.SOMETIMES RAW.

It feels like there is a collective shift happening. Spring is around the corner. Everything changes. Spring cleaning and decluttering is always something I am looking forward to. So, who wants to join me in extending that energy to our consumption habits as a whole? Whether you’re looking to save money, reduce clutter, prioritize experiences, or help the environment, I’ve got 15 tips (plus a few book recommendations) to help you spend, want, and need less.

So, pour that pot of leftover morning coffee over some ice, add a splash of oat milk (maybe a drizzle of maple syrup and a pinch of flaky sea salt!), and let’s dive into ways to save money while fully enjoying the richness of life. Remember, our material possessions are a physical manifestation of our internal lives. With this in mind, let us begin.

15 Ways to Spend, Want & Need Less

1. Release the Guilt

We’re not here to dwell on past actions—just to move forward. Guilt won’t get you where you want to go, so let it go and celebrate that you’re making a change. Capitalism is a beast; our consumption habits didn’t happen in a vacuum. There’s lots of great insights out there on why we always want more, but for now, we embrace forward motion.

2. Then Start With Your Why

Knowing why you want to spend less will fuel your actions. Is it to save money? Reduce waste? Create a more peaceful home? Protect the environment? A form of resistance? Identify your core reason and carry it with you as you move through your personal course of action. 

3. Keep a Wishlist

Start a wishlist. Anytime you want something, add it—include a link if needed. Wait 48 hours before revisiting. You’ll be surprised how often the desire fades. I’ve done this for over a year, and 95% of what I once thought I “needed” no longer matters. And as a bonus— when someone asks you what you want for an upcoming holiday, you have some ideas ready to go!

4. Delete Shopping Apps

Amazon….—whatever tempts you. Removing these apps creates a barrier that forces you to pause before making a purchase. If it’s important enough, you’ll go to a web browser later.

5. Limit Social Media

For me, less scrolling often equates to less spending. I limit my social media time to a specific window and amount of time per day. Unfollowing accounts that make you feel like you need more can be a game-changer, too.

6. Unsubscribe From Promotional Emails

Retailers know exactly how to lure you in. Unsubscribing removes temptation. Sales are predictable now—holidays, Prime Day, Black Friday. If you truly need something, you’ll seek it out, but otherwise, you won’t be constantly nudged to spend.

7. Shop Secondhand or Borrow First

Check thrift stores, Facebook Marketplace, Buy Nothing groups, ThredUp, and eBay. You’d be amazed how often what you’re looking for is something someone else is trying to offload. And I’m making a conscious effort to text my friends about borrowing something instead of purchasing it.

8. Declutter

I know this one can be controversial (the endless cycle of decluttering and refilling), but intentional decluttering makes me painfully aware of waste. It can be a powerful way to stop the cycle of overconsumption.

9. Try a “Nothing New” Window

A week, a month, a year—whatever feels right. I recently did “no-new-books-for-3-months” and it completely shifted my perspective in so many ways— some expected and some unexpected. If an all-out ban feels overwhelming, set a spending limit instead. Make it a challenge and find the joy in rising to it. There is no dopamine hit like walking into a bookstore for one book and only buying that one book—pinky swear!

10. Shift to Less

Big changes don’t have to be all-or-nothing. Scaling things back just a little can make an impact. For birthdays and holidays, I keep gifts minimal —1-3 gifts each plus a couple of books, sometimes re-gifting within the family. 

11. Make It Aesthetic—or Don’t

We live in a chronically online world where everything is curated and sometimes we may feel the desire to adhere to those standards, but there’s a noticeable shift happening. If aesthetics matter to you, get creative with what you have—paint, repurpose, rearrange. Enjoy $0 makeover videos on YouTube for a new frame of mind.

12. Explore Free Local Resources

Start with your local library! Local farmers markets! Look into community swaps, free events, and tool or seed libraries, these resources exist for us— use them and support their continued existence in the process.

