Could You Give Up Shopping for a Year?
I just read about a group of friends who decided to do just that! Ten people in San Francisco were having dinner in 2005 and they discussed what it would be like to go a whole year without buying anything new!! What would it do for our planet? What would it do for our resources? What would it do for them as individuals? They decided to find out by pledging to agree to refrain from shopping for a year. They called themselves, The Compact.
They agreed they could buy essentials…food, toiletries and health and safety items, but that was all.
One participant said at the end of the year, “I have a completely different relationship with the things in my life. I appreciate the stuff I have more."
At the end of the year, they were ready to stock up on a few essentials and then go for another year!
After reading this article, I recalled years when business was tight for my family and we really put a stop to shopping in our family. The trouble was I didn’t label it a ‘challenge’…I labeled it a ‘bummer’. I failed to see it as a lesson in progress until after some time passed and I could look back and see how it changed me for the better. I came to realize it was a blessing for me to do away with old habits and learn along with my kids how to fix things we had and be happy with what we owned.
Our economy is such that I think many of us are once again on a ‘no shopping’ resolution…or at least we should be! I challenge you to look at it as a time to ‘appreciate your stuff more’.
I am not writing off shopping completely, but I am returning to many of my habits that I had during my ‘no-shopping’ year. This time, however, I am excited about the lessons I will learn along the way.
Check back in the week for a few of the habits I learned during the lean years!
They agreed they could buy essentials…food, toiletries and health and safety items, but that was all.
One participant said at the end of the year, “I have a completely different relationship with the things in my life. I appreciate the stuff I have more."
At the end of the year, they were ready to stock up on a few essentials and then go for another year!
After reading this article, I recalled years when business was tight for my family and we really put a stop to shopping in our family. The trouble was I didn’t label it a ‘challenge’…I labeled it a ‘bummer’. I failed to see it as a lesson in progress until after some time passed and I could look back and see how it changed me for the better. I came to realize it was a blessing for me to do away with old habits and learn along with my kids how to fix things we had and be happy with what we owned.
Our economy is such that I think many of us are once again on a ‘no shopping’ resolution…or at least we should be! I challenge you to look at it as a time to ‘appreciate your stuff more’.
I am not writing off shopping completely, but I am returning to many of my habits that I had during my ‘no-shopping’ year. This time, however, I am excited about the lessons I will learn along the way.
Check back in the week for a few of the habits I learned during the lean years!
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