Money is personal. How much we have, what we lack, why we save it, where we keep it, and how we spend it are all very personal topics.

It’s month two of my No Spend Challenge with looser rules to accommodate my current life needs. I have eaten restaurant food a few times – either by choice or necessity. My fella and I celebrated Valentine’s Day. I bought a pack of gum I didn’t need. But I haven’t been out shopping the winter sale racks or binge buying all the things I thought of during my very strict January No Spend Challenge. In fact, I did find a small rug for my bedroom but otherwise haven’t been out buying from my January wish list. 

It has been pretty good.  I have put some extra money toward debt and haven’t had to sweat over my soaring winter heating costs. Like everyone else though, what’s leftover each month is shrinking and it appears this will worsen. 

This challenge is not just about not saving money. It’s about assessing priorities. If I feel an urge to shop, I commonly ask myself if I want trinkets now or if I want adventure later. Would I prefer those dollars in savings for something better another day?

What is it that I value? At this stage in life, I value, learning, exploration, home, and having a reliable car that will take me to work so I can support myself. I also value giving my little former street urchin of a cat the life he thinks he deserves.

And it’s a good life, I assure you.  

Is my spending in line with these things? This is the real question at play here. Will the choices I make at the checkout support the things I just named? Or will they detract from those things I value? 

A No Spend Challenge also encourages deeper questions. One of those involves who I spend my money with. For example, I mostly value a brick and mortar business more than an online one. That’s because a business that invests in a community presence is investing in the community. This is done in many ways including through occupying vacant space, payroll, local taxes, and supporting local fundraisers for the chamber or schools. 

Plus, the employees and owners get to know their customers and do their darndest to keep them happy.

Walmart says “here’s a product that appeals to the lowest common denominator. Take it or leave it.” Amazon sells everything you’ll ever need but they don’t invest locally. They don’t care if your kids’ team needs new uniforms and they won’t answer the call to help when the VFW van needs repairs. That’s a burden for local businesses to share. 

But I’m paying more and more attention to how businesses invest their money and who they support politically. If their values don’t align with mine in the vaguest of ways, I tend to spend less. It’s a pain because sometimes that means going to one place for some things I can’t get anywhere else locally and then to another store or two for the rest. It’s a small price to pay knowing that I’m not handing over all my money to a company that financially supports things I do not believe in.  

I feel better knowing that I’m doing something, not out of spite, but out of principle. The bottom line is the only thing that matters to most companies. Why would I give them my hard earned money if I feel like they use it to work against me?

Other beneficial lines of thinking and questions come from my No Spend Challenge. Most them center on waste and excess. Food waste is a big one as I take big steps to prevent waste during a challenge. Although, I’m sad to report that I have been so busy and so mentally tired for the last couple of weeks, there has been more waste than normal. It happens and I’m back on track now. Forgiveness is important too. 

I also think about the cost of clutter. When we don’t know what we own, we often buy things thinking we are doing good. Clutter takes up space in closets and drawers and can weigh us down mentally. I have a coworker who has empty closets in her home and I just can’t fathom what that must be like. My closets are all full and attempts to slim down their contents never seem to go as planned. 

I also learn things about myself and my values. I recently realized I have a hard time letting go of things there are nice, that are a good brand or that I might need someday. Case in point: I was gifted a set of KitchenAid pots and pans about twenty years ago. This is a good brand and I have always liked them. The two skillets wore out years ago but the pots and lids are still in decent condition. They look ok. Things stick sometimes in the big pot but they get the job done. 

The problem is that they take up a lot of cabinet space and I would like to have a set that nests. I have looked at a few sets but can never pull the trigger. After all, what’s left of the old set is a good brand and they still work ok. 

Never mind that I have definitely gotten good use from them and they aren’t serving me as well as I would like. Of course, I might have room to store them if I would weed out some other stuff I don’t need.

I’m a work in progress, friends.

This No Spend Challenge seems like such an innocent thing! Stop shopping, save some money, break some bad habits! But it really is a rabbit hole of sorts. You know something? I like a good rabbit hole and I like when I force myself to question my own beliefs and ways of doing things. 

Are you doing some version of a No Soend Challenge? Tell me about it!!