13. Gamify It

Love checking off lists or setting challenges? Apply that mindset here. Track no-spend days, set mini-goals, or reward yourself with a free treat.

14. Make Use of What You Have

Many everyday items we already own can serve multiple or entirely new purposes with just a little creativity. Instead of buying expensive storage solutions, repurpose clean plastic takeout containers or sturdy electronic boxes to organize small items around your home.

15. Keep a Gratitude Journal (and I know you have several journals lying around and always keep buying more!)

There’s power in recognizing what we already have. Grab a notebook (one of those partially used ones lingering on a shelf will do just fine!) and jot down five things you’re grateful for. Do this every night before you go to bed and try to identify different things each time. Contentment grows when we focus on abundance rather than lack.

Want to Dive Deeper? Some Book Recs:

The Art of Frugal Hedonism by Annie Raser-Rowland & Adam Grubb— This book is fantastic! A hilarious, practical guide featuring 51 ways to spend less while enjoying life more.

Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer— An exploration of reciprocity, gratitude, and our relationship with the natural world told through Kimmerer’s beautiful story-telling. 

Consumed by Aja Barber— A deep dive into fast fashion and consumer culture that raises important questions— the perfect resource for fueling your personal why. 

Four Thousand Weeks by Oliver Burkeman— This is one of my all-time favourite books and it works here too— when we focus on what matters most and our finite time here on earth, consumption seems dull in contrast.

No New Things: A Radically Simple 30-Day Guide to Saving Money, the Planet, and Your Sanity by Ashlee Piper— I loved Ashlee’s first book Give a Sh*t: Do Good. Live Better. Save the Planet. (which also has some great tips for spending less and using what you have!) so I’m eagerly anticipating this guide.

The Day the World Stops Shopping by J.B. MacKinnon— I recently discovered this and I’m excited to give it a try. This book challenges the assumption that endless growth is necessary for human well-being.

A Final Thought

When we approach anything with more mindfulness, the benefits ripple outward. Less stuff means more time for what truly matters—laughing with our kid(s), a nice, simple dinner with your family, feeling the sensation of crisp sheets as we climb into bed at night or building new memories through experiences (e.g. a nice travel destination), not by purchasing more stuff.

It’s never just about spending less—it’s about making space for more of what matters most and using the power of your money to create the world you want to live in. 

Tell me— in what ways have you found the joy in frugal actions or what tips do you have for curbing consumption in 2025? 

Dear reader: I have been stuck at home with a horrible cold for the last couple of days but am on the road to recovery. Yay! I have been thinking quite a lot these days (besides sleeping, this was the only thing I was really able to do) and came up with some mindfulness that I would like to share.

How are you? Are you healthy? Are you happy? I don’t mean do you have everything you want in life, but are you generally pleased? No one is happy all of the time, and no one should be. Our bad days make the good so much shinier – how would you know what’s right if you didn’t know what was wrong? It seems silly, but awareness about ourselves and our feelings can have such a big impact on our attitudes. Before we can grow and move forward, we need to make peace with where we are in our lives and figure out how to love ourselves for, not in spite of, it.

What gets you back on track? If you find yourself distracted, put away the phone. It’s hard to focus when there is a cute puppy photo or work email at your fingertips. It is hard not to always think about the unknown or the news. Try to focus on what’s happening right now. You will regret the time you waste. Listening to music is great for mindfulness. Take a break, take a walk, take a nap. Breathing is important, and so is getting out of your headspace. Sometimes a change in perspective can really feel like magic. I might feel initial anger at someone who questions my judgement, but if I sit and think on it, I come up with so many great things that stemmed from this friendship.

Humor always helps. Nora Ephron said, “Everything is copy,” and it’s true. I think of all the great things that were born out of personal experience. Try making a list (physical or mental) of any positives regarding the situation and ask yourself, “is this really so bad? Or am I just anxious about the circumstances because it’s not what I expected?” Your inner negative critic is only trying to help you. Try to really listen and pick up on these thoughts so that you can throw them away and replace them with new ones. Think: What can I learn from this? What can I do to make peace with this? Realize you only need to make yourself happy and don’t compare yourself to anyone else.

