你能一年不买东西吗?

你能一年不买东西吗?

Not buying things can be difficult, even when you're determined not to.

即使你下定决心不买东西，也很难做到不买。

Even when you have more than enough, there's often a desire for more. (Photo: varandah/Shutterstock)

For the last several years, some people have been attempting a no-buy year. Instead of buying new things, they use what they already have. If you've never tried it, clothing and makeup are a great place to start.

在过去的几年里，有些人一直尝试着不买东西。他们不买新东西，而是用已有的东西。如果你从未尝试过，服装和化妆品是一个很好的开始。

For many people, a no-buy year is simply a way of life because their financial situation leaves them no other choice. But for others — myself included — we have enough clothes, shoes, makeup, electronic devices, books, knickknacks, kitchen gadgets ... enough stuff ... for all our needs. Yet, we continue to buy.

对许多人来说，“不买房年”只是一种生活方式，因为他们的财务状况让他们别无选择。但对于其他人——包括我自己——我们有足够的衣服、鞋子、化妆品、电子设备、书籍、小摆设、厨房用具……足够的东西……满足了我们所有的需要。然而，我们继续购买。

The purchase of a just-the-right-shade-of-pink lipstick can be hard to resist. That one tube isn't expensive — but then you find all the other lipsticks you bought. (Photo: DenisProduction.com/Shutterstock)

I try to absolve myself by saying so much of what I buy is pre-owned. But it only takes one viewing of "Tidying Up with Marie Kondo" to know many us have few things that truly "spark joy," so it doesn't even matter how an item ended up in the house.

我说我买的很多东西都是二手货，试图以此为自己开脱。但只要看一遍《与近藤麻理惠一起整理房间》，你就会知道，我们很多人都没有什么东西能真正“点燃快乐的火花”，所以，一件东西如何摆放在家里都不重要。

Perhaps a no-buy year, or some variation on the theme, is in order.

也许今年是“不买”的一年，或者主题有所变化。

First step: Identify why you want to try it

第一步:确定你为什么想要尝试

Is your habit of buying things keeping you from spending your money on an experience like attending a concert? (Photo: 13_Phunkod/Shutterstock)

If you're going to try a no-buy year or a month or some variation of the theme, the first step is identifying why you're doing it.

如果你打算一年或一个月不买东西，或者尝试不同的主题，第一步是确定你为什么要这样做。

Is it to save money? Pay off debt? Have more money for experiences? Stop the crazy accumulation of stuff? To be more sustainable? A combination of several of these?

是为了省钱吗?偿还债务?有更多的钱来体验?停止疯狂的物质积累?更可持续?以上所有?

Without a goal, failure is likely. I say this based on past experience.

没有目标，很可能会失败。我说这话是根据过去的经验。

Last year, I wanted to take my sons on vacation to somewhere we'd never been before where we could relax and spend a lot of time outdoors — a vacation where I could not only afford the rental and activities but also have enough flexibility with my money that I could take them out to eat at good restaurants. So I set a goal. That goal was to not buy anything I didn't need for three months prior to the vacation. A month before we went, I realized I needed to do more. I decided that I wouldn't spend money going out socially: no girls' nights out, no movies, no Saturday morning coffee rendezvous. I eventually reached my goal.

去年,我想带我的儿子去某个地方度假，我们以前从未放松,花很多时间在户外,一个假期,我不仅可以负担得起租金和活动,也有足够的灵活性和钱,我可以带他们出去吃好的餐馆。所以我设定了一个目标。我的目标是在假期前三个月内不买任何我不需要的东西。在我们出发前一个月，我意识到我需要做更多的事情。我决定我不会花钱出去社交:没有女孩之夜，没有电影，没有周六早上的咖啡约会。我终于达到了我的目标。

Could no-buy be your new normal?

不买会成为你的新常态吗?

Once you become satisfied with owning only a few pairs of good shoes, life changes for the better. (Photo: Cristi Lucaci/Shutterstock)

After vacation, I went back to my regular spending habits. But as I think about the no-buy movement, I wonder what would have happened if I'd maintained the stricter habits. There are many experiences I would love to have — concerts and music festivals are at the top of the list. Yet, I often don't buy tickets to concerts. Instead, I frequently buy little things — like $20 shoes. If I could forgo those little things, I would probably go to a lot more concerts.

假期结束后，我又恢复了正常的消费习惯。但当我想到“不买”运动时，我想知道如果我保持更严格的习惯会发生什么。我有很多想要的经历——音乐会和音乐节是最重要的。然而，我经常不买音乐会的票。相反，我经常买些小东西，比如20美元一双的鞋子。如果我可以放弃这些小事情，我可能会去更多的音乐会。

I think the no-buy movement is something that would bring many of us some happiness. Still, it's difficult. Even though we're surrounded by things, we manage to convince ourselves that none of those things are the "perfect" thing for our immediate need.

我认为“不买”运动会给我们很多人带来一些快乐。不过,很难。即使我们被各种事物所包围，我们也会设法说服自己，这些事物没有一个是满足我们当前需求的“完美”事物。

I'm going to set another goal right now. That goal is to go to a big music festival at the end of the summer. To get there, I'll need to refrain from spending money on the things I don't need. I'm going to commit to not buying any new clothes or shoes between now and then. We'll see how it goes. I may need to commit in a few months to not buying some other things to make sure I get to the festival.

我现在要设定另一个目标。他们的目标是在夏末参加一个大型的音乐节。为了达到那个目标，我必须克制自己不把钱花在我不需要的东西上。我将承诺在这段时间内不买任何新衣服或鞋子。我们拭目以待吧。我可能需要在几个月内承诺不买其他东西，以确保我能参加这个节日。

I encourage you to spend some time thinking about what your goals are and how buying nothing — or at least buying a lot less — can help you reach them.

我鼓励你花点时间想想什么是你的目标，什么都不买——或者至少少买很多——如何能帮助你实现目标。