141. When shopping isn’t making your life better (mindful and minimalist tips for shopping)

Simple on Purpose | Intentional Living and Parenting

Feel like you are shopping too much? Want to bring a minimalist approach and mindset into how you shop? Every season we seem to be bombarded with the latest fashion trends - a marketing strategy that fast fashion uses to get us to keep buying all the latest colours and patterns. I know I feel like I need to buy a new wardrobe each season and need to remind myself of everything I already DO have in my closet. In this episode, I will talk about WHY we shop, how to know when it is causing a problem for you and how to bring a mindful and minimal approach into your shopping. Make sure to get the free downloads that go with this episode, right here Why it feels good to shop The neurochemical payoff In her great book Tame Your Anxiety by Loretta Breuning outlines the neurochemicals we like to get (serotonin, oxytocin, and dopamine). I share my view on how I think we get each of these neurochemicals from shopping. Control and choice Shopping is also something we can turn to feel in control, which is a desirable feeling for many of us. Avoidance strategy Many of us can turn to shopping when we want to 'feel better', or also to say when we don't want to feel the negative or uncomfortable things we are facing. This is like emotional eating, we can emotion shop. Many coaches call this a buffer (a term coined by Brooke Castillo), the things we turn to for distraction from feeling poor. When shopping isn't making our lives better Years ago I started decluttering my home and it hit me how much my shopping habits had contributed to the state of my home. I could see that I had spent a lot of my 20s buying things that I thought I needed to be a credible adult. I had accumulated so much by using shopping as entertainment and by shopping by reaction more than intention. It caused a problem for me because I could see that I had a home full of stuff that was a substitute for what I really wanted things I 'thought' I needed things I thought we 'me' but turned out to be identity clutter How to know when you are shopping too much Shopping in itself isn't a bad thing or a negative activity. Shopping can be fun! Often it is how we meet a lot of our needs and create the life we want. Something things to consider to know if you are shopping too much is its impact on the different areas of your life. Shopping may be a problem for you if you notice a negative impact on your relationship, your finances, your space, your ability to be present, or your own sense of integrity. Bringing a minimalist approach to shopping The work starts before you even go shopping or load up the online store. To bring a minimalist mindset into shopping, you will want to only buy what you need and love. A strategy that is really helpful here is to start with an inventory of what is already in your home. You can avoid bringing in a lot of unnecessary items when you 'shop your home' and see all the inventory you already have. Being mindful about how you shop It is important to shop with intention rather than reaction. Having a plan when you shop can keep you on task here, make a list of the items you are specifically looking for. I unpack some powerful, mindful questions you can ask yourself WHILE shopping. You can get a download of these questions to keep on your phone right here. Get in touch You can find the Simple Squad (our community on Facebook) right here. Send me a message or tag me on Instagram @simpleonpurpose.ca Full Episode Transcript (Unedited) 0:18 And on this podcast, I share ways that you can simplify your home, simplify your heart and simplify your life. And I want to talk about getting rid of distractions and clutter in those areas, helping you identify what you're keeping what's important what you value, and show up for that. Simplify and show up. So today we're going to talk about shopping. So how did you for me right now,