online shopping app. OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND, right?

Next, they said ONLY essentials. No stocking foodstuff unless you will really use it. ROT is the last option, said Bea Johnson of Towards Zero Waste. 

No buying a new item unless you really cannot repair the one you have or repurpose it or donate it. REFUSE, REDUCE, REUSE. 

If you are getting home a new item, an old one has gotta go. ONE IN, ONE OUT. 

AND MANY MORE SUCH RULES.......

 

By then, I had also been introduced to Marie Kondo and Courtney Carver. So, every time, LESS became MORE it sparked JOY. I took the Project 333 challenge too and slowly there was an exodus of 'unwanted' stuff out of my home. 😭 Shame worked as a great motivator to remind me not to get more back in. 

Now, in case you think this is phenomenal, let me warn you that there will be those devil-get-his tail-in-through-the-back-door days. 

As I write this, believe it or not, my doorbell rang and a parcel I had ordered for arrived to remind me of just this very pitfall. 

I had been chaffing at the bit to order some glass containers and finally I found these with good customer reviews at a reasonable price. Happy to note that packaging plastic was minimal, just to prevent scratches on the lids. Thermocole within to absorb shock. And the shopping giant Amazon had surprisingly very little buffer material to send in their courier box as well. 

I'm not saying SUCCUMB but sometimes you need to buy things if you need to. Emphasis on the word NEED. These days because of the upcoming festive season, right till New year, there will numerous sales and tempting discounts. Choose wisely. One clever trick is to place what you think you need on a WISHLIST. Keep it there for a month. If you still need it, then go ahead and buy it. In the meantime, check out other stores. Once, I remember being shocked to find that an item I had purchased online was cheaper at my local supermarket. 

In online shopping, one thing that you must avoid is the pressure factor. Lightning deals, shipping free limits, rewards, etc are all marketing strategies that benefit ONLY the giant. SLAY THE GIANT.  

I end this never-ending topic with a simple message that embodies the philosophy of the NO SHOPPING CHALLENGE.