“No Buy August” The End of a Challenge

With exactly one minute left of the month of August, I thought I’d begin to reflect upon my experience with my “No Buy” challenge.  First off, let me just say that overall, I’d say it was a highly successful month for me.  While the guidelines I followed developed into something more manageable for me after a few trial days, I stuck to the main goal I had in mind when I began the project – no buying unnecessary items in order to save as much money as humanly possible.

First, let’s talk about how the rules changed from my original post where I introduced the project to you all.  The only real change that existed is that I continued to purchase food at work in order to eat during my meal breaks and would occasionally purchase Starbucks.  However, any and all Starbucks that I purchased was paid for using my pre-loaded Starbucks card, so I was not ‘spending’ any ‘new’ money on it, and was also earning reward points.  In regards to purchasing meals for breaks, this was something that I originally intended not to do, but just became… not impossible, but challenging.  And to be perfectly honest with you, it was just something that I failed at.  BUT, I do believe that despite this small hiccup, the overall challenge was still a success.

Now here comes the big one.  Did I manage to stay away from buying makeup and clothing?  YES!!!!!  I, Allison, DID NOT SHOP for an entire month!  Do you know how difficult that was for me, especially considering I have a job at Target?  Especially since I work in the clothing departments?  I was constantly challenged each and every time I touched a piece of clothing to hang it up or fold it, every time I marked an item down in price…. Just doing my job became the ultimate challenge for me.  But somehow I managed to keep my cool and stay away from my wallet and temptation.

So, what happens now?  I will probably go shopping at some point this upcoming week.  I admit, it’ll happen.  Too many great buys are on clearance right now at Target that I’ve been eyeing, and I do want to celebrate a little.  BUT, I’m going to go through my closet first and do some purging.  I’m going to get rid of things I don’t need and donate them or sell them at a consignment shop for cash, that way I know everything I have fits me well and looks great.  Then, I’ll shop for things I know I could actually use in my wardrobe and know I’ll wear, rather than things I just think would be nice to have.  And of course, a strict budget is an absolute must have in this upcoming shopping trip.  I don’t want to blow all my last month’s savings in one go!

If you participated in “No Buy August,” let me know how it went for you!  I would absolutely love to hear about your experiences and your stories.  If you haven’t tried it yet, I highly encourage you to do so.  It is difficult at times, I won’t lie to you, but it does feel good at the end knowing that you actually did it.  If you do end up giving it a try, let me know!

I hope you all are having an amazing day, and HAPPY SEPTEMBER!

Allison