Spend More to Save Money

Minimalists are very intentional about how they spend their money. We spend more upfront to save money in the long term.

How does that work? By eliminating leaks in our spending we free up more money to buy higher quality items. Higher quality items means we spend more now to save money over time. Money is saved because we replace those higher quality items less often.

You might be asking yourself how minimalists can afford to spend more money. Valid question. Where do minimalists find the extra money to invest up front? Read on to discover why minimalists have the money to invest in quality items.

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Minimalist Purchasing Strategies

Cost per use is more important than the upfront cost. Imagine you need a new pair of shoes. You can spend $10 on a pair that will last you 30 days. Thus your cost per use is 33 cents. The other option is to pay $140 for a pair of high quality shoes that hold up for three years. If we round up, the higher price shoes will cost about 13 cents per use.

Another side of this situation is the time cost you will save if you only have to shop for shoes once every three years versus every 30 days for 3 years. If you go buy a new $10 pair of shoes every thirty days you will have spent $365 on shoes and a substantial amount of effort to give your feet cover.

Each time you go to a store to spend money there is the possibility and temptation of buying additional items you do not need. You are putting yourself in the position of consumption very often when you purchase low price low quality items over and over.

Save Now

Money is a resource that we have finite access to. You can always earn more, but at any given time there is a limited amount of money you are able to spend. If you decide to buy the Paris themed perfume now, that takes those funds away from saving for a trip to Paris later.

Every consumer temptation you avoid in the present allows you to accumulate more money to give you larger buying power later. Your logical brain knows that little purchases add up over time but because the consequences are not overt, generally you let the buying impulse win.

The common mantra among budget gurus is that drinking expensive coffee and consuming avocado toast is the blame for the lack of money at the end of the month. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to walk around any American home and see wasted money behind every cabinet, stuffed in every drawer, and hidden away in every closet.

Spend More Later

After you’ve created the habit of spending less via no unnecessary purchases, your disposable income will increase. Your immediate dopamine rush of excitement in purchasing a couch at Costco will be replaced by the joy of having a custom couch that fits your space perfectly.

Being the kind of adult who replaces things before they fall apart. Making a purchase under duress is a likely way to overspend or purchase the incorrect thing. Plan for your big purchases and make those investments before it breaks and you are in a stressful situation.

Buying a junky pair of headphones feels good for a few minutes. Buying the exact headphones you have been hoping for feels good for years. Spend more on those perfect headphones to save money in the long run.

Shift Your Money Towards Quality

Delaying gratification and impulse control are not easy. Envisioning the increased happiness waiting for you on the other side takes work. If you need help finding the proper motivation to make these changes, you might be a good candidate for the Messy to Minimalist E-Course.

In Messy to Minimalist you will create a life roadmap so exciting, which is the only thing with the power to motivate you to change those ingrained behaviors.