It’s Not Too Late for Dry January
Last weekend I was speaking in Galway at BEO – Ireland’s newest and most dynamic self-care event – about wardrobe wellness. During the Q&A segment, a girl asked me “How do I stop going into Penneys all of the time?” The audience offered a knowing chuckle because the struggle, my friends, is most certainly real. Often referred to as the ‘Boots Effect’ (going in to by toothpaste, coming out with six 3-4-2 deals), the proclivity to purge one’s wallet on small but gratifying purchases can become an expensive habit over time; not to mention one that’s hard to kick.
So, what’s a gal to do? Simple – commit to a shopping detox. It may be mid-January but it’s not too late to put on the skids for at least two weeks. Here’s how:
- Schedule your shopping for a fortnight on a need-to-do basis and see how you manage. Remember the components of willpower: will and power. You’ve got to want in in order to make it work and that involves taking control.
- Got a Saturday shopping ritual? Swap that out for a competing response like exercising which fires up our endorphins much in the same way as a spot of retail therapy.
- Can’t log on without clicking to cart? Block your favourite shopping websites for 14 days. It is proven scientifically that when rewards are visible, they become harder to resist so work with your willpower –not against it.
- Most importantly, don’t forget to diarise your shopping diet daily. It’s only in managing out a habit that we realise how much time we spent (or wasted) on cultivating it in the first place.
Oh, and put that credit card in the freezer while you’re at it….