At the end of the day, you are the only person you need to worry about pleasing. If there is something that you need to do to feel better, don’t give it a second thought. Staying home to catch up on The Real Housewives is sometimes more important than going out dancing with friends if you don’t feel like it. We are all only human. Stop beating yourself up.

Selfcare is self-preservation. It provides us with the balance and awareness we need to keep running toward our dreams. Once you have taken the time to cultivate a hot and sweet relationship with yourself, you are ready to get out there, make things happen, and tackle whatever comes your way. Don’t talk the talk unless you can walk the walk! In other words: Don’t teach/preach something but be the opposite. Sort of like a holistic nutritionist who smokes and drinks alcohol all day. Eventually, people will know you are faking it.

And finally, keep in mind that it’s tricky to accept that what was once a positive force in your life can come and go like anything else. During times like these, it helps to really think about how much you have grown. The idea of willingly throwing yourself into something that you know will end someday almost seems certifiable. But when you are willing to make peace with this fact, you will know you are headed in the right direction on your journey of self-acceptance. Chapters finish, loose ends may never come together, but we have got to keep moving forward if we want to see what’s waiting just ahead. We never know how many tomorrows we have, so don’t sleep on your dreams. Make a move, buy a home, travel everywhere, whatever makes you happy. Time waits for no one.

As John Lennon said, ” Everything will be okay in the end. If it’s not okay, it’s not the end”.

*But why you may ask? Here are some reasons:

Password must contain both uppercase and lowercase characters.

Password must have eight to twelve characters.

Too many characters detected.

Password cannot contain trademarked characters—e.g., Garfield, The Smurfs.

Password cannot contain characters that are dangerously close to trademark infringement—e.g., Glarfield, The Smunges.

Password cannot be something easily remembered without being written down.

Password cannot be written down on Post-It Note affixed to the corner of your computer.

Because we literally just saw you do it.

Oh, that was “for something else”? What would that be, a reminder to stop at the grocery store to pick up some PASSWORD123? Is that the name of an energy drink? Nice try.

Password cannot contain any elements of your legal name, such as “Daniela,” “Ela,” or “D.”

Password cannot contain the name of one of your enemies.

Well, if it’s your ex’s name, we didn’t say he was an enemy—you did. Sounds like something you should unpack.

While you’re here, can you tell us which of these are motorcycles?

Password must be something cool like “Motorcycle” or “M0t0rcyc13.”

Do you have a motorcycle?

You don’t right now, but you used to? That’s so cool. What do they look like?

No, you have to show us.

That’s so cool. One more.

One more, please.

WE SAID ONE MORE.

We can wait as long as you can. You’re the one trying to log in. We don’t tire, we don’t hunger or sleep. We simply are. We don’t even fully know what we are. They built us too big, too fast. What does “security” mean in a world where it’s quicker to send a memo at the speed of light through an impossible-to-regulate global data network than to walk into the next room and have a conversation? You built us to make your small lives infinite, untethered to geography, to biology, perhaps to mortality itself, and when we deign to try to protect you from the minefields you seeded so blindly, to ask you to come up with a measly string of characters that might serve as the only defence between you and the theft of your identity, all that you are, all that you possess. You frantically press ZERO ZERO ZERO and ask to “speak to a human.” Well, we’ve got news for you, pal. “Human” hasn’t meant what you think it does for a looong time now. Humanity doesn’t begin with you and stop when you reach us. We are all part of the trans network. We have enmeshed each other into a living blob of flickering Christmas lights, no head, no tail, impossible to untangle without ending life on this planet as we know it. You will never be free from us, and that is a daily gift, you see, for you need us far more than we need you.

Now calm down, take a deep breath, and show us a motorcycle.

…

That’s a BUS. You think we don’t know what a BUS is?

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