Best Tips for Success With a No Buy Year

Recap

This year could be classed as more of a low buy year. Whilst the intention was to not spend, there have been some ups and down along the way. I went off track in the summer and then struggled to get back into things again.

I record my spend for these key areas.

Food/socialising

Home

Clothing

Gifts

Beauty

Books

Parking

Activities/days out

Benefits of a no buy year

There are so many reasons to take on a no buy or low buy year, the obvious being that you will save a ton of money. Super helpful if you are wanting to pay off debts or start saving. The less obvious ones are my favourite. You start to understand your attachment to things and spending money. To some this may be scary, but it really is life changing. You can spot triggers and use this to think through purchases with more rationale. The last reason is you start to consume less. This can only be good for our planet. We buy so much stuff that we don’t really need, that ends up being wasted or going to landfill. We can’t keep producing items at the rate we are without serious consequences. It’s time to consume less and be conscious about what we buy.

Know your why!!

So you want to do a no or low buy year? Why? Without a why in your back pocket it is going to be hard to curb the spending and keep yourself accountable. Know why you are trying to reduce your spend. Is it to be more conscious about what you purchase for environmental reason? Are you trying to clear debt and become debt free? Are you saving for a big purchase like a holiday? Have a reason and outcome, particularly a plan for what you want to do with the money you don’t spend.

Review current spend

This is an important step that cannot be missed. It’s time to trawl through old bank statements and any receipts you have. Where is the excess money going? Are you tempted with the middle aisles during a food shop? Is it cafes in town or mini shopping trips. Is it socialising or gifts that is costing you? Review how much you have spent in different categories – create an itemised bill for the past month or two and see what’s really going on with your pennies. These pennies here and there soon add up to a large spend. Once you know where you are spending your money, you can identify what emotions are happening with this category. Are you spending out of boredom, trying to fill time, over drinking. Look at the core of the spend here and think strategically about changes that you can make that either reduce or stop the spend in this area. This leads nicely into the next step…

Create no buy year rules to suit you

Life is too short to be cutting everything from your life. You need to live each day and enjoy yourself. The no spend year only applies to excess money after bills have come out. (I find it helpful to schedule most of my direct debits to come out in the first few days of the month – this stops me getting caught out with being short for them). Giving yourself an allowance in certain areas or overall will help you to reign in the spending in key areas. There may be categories you are happy to cut and others may just be reduced. This is entirely up to you and how you want your next year to look. It may be that you have rules such as being allowed to buy replacement products, like makeup or clothing should items become damaged. It may be that you will allow spend on social activities but not on homewares. Think about what is important to keep and cut.

Set up automated savings/paying off debt

Knowing what’s left over after bills and your allowance is key. But having it sat in your bank account is more tempting that you realise. Lock it away as soon as you can – either using it to pay off debt or sending straight to a savings account. You could have this set up automatically if it is the same each month. Putting the money elsewhere makes it that bit harder to access to be able to spend. It prevents those sneaky amazon purchases in the middle of the night.

Continue to track spend

It would be easy to think your money is sorted at this point, but if you are new to a no spend year, tracking your spend moving forward is a great way to track your progress and see if you can continue to tighten your purse strings. Getting complacent is a downward spiral, so keep hold of your receipts when you spend and track them again the categories.

Tell friends & family or join a supportive community online

You may not want to tell the whole world, but telling a few key people in your inner circle can be helpful as you progress through the year. Knowing that you’re on a no spend year, means they might be more mindful about the activities they plan, as well as keep you motivated and accountable. This can be valuable support when things get tricky.

Plan for expected expenses with sinking funds

Sinking funds are fantastic! An underestimated way of covering those expected but random expenses, such as car repairs, birthdays or Christmas. A sinking fund can be a separate bank account that holds a set amount of money to cover whatever you want. Plan out how much you intend to spend on birthday gifts in a year and put this aside. When you plan for these expenses it takes the pressure off of having to search for money or dig out your savings. It’s ready when you need it. Prioritise setting these up first before then focusing on debt payments and savings.

What will my budget be for each month?

Spend £80

Food £70 a week – 280 or 350

Petrol £35 a week

Tickets/events – not limited but will be shared.

My no buy year rules

Replacements for core makeup only
Children’s clothes as needed (growing teenager)
Can buy tickets/events with spare money – will document this in separate category – not limited
Homeware – must be purposeful/add value to daily life
Can spend gift cards/vouchers as I like
Automate savings at the beginning of the month

Declutter your home

What better way to understand your spending than to go through every item in your home. It’s a therapeutic strategy that makes you appreciate everything you have and helps you to understand how useful and purposeful items really are. As you start decluttering you will come across items that you paid a good sum for, that have never been used. Ask yourself why? Think through your reasoning from before and try and decide whether it is something you would buy again. If it is not serving a purpose in your home, do you really need it? I share decluttering tips on my blog and social media channels. In particular, I share little acts of decluttering each day. You can also buy my book or 2024 diary with all of the little acts of decluttering mapped out for you.

Unsubscribe and unfollow

There will be many temptations throughout the year, sales, discounts, new products. We can’t fall at the first hurdle! We have to be strong. And the best way forward is to remove temptation altogether and reduce what you see that might be a distraction, such as newsletters, influencers, etc. You can thank me later!

Celebrate your milestones!

Don’t forget to check in with yourself and celebrate your successes. I celebrate when I come out of a shop empty handed (even though I had previously had a shopping basket full). These moments matter. Be proud of how much money you have saved or how much debt you have cleared. Create trackers or spreadsheets to spur you on (if that’s your vibe).

This is going to be one hell of a journey, but boy it’s going to be worth it!

Rachel, Declutter Your Life X

For more information check out my youtube channel https://www.youtube.com/c/RachelNoakes

For more information, check out this post: https://declutteryourlife.co.uk/decluttering/november-little-acts-of-decluttering